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One day before the 24-hour Greek seafarers’ strike on Friday 30 October 2026, the picture is clearer: besides Piraeus, Rafina, Lavrio, Patras and Igoumenitsa, the strike also covers the port of Elefsina and the Rio–Antirrio ferry crossing. Blue Star Ferries has moved its Dodecanese and North Aegean ships to Friday night, so they reach the islands on Saturday. Ferries between the Turkish coast and the islands are not part of the strike. We covered the original strike call and passenger rights in our 21 October report; this article collects what has been announced since 24 October.
What happened?
- Seven locations: According to Pelop.gr and TheTOC (both 27 October), ships are expected to stay in port on Friday at Piraeus, Rafina, Lavrio, Patras, Igoumenitsa, Elefsina and Rio–Antirrio. Thebest.gr repeated the same list on the morning of 29 October.
- Hours: According to the union announcement reported by Lesvosnews on 26 October, the strike runs from 00:01 to 24:00 on Friday.
- Port staff too: The Federation of Permanent Port Employees of Greece (OMYLE) is stopping work for three hours, 10:00–13:00, on Friday. The Piraeus Labour Centre has called a 24-hour strike in Piraeus the same day, with a rally at 10:00 in Dimotiko Theatro Square.
- No nationwide strike: On the morning of 29 October the website of the seafarers’ federation PNO still showed no strike announcement for 30 October. As of 29 October we found no report of a court ruling against the strike.
Piraeus sailings to the Dodecanese and North Aegean (Blue Star ships: Blue Star Ferries announcement as reported by Atlantea on 26 October; Nisos Samos: Lesvosnews, 26 October; Greek time, one hour behind Turkey):
| Ship | Departs Piraeus (Friday 30 Oct) | Arrivals on Saturday 31 Oct |
|---|---|---|
| Superfast XI | 23:45 (normally in the afternoon) | Patmos 07:55, Leros 09:20, Kalymnos 10:50, Kos 11:55, Rhodes 15:25 |
| Blue Star Chios | 23:00 | Santorini, Anafi, Crete (Heraklion, Sitia), Kasos, Karpathos, Chalki; Rhodes 21:45 |
| Blue Star Myconos | 23:00 | Karlovasi 08:30, Vathy (Samos) 09:40, Chios 12:55, Mytilene 15:30, Lemnos 20:50 |
| Nisos Samos | 23:59 | Chios 09:50, Mytilene 13:50 |
According to Blue Star, no ticket change is needed for its own overnight sailings. The Friday morning Blue Star 1 (07:25) and Blue Star Paros (07:30) departures from Piraeus to the Cyclades are cancelled together with their return trips; those tickets must be changed (through the agency if bought there, otherwise via the company on +30 210 8919800). According to a list published by Naxos Times on 27 October, some Seajets sailings from Piraeus and Rafina on Friday will not run either, including the 16:30 Superstar from Rafina.
The announced night departures fall before the 24:00 end of the strike given by the unions. Lesvosnews also advises passengers booked on the Friday 23:00 and 23:59 sailings to confirm the time with the company.
What does it mean for travellers?
- Crossing from Turkey to an island: Routes such as Kos–Bodrum, Rhodes–Marmaris, Chios–Çeşme and Lesvos–Ayvalık do not use the strike ports and are not named in the strike announcements. For winter timetables see our winter schedule report.
- Continuing from an island to Athens by ferry: Check your tickets for Friday and Saturday. We found no company announcement for sailings from the North Aegean or the Dodecanese arriving at Piraeus; we could not verify this, so ask your company.
- Arriving from Piraeus and crossing to Turkey: Superfast XI reaches Patmos, Leros, Kalymnos and Kos, and Blue Star Myconos and Nisos Samos reach Samos, Chios and Lesvos, during the day on Saturday. If you plan to cross to Turkey the same day, check the winter sailings, for example Bodrum–Leros, Turgutreis–Kalymnos or Kuşadası–Patmos.
- Turkish passport holders with a visa on arrival: The visa is valid only on the island of entry and does not allow onward travel to Athens, so the strike does not affect these travellers directly (visa on arrival guide).
- If your sailing is cancelled: Under EU Regulation 1177/2010 you can choose a refund or re-routing; details in our first report.
The list may still change at short notice; check your company’s announcement before you go to the port.
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Sources
- Atlantea - Blue Star Ferries: cancellations and changes due to the 30/10 strike (26 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- Dimokratiki (Rhodes) - SUPERFAST XI changes schedule because of the strike (24 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- Lesvosnews - 30 October strike: changes to Mytilene and Lemnos sailings (26 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- Naxos Times - 30 October strike: cancellations and changes in the Cyclades (27 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- Pelop.gr - Ships in port on Friday 30 October, strike at major ports (27 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- TheTOC - Seafarers’ strike: ships in port on Friday 30 October (27 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- Thebest.gr - Friday strike also affects Patras and Rio–Antirrio (29 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- Parapolitika - Seafarers’ strike: Souda and Piraeus sailings (28 October 2026, accessed 29 October 2026)
- PNO - announcements on the federation’s home page (accessed 29 October 2026)
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