The Daleela ferry resumed its Cyprus-Greece connection on Saturday, departing from Limassol for Piraeus in the first of 22 scheduled crossings this summer.
Speaking at the new port of Limassol, Deputy Minister of Shipping Marina Hadjimanolis said that “now in its fourth consecutive season, the passenger and vehicle ferry remains the only maritime link between the two countries, and demand continues to grow.”

The 2025 service was formally launched by Hadjimanolis and contractor Scandro Holding Ltd, following the cabinet’s decision last August to extend the state-subsidised connection through 2027.
In her remarks, Hadjimanolis said that the public response has increased each year.

“This is the fourth year and we are very happy to see that the public response is growing every year,” she said, adding that the ship has been upgraded and that safety remains a priority.
She thanked Scandro Holding Ltd, as well as DP World Limassol, the customs department, the ports authority, and the police for their cooperation in ensuring smooth operations.

The vessel departed Limassol shortly after midday, carrying 187 passengers, 66 vehicles, 36 motorcycles and 8 pets.
Over 6,500 tickets have already been booked for the season, with around 2,000 vehicles registered.
August sailings are fully booked, while limited spaces remain for June and July. The final trip is scheduled for 2 September.

According to Hadjimanolis, the government’s annual subsidy for the route stands at €5.5 million.
“As the government of Nikos Christodoulides, we have set the maritime passenger connection as a priority from the beginning, for the reason that it is the only way that Cyprus is connected to Greece by sea,” she said.
“We have managed to strengthen our ties with Greece in this sector and serve people who, for health reasons, could not travel in any other way.”
She noted that the ferry offers critical access for elderly travellers or those with medical conditions who avoid air travel.
“Our goal is to continue offering this service to the public until the end of the subsidy period and we are optimistic, because from various meetings we have had, we have seen that there is a response.”

Scandro Holding CEO Charalambos Manolis said that while total bookings are comparable to 2024, the season’s first sailing recorded particularly high demand.
“We see that the public has loved this, and from our side we are doing everything we can to serve them,” he said, confirming that the vessel has been upgraded and that only a few places are still available for July.

Daleela is a 34-year-old Ro-Ro vessel built in 1991 and currently sailing under the Cypriot flag.
She measures 185.5 metres in length and 26.8 metres in width.
Originally constructed as New Akashi by Kanda Shipbuilding in Japan, she was later chartered for the Cyprus-Greece route.
The ship is operated under a €15.6m contract awarded in 2022 to Scandro Holding Ltd, a joint venture between Limassol-based Acheon Akti Navigation and Nicosia’s Top Kinisis Travel.

Since the relaunch of the route, the service has carried 22,582 passengers, 7,641 vehicles and 772 pets, according to the ministry.

Also attending Saturday’s launch was DP World Limassol CEO Simon Pitout, who described the ferry connection as important key for the island’s tourism offering.
“It boosts tourism and brings more visitors to explore Cyprus,” he said, thanking Scandro Holding for their collaboration and expressing optimism for another successful season.

Pitout also commented on the cruise sector’s gradual recovery.
“Although there has been a negative impact in previous years from developments in the Middle East, I am pleased to say that, with the support of the ministry and other partners, we are now seeing the cruise sector growing steadily again.”
According to Hadjimanolis, 170,000 travellers are expected from 138 cruise ships in 2025, up from 120,000 the previous year.
“There is very good cooperation between cruise companies internationally and with DP World Limassol,” she said.
“With the completion of the first National Strategy for cruises, we are confident that we will succeed in putting Cyprus on the global cruise map.”

Pitout noted the strategic value of Limassol as a home port and emphasised the role of Marella Cruises, which has selected the city as its departure point for the summer.
“Every Wednesday, the cruise ship Marella Discovery is in Limassol,” he said.
“We see smiling faces disembarking and boarding and enjoying Cyprus, and this is good news.”

Representing the municipality of Limassol, deputy mayor of Cerkez, Ira Philippou described the ferry as a key institution for the city and its tourism offering.
“It is being held for the fourth consecutive year, strengthening cooperation, tourism and the ties between Cyprus and Greece,” she said, wishing safe and pleasant journeys to all passengers.

Hadjimanolis also confirmed that foreign interest in expanding maritime links to other destinations is growing.
“Some companies showed interest and requested information from us and the Ministry of Transport,” she said.
When asked, she confirmed that the enquiries concerned possible routes with Israel and Lebanon.
“We are ready to respond, at any time, to any business person who wants to start something new,” Hadjimanolis concluded.