Greece holidays: Popular destination fines tourists £600k over strict beach rules as authorities probe more than 4,500 citizen complaints

The popular holiday destination had rolled out a raft of new regulations earlier this year aimed at enhancing public access to its world-renowned coastline and tackling overcrowding. A minimum four-metre gap between sunbeds and the shoreline was introduced to make it easier for beach-goers to reach the water.

Another measure included 70% of beaches being free of sunbeds to prevent overcrowding and make sunbathing more comfortable. Electronic reporting systems were set up near beaches so that people could report any rule-breaking to authorities, and it was announced that drone inspections would be carried out to ensure compliance.

This month alone, the Greek Ministry of Economy and Finance has reportedly probed over 4,500 citizen complaints about beaches and coastal areas. On-the-spot checks were carried out at more than 150 beaches to ensure that the sands remained fully accessible.

The MyCoast app is on hand for beachgoers to call out anybody breaking the rules. In March Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis said: "This summer a lot will change on our beaches."

Greece is currently battling a surge in cases of the new Covid-19 variant, FLiRT. The variant first appeared in Greece two weeks ago, and since there has been a dramatic rise in Covid hospital admissions. Some rules have been reinforced including mask-wearing in some hospitals.