Dozens of illegal pools and hot tubs in hotels have been discovered on Santorini. (Image: Getty)
The iconic Greek island of has suffered yet another blow, as it emerged environmental inspectors discovered dozens of illegal pools and hot tubs during routine inspections last year.
Between October and November 2024, the inspections targeted 12 facilities near the top tourist town of .
The inspections also revealed unauthorised extensions to cave-style rooms and illegal auxiliary spaces, Environment Ministry announced.
Authorities discovered that many hotels on the falsely registered buildings as pre-1955 structures to bypass regulations.
As a result, inspectors have requested further reviews from Santorini’s urban planning office. The ministry has already suspended new building permits for the caldera and ordered a full review of existing ones by 2025.
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Many hotels fasly registered buildings as pre-1955 structures to bypass regulations. (Image: Getty)
Additional checks on Santorini’s popular Cycladic neighbour, Mykonos, have also been conducted recently, focusing on unauthorised construction falsely classified as pre-2011 structures.
The ministry plans to expand enforcement using satellite imagery, backed by a £107 million budget. Officials state the crackdown aims to curb “rampant development” in high-value tourist areas.
This discovery comes as the latest blow for the island, which welcomes around 3.4 million annually.
The caldera has been the victim of a swarm of for the past month, which has caused thousands of residents and workers to flee for the nearby islands of Ios, Amorgos, and Anafi.
on those islands for a fourth week and many other restrictions are still in effect. A “gradual decline” in earthquakes has been recorded, it has been reported.
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The caldera has been the victim of a swarm of earthquakes for the past month. (Image: Getty)
The Interdisciplinary Committee for Risk and Crisis Management at the University of Athens revealed it had recorded more than 20,000 earthquakes of magnitude one or higher between January 26 and February 22.
The multiple earthquakes, attributed to natural tectonic processes as well as magma movements below the seabed, have measured up to magnitude 5.3 but have caused only minor damage.
“It’s not that I’m afraid of earthquakes – Santorini always shakes,” Manos, a bartender on Santorini told the earlier this month.
“I’m worried there won’t be enough tourists. If the season is weak, I might not make as much money, or they might not need me for the whole summer. I can’t take that risk.”
He then revealed that he has taken a job in for the upcoming season and will not be returning to Santorini in 2025.