The Blue Flag is a certification by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE that a beach, marina, or sustainable boating tourism operator meets its standards. The Blue Flag is a trademark owned by FEE which is a not-for-profit non-governmental organisation consisting of 65 organisations in 60 member countries.


Blue Flags it is an environmental awareness and protection program carried out every year, on a large scale, in more than 50 countries in Europe and other parts of the world by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), based in Denmark.

The "Blue Flag" is an international symbol of quality, considered the most famous environmental symbol in the world

Awarded since 1987, to the coasts and marinas which meet the strict award requirements. It aims to make beaches and marinas better organized and safer and to protect their natural environment.

In Greece, the coordinator of the program is the Hellenic Society for the Protection of Nature (EEPF), the oldest environmental organization in our country, which has been active in environmental education and nature protection since 1951.

It is not enough for a coast to have only the required excellent bathing water quality

In addition, the remaining 32 strict criteria must be met, which refer to cleanliness, organization, information, safety of bathers and visitors, protection of the natural wealth of the coast and coastal area and at the same time environmental awareness.

The big travel agencies abroad pay special attention to the "Blue Flag" when choosing the destinations they offer to their customers, insisting on the good services offered on the coast, but also in the protection of the environment.

The program is supported by the Special Water Secretariat of YPEKA, which operates the "Register of Swimming Coast Identities" by systematically monitoring the coasts that gather a significant number of bathers, are of environmental interest or receive strong environmental pressures. Every year it carries out the sampling controls of the bathing water quality.

It is also not easy for a marina to win the "Blue Flag"

It must meet 24 strict criteria, related to the cleanliness of the marina, its organization, the safety of visitors, nature protection and environmental awareness. And if another marina wins the "Blue Flag", it maintains it only that year and must prove that it deserves it the next day. The inspectors of EEPF and FEE visit the marinas throughout the summer period and point out any problems and omissions.

Source: visitgreece.gr