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Dateline AU - Season Episode 12 - Greek Islands: Built Up & Booked Out
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00:04Pristine coastlines and postcard villages, a once untouched paradise, is now anything but.
00:16Greece is one of the most popular holiday destinations in the world.
00:22Every year, more than 37 million tourists flock to see the famous sights.
00:30But catching a glimpse of a Santorini sunset gets harder every season, and the landscape is buckling under the weight
00:39of the tourist boom.
01:20This is a normal day on the island of Santorini.
01:27Three cruise ships sit off the coast, each with thousands of passengers waiting to be ferried ashore for a few
01:35hours on the island.
01:37Just enough time to see the view, take a photo, and tick it off the list.
01:44Today, around 8,000 visitors will pass through, and everyone is heading the same way, up.
01:52It's a one-hour wait for the cable car, or there's the more authentic ride to the top.
02:08Jack is very good.
02:10His name is Jack.
02:12I got Barrett Dinan.
02:14Am couple streets.
02:17I got my use for the key of the river, and I quello gravy.
02:20Yes.
02:21I'm always back here with theime Budah yesterday.
02:24If you have done a dream, you have to have seen some stigma.
02:27I saw someone crosses.
02:31There's my auntie everywhere.
02:36Let's see myself.
02:42Most tourists visiting Santorini simply want to snap a postcard-worthy picture.
02:48This is a very famous tourist spot.
02:51Yeah, with the blue dome and the white horse.
02:54And so many couples will come here to maybe to spend their honeymoon.
02:59So that's why it's very expensive, the accommodation and the food.
03:04And the massive crowds don't bother everyone.
03:07As the Chinese, we have so many people, so large population.
03:12Yeah, we are used to that.
03:16But Santorini's epic landscape was never meant for these crowds.
03:21One of the driest islands in Greece, it now boasts more than 1,000 swimming pools.
03:28So many that water is shipped in just to keep up with demand.
03:33And all of it is carved into volcanic cliffs.
03:38Beautiful, but brittle.
03:41Thousands of people are leaving the Greek island of Santorini after multiple underwater earthquakes struck the Aegean Sea.
03:49Santorini sits on an active volcanic system.
03:53And Greece is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world.
03:57With an average of 28,000 tremors recorded every year.
04:03Even small shifts can trigger rock falls here.
04:06And the more that's built, the greater the pressure on the landscape.
04:12But that hasn't slowed development.
04:15For those trying to protect what's left, the strain on the environment has become impossible to ignore.
04:22Stop!
04:24There is no new advice for tourists.
04:26The conditions that you have to bear with the mountains are really dangerous.
04:30With the rocks, with the water.
04:31We have these tourists.
04:33There are many accidents.
04:34We will stop to grow.
04:37Environmentalist Carolina Rakaki has been lobbying to halt construction projects.
04:42But court cases here can take unexpected turns.
04:47It is true.
04:48We are waiting for the decision.
04:49We would have many to lose it.
04:51So, we can manage the environment in these little battles that are given and can be lost.
04:58It is one of the battles that will be lost.
05:00Unfortunately, in Greece, many battles do not believe in how simple or slow the action of the battles are,
05:11but how strong the enemy is.
05:13And many times when the enemy is very strong,
05:15they will lose the battle regardless of whether the right or the right.
05:24A few islands over in Mykonos.
05:28New plans bring new problems.
05:33Tasos Teloglu is an investigative journalist covering organized crime and corruption on the island.
05:40He's been tracking a real estate scandal that sent shockwaves through Greece.
05:45A land dispute that turned deadly.
05:49This plot was owned by a local man.
05:52A prime site worth millions and slated for luxury development.
05:58According to reports, he'd been in a dispute with prospective buyers for years, until one day, surveillance cameras captured this.
06:0820 shots, at close range, in broad daylight.
06:13A mafia-style murder.
06:19The alleged perpetrator was arrested, but police say there are signs of a broader network's involvement.
06:27Exactly who is hard to trace.
06:30And even harder to prove.
06:34The copious Carlisle's classification doesn't know about the right people who did not find the right people.
06:40The policeone's lawyer can live outside, except for the right people who are forced to find the right people in
06:54Mykonos.
06:55It's usually people who pay attention to those who come from outside.
06:59It's basically the local workers who don't care if they're legal or legal.
07:03And the problem is that the local workers, the airlines, the municipal services,
07:08there are airlines that are bought, that's what we know.
07:11There are many of them in the last two years.
07:15And there is a long-term problem with the population,
07:18that there are problems with unemployment and unemployment.
07:22It's a serious claim that powerful players are pulling the strings.
07:27A claim the mayor of Mykonos rejects.
07:30He insists things are under control.
07:34Mykonos is a land that is not heard of what we've heard in the last decade.
07:42For Bravus, for Mavravan and so on.
07:46That's why we went back and tried again for the big works,
07:49not to be successful in a non-profit environment,
07:51such as to come out of Sonic to get water.
07:55Or not to be able to keep getting water.
07:57These are not exist.
07:59The UNF,
08:01in the review,
08:02about the official двο mijosunal,
08:04we do not know about the government.
08:05It is a turning point in the 40 percent of the damon's on the island.
08:09That is why those who have been able to do it, are very important.
08:13Why do they don't cut these these?
08:16This is what I have to ask for the Greek government.
08:19Why do they come to the government?
08:20They say it.
08:21But they have the responsibility of the government.
08:26They came to cut them.
08:28Because they have to cut them to cut them.
08:30They have to cut them.
08:31If you can imagine that a government can cut them, it's difficult.
08:35But the government can do it.
08:37And until now they have not done it.
08:40My wife ended up in the Netherlands and is working there.
08:45She goes to Germany.
08:46She sees people who are organized.
08:48With a safe legislation.
08:49But mainly with a safe legislation.
08:52That means there should be a safe place in Greece.
08:56From the day that I was elected,
08:58from the 1st-1st of 1924,
09:00until now they have changed 10 times the legislation.
09:03Where will this happen?
09:04It doesn't happen anywhere else in Europe.
09:08The mayor says responsibility lies with the government in Athens,
09:12while officials in Athens say it's up to local authorities.
09:16In the meantime, enforcement can fall through the cracks.
09:22But it hasn't always been like this.
09:29In the 1950s and 60s, Mykonos was still a quiet fishing island.
09:34And its most famous resident was Petros the Pelican.
09:41Then came the super rich.
09:42And the island built a reputation it still trades on today.
09:47A playground for the wealthy.
09:53Its beach clubs rank among the most expensive in the world.
09:57With minimum spends of up to 10,000 euros a night.
10:03Although its main tradition,
10:06And there are people who have great time.
10:12But then, when you're looking for a full stroke,
10:16you can find some part of that.
10:16The city's world is the suspect.
10:19Without a real book.
10:21The city's world.
10:21The city's world.
10:22The city's world.
10:23The city's world.
10:24The city's world.
10:26It's the city's new city.
10:30I have a small camera so I don't understand that I'm a paparazzi with a big face.
10:41Back at his studio, he reveals some of the celebrities he's snapped.
10:47Hugh Jackman, DiCaprio with the cape.
10:52They come for life, the lifestyle.
10:55And it's behind you, you take a photo of how beautiful you're a fan of a celebrity.
11:02And you come with him and say, look, I'm here.
11:05Or with Sakira, Lady Gaga, Monica Bellucci.
11:08They came to Mykonos.
11:11But it's not just the super rich who come to party.
11:16Last year, 768 cruise ships docked here.
11:23Daytrippers come for the whitewashed houses and stay for the waterfront bars.
11:29We'll be having a beer in a minute.
11:31Just seeing the sights, having a look at little Venice,
11:35and meeting the locals and enjoying the sun.
11:38We come for the sun, as you can see.
11:40But for locals, the reality of the boom is less idyllic.
11:45I feel like a soldier.
11:48The conditions are quite difficult.
11:52In the heat, in the mood of the tourism.
11:56Everyone comes from croissants.
11:59They're tired, not hungry, they can be hungry.
12:03Because the truth is that we also have a lot of difficulties in the day.
12:08We have to deal with it.
12:10Take a look at it.
12:13Authorities are starting to respond.
12:16This summer, cruise passengers will have to pay 20 euros just to step ashore in Mykonos.
12:22With more than a million tourists planning holidays,
12:26it's not expected to be a huge deterrent.
12:31But there are islands in Greece doing things differently.
12:36On Astipalia, locals are trying to protect what they have.
12:42And it helps that it's hard to reach.
12:47Astipalia has no international airport,
12:50and cruise ships can't dock here,
12:52which helps keep the crowds at bay.
12:56The tourists who do come here are looking for something more homely.
13:03Also, here is it really very familiar.
13:06It's coming to home.
13:08Also, Griechenland is big.
13:12Astipalia is,
13:13I come here for 12 years now,
13:17so you come here.
13:17You come from the taxi driver,
13:20so to say.
13:22That's the first welcome.
13:24That's the welcome.
13:25And then you come here,
13:26and then you come here really home.
13:30Like elsewhere in Greece,
13:32tourism is growing in Astipalia.
13:36But it's largely still built around family-run businesses,
13:40like this small hotel run by mother and daughter,
13:43Konstantina and Lilo.
13:45You say Astipalia is the island with positive energy,
13:49and everyone who comes here is interested.
13:51And the most of them come again.
13:53There are some kind of wandering.
13:57I don't want tourists to come to a party, to drink and drink until the morning.
14:11Around 70,000 tourists come to Astapaglia every year.
14:16A fraction of the numbers flooding in to Mykonos and Santorini.
14:20But even here, there are questions about what comes next.
14:42It's a view shared by many here, including the island's mare.
14:51He's made it his mission to keep large-scale development off Astapaglia
14:56and preserve what makes the island special.
15:00Look now, Floria, look at where we are.
15:03Here you will understand how life is created.
15:06This is it at this time.
15:08They take nectar from this thymari and make the melon.
15:12This is the life of the island.
15:15This is to stay in the ages.
15:17To remind us how it was there and how it should be there.
15:22This stretch of land overlooking the coast was once earmarked for a major resort development.
15:28What is the plan?
15:29The plan was, imagine you, about 200,000 homes in every single one.
15:35And one or two types of types of types.
15:41It would be with a bedroom.
15:43It would be like roads everywhere.
15:45You would have to go through these things.
15:47You would have to go through it.
15:48You would have to go through it.
15:50In this place where there are 2,000 homes in the river,
15:52that means a place that can start from that island,
15:56and move towards the sea.
15:58It's a very large surface.
16:00It's a very large surface.
16:01This is the pain of the nature.
16:04We don't know.
16:04We want to do it.
16:06Hundreds of homes, hotels, and private pools.
16:10It's a scale of development that would have transformed the island.
16:14But local authorities pushed back and the federal government put it on hold.
16:20For now, at least, a rare victory.
16:53Meanwhile, on Mykonos, the boom continues.
17:09On the island of Mykonos, construction is creeping into every corner.
17:17Local celebrity photographer, Petros Nazos, lives here in Agrari.
17:23And despite earning a living from high-end tourism,
17:27he's not happy about plans to build a luxury hotel right next to his home.
17:44Only 40-50 years ago.
17:47And they are preparing for the Mykonos.
17:48Now, with this project,
17:50there will be a natural collapse and it will be destroyed.
17:57There are very serious problems.
17:59Not just economically.
18:02You can see, on the streets, we have been filled with lightness.
18:05Because there are a lot of fires,
18:08but there is no water and water.
18:31The latest proposal here in Agrari is a 200-million-euro luxury development.
18:37The developer wants the project to be designated a strategic investment,
18:43which allows it to bypass some local safeguards and get its approvals fast-tracked.
18:50Plans include a hotel, luxury villas and resort facilities built into the landscape.
18:58The company calls it an ultra-luxury eco-project,
19:02set in one of the island's last unspoiled landscapes.
19:07The company says the project is still under review,
19:11and that the process is designed to ensure environmentally friendly construction
19:16and benefits for Greek society.
19:19Just up the road, more construction.
19:24Investigative reporter Tassos is at the site of the soon-to-be Four Seasons Hotel.
19:31In this moment, the work that M.E.K.O.N.O.N.O.N.O.N.O.N.O
19:33.N.O.N.O.S.
19:53For Seasons, exactly, has developed another strategic investment.
19:58On the other hand, there is Radisson Blue, a new brand.
20:01On the other hand, there are dozens of other companies.
20:04And on the other hand, there is another big company,
20:07a very large company, a local company.
20:10That means there is actually more cement
20:14than the law of the European Union.
20:21Back on Santorini,
20:23traditional culture is slowly dying
20:25under the weight of the tourism industry.
20:31The city is more difficult to do than the other.
20:34How do you think it is?
20:35Everything is more difficult.
20:37It is more difficult.
20:37Because of the tourism,
20:38there are no supplies,
20:39there are no supplies,
20:43there are no supplies.
20:44But the disaster has happened by ourselves.
20:47Because we have not created a law
20:51where we have to be a part of the development,
20:53but we have to be able to preserve
20:55We want to look at these things from the most historical world.
20:59Other than that, you are surprised that you don't play with the tradition.
21:07It's a political revolution. You don't play with it.
21:20A kind of my body should be a little like a tree that you have.
21:29It's the way you look at it, and then it's the place you have.
21:39It's the way you look at it.
21:43all these diseases that create not a good psychological situation,
21:49if we want to improve it.
21:53His vineyard, which has existed for generations,
21:56is surrounded on all sides by hotel construction sites.
22:01It's a boom that shows no signs of slowing,
22:05fueled by a constant flow of tourist dollars
22:08which make up around a quarter of Greece's economy.
22:12Each year, more than three million visitors arrive here on Santorini,
22:18on an island home to just 16,000.
22:21At times, it pushes the landscape to its limit.
22:26Red Beach is one of the island's most famous sites.
22:31It's officially closed after earthquakes left the cliffs above it unstable.
22:39We just came to see it because we heard it was a great place to watch.
22:42But we also heard we shouldn't walk there. That is dangerous.
22:50The order came from authorities in Athens,
22:53but the closure has come as more of a suggestion to some visitors.
22:58We are both fans when the beach is not so full,
23:01not so full, not so full.
23:04All to catch a glimpse of the view
23:06and prove you are here by posting it.
23:11I think that's the point that most people have done it.
23:13I think that's the point that most people have done it.
23:14You have to do it if you are close or in Greece.
23:18And now we can also say that we have done it.
23:20Yeah.
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