Greece is world-famous for its gorgeous islands, all 6,000 of them. Boasting endless sunlight and a hundred different types of beach, they are a popular destination for jet-setting Brits.
However, visitors to this one pretty island need to be careful as they could be hit with a £665 (€775) fine for making this one common mistake. Those holidaying in Skiathos, in the northwest Aegean Sea, are the ones at risk.
If visitors are found removing pebbles from the island’s iconic Lalaria Beach, they will be slapped with fines ranging from £850 (€1000).
Introduced in 2018, the draconian rules aimed to curb rock theft at the island’s most famous beach.
Named after the ancient Greek word for pebble – las – visitors to Skiathos’ Lalaria Beach will be met with a sign informing them that taking the white stones is strictly forbidden.
The signs, which are also in place on the boat that transports tourists to the beach, read: “It is strictly prohibited to remove pebbles or stones from anywhere on the beach.”
In an effort to encourage compliance further, the Skiathos authorities have also placed so-called “Lalaria Beach pebble return boxes” at airports, where visitors are also subject to suitcase searches.
Without these rules in place, the island was at risk of losing whole chunks of its famous beach, made its film debut in the first Mamma Mia movie.
Local authorities and activists have popularised the slogan “Take a picture, not a pebble,” which now features on posters around the island.
Speaking to The Guardian, the island’s harbour master chief discussed the fines when they were first introduced in 2018. He said: “Lalaria is not a protected site so the fines were announced in extremis.
“Now that all these measures have been taken we hope they will have a deterrent effect.”
According to the town’s spokesperson, Athina Papageorgiou, the rules were necessary given the Skiathos’ rising popularity. She said in 2018: “On the back of the tourism surge there’s been a noticeable decline in the stones. It may be a small thing to take one here and there, but when that is repeated multiple times, the result is there is nothing left.”
