The Information Office operates as an electronic platform and provides information on ecotourism on the island of Andros Island.
Its main aim is to promote and disseminate information on fishing tourism opportunities on Andros ISland and the organization of tourist fishing trips by local fishermen with special reference to members of the Andros Brand quality mark.
Discovering Andros Island
Get a taste of the nature and traditions of Andros Island and the opportunities to individually or through organized activities to live them.
Organizing an excursion to experience traditional fishing
Fishing tourism is a new form of tourism where visitors can board a traditional fishing boat and experience the traditional way of coastal fishing.
The waters surrounding Andros Island are home to the Mediterranean Monk Seal, whose population is increasing in recent years, as is the case in the rest of Greece. The overfishing of the seas that has led to the decline of fish, combined with the fact that fishermen and Mediterranean Monk Seals fish in the same waters, inevitably leads to encounters and interactions. Entangled fish on fishing gear are an easy source of food for Mediterranean Monk Seals, which either simply remove it or by doing so destroy the gear. This leads to a decrease of the fishermen’s catch, but also to the destruction of their equipment and economical damage. Fishermen recognize the need for the species protection and they respect it, but nevertheless the damage they suffer is a fact and their permanent demand is compensation.
Aiming to promote an alternative source of income for fishermen, and on the same time to reduce the interaction with seals, the development of fishing tourism on the island of Andros is promoted.
You can become part of the solution, supporting both the fishermen of Andros and the Mediterranean Monk Seal to continue fishing in the waters of the Aegean Sea.
How can I become a more “responsible” visitor/traveller?
Ecotourism is defined as responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education.
Find out what you can do in this direction through simple steps.
Kids corner
Ecotourism is defined as responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education. (TIES, 2015).