Photo taken on May 3, 2018 shows luxury fast motor yachts during the 17th East Med Yacht Show in Piraeus, 12 km southwest from Athens, Greece. The 4-day event aims to boost competitiveness, upgrade services offered by leisure boats and improve Greece's position on the global tourism market. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

ATHENS, May 4 (Xinhua) -- The 17th East Med Yacht Show kicked off on Thursday, presenting a fleet of professional yachts at Zea Marina, near the city port of Piraeus, aiming to promote Greek sea tourism.

"With the East Med Show, we show that shipping and tourism are?two key pillars for the Greek economy and the future is bright for sea tourism," Antonis Stelliatos, president of the Hellenic Professional Yacht Owners Association, told Xinhua.

Visitors can explore a wide variety of professional Greek boats, including 20-meter high-speed boats, catamarans, sailing yachts, traditional boats and mega yachts of 50-60 meters.

The 4-day event aims to boost competitiveness, upgrade services offered by leisure boats and improve Greece's position on the global tourism market.

Cruising along the Greek islands on a yacht is an experience. With endless kilometers of charming coastline and thousands of Greek islands, sailing aboard a yacht has become a very popular activity among visitors in Greece.

The yachting season in Greece runs between April and late October to early November.

"Families or even large group of friends choose to spend their holidays on a boat. The most popular destinations are Mykonos and Santorini, but if the passengers want we can arrange special tours to visit," captain of the cruise yacht Astarte Christoforos Kantaridis said.

The mild climate, the high percentage of sunshine and the varying landscape make Greece the ideal destination for the development of sea tourism activities.

Aiming to attract more visitors, Greece responds to the challenge of yachting tourism with the construction of new marinas, including in its development projects the construction of new ports with services for yachts and cruise boats, officials explained.