Return of the Nissos Chios
Travellers with Blue Star tickets for much of May have been puzzled because although their tickets stated their ship was Nissos Chios (for the Wednesday and Friday sailings) what actually turned up was Blue Star Patmos. This wasn’t a problem, since the Patmos is if anything a slightly better ship, though there’s not much in it.
Finally there has been a belated shuffle round of ferries this weekend and Nissos Chios has actually reached the Dodecanese for the first time this year, so can be expected to visit Symi every Wednesday and Friday up to very early September. The Blue Star Patmos should then take over again until next spring.
If you’re still confused, the Nissos Chios has large “Hellenic Seaways” lettering on the side, along with a slightly smaller set “Operated by Blue Star Ferries”. Blue Star and Hellenic Seaways are sister companies and frequently exchange ships to get the best fit of capacity and speed on routes for particular seasons. The Diagoras, which spent many years operating in Blue Star colours in the Dodecanese, now carries “Operated by Hellenic Seaways” labels and runs Hellenic Seaways timings in the North Aegean.