Operation of the Museum

The Neraida Floating Museum is berthed at Flisvos Marina and admission is free for the general public. Its visitors have the opportunity to tour the vessel and get to know the Museum’s collection, which tells both the story of the vessel itself, namely the passenger ship “Neraida”, one of the symbols of Greek coastal navigation which sailed in the Saronic Gulf from 1950 to 1974, as well as the chronicle of its reconstruction into a modern and seaworthy floating museum. A second central narrative of the exhibition is dedicated to the business career of its owner, John Latsis, which runs through the entire 20th century.

• 10,190 visitors were welcomed onboard the Neraida Floating Museum in 2024.
• The Museum has welcomed over 114,000 visitors since its opening in 2012, until the end of 2024.

Educational Programmes & Activities

Seeking to actively participate in school life and remain close to the student and teaching community throughout Greece, the Neraida Floating Museum carried on with the implementation of a diverse range of activities, both on-site and online, targeted at primary school students. In this framework, in 2024:

• The on-site educational programme “Travelling with the Neraida: A game on board” was implemented within the Museum premises, aiming at familiarising children with topics related to the maritime history and heritage of Greece, carried out by qualified museum pedagogues.
• The “Educational Portfolios” continued to be distributed to schools throughout Greece, seeking to entertain students in the safety of their classroom, and to provide them with a well-developed and creative way to visit and explore the ship remotely.
• As a part of the Interactive Online Guided Tours that were implemented, students took a virtual tour of the Museum’s exhibition spaces, talked to the crew, and discovered the objects and stories of the ship in a direct and entertaining way, making an exciting journey through space and time.

In 2024 the Museum participated in the anniversary events for the celebration of the International Museum Day with the theme “Museums for education and research”. By choosing this particular theme, the International Council of Museums (ICOM) aimed at highlighting the role of Museums as vital spaces where education and research converge, and innovation meets tradition, spanning a broad spectrum from art and history to science and technology. In this context, the Neraida Floating Museum designed and implemented a series of free activities for children and adults, mainly focusing on significant historical events of the past, highlighted through selected exhibits of the Museum.

• 7,606 students participated in the Museum’s educational programmes in 2024.
• The Educational Portfolios travelled to 254 classrooms across Greece, from Corfu, Komotini and Sitia to Karpathos, Mykonos and Kalymnos.

“The message is to love the sea and travelling.”

Yiannis

“I really enjoyed this guided tour on board. I will visit you again soon!”

Elena

“I was impressed by how the ship’s name was chosen.”

Panagiotis

“I liked the Neraida Floating Museum because I learned new things and its history.”

Katerina

 

Testimonials of students who participated in the educational activities of the Neraida Floating Museum

6th Conference of Seaguards

In October 2024, the 6th Conference of Seaguards, organised by Safe Water Sports non-profit organisation, was held at the Neraida Floating Museum with the support of the John S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation. During the Conference, schools from each region of Greece and schools from Cyprus were given awards for excelling in the e-learning educational programme of Safe Water Sports during the school year 2023-2024 and were gifted complimentary educational materials on safety at sea and water. At the same time, the National Student Painting Competition entitled “Rules for safety at sea and the beach” was held, during which the Hellenic Coast Guard awarded prizes to the best children’s drawings.

The winning schools will act as programme ambassadors, so that the relevant information-education can reach as many students as possible, in order to help them become familiar with water safety rules.

Watch the video of the Conference here (in Greek).

• 43 educators attended the 6th Conference of Safeguards.

Information Campaign for the Elderly

In order to raise awareness among the elderly regarding their safety at sea and water, Safe Water Sports NPO, with the support of the Neraida Floating Museum and the John S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation, launched an information campaign of short videos containing tips, safety rules and instructions from doctors, lifeguards and swimming instructors. This initiative was implemented in collaboration with the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy, the Hellenic Coast Guard and the Ministry of Health with the aim of reducing the number of accidents in the Greek seas and protecting this vulnerable social group. In this context, in 2024, Safe Water Sports, with the support of the Neraida Floating Museum, organised free information visits for Third Age people from Open Care Centres for the Elderly at the southern suburbs to the Museum. During the visits, the participants had the opportunity to watch the campaign’s educational videos, be informed about safety rules and participate in guided tours of the Museum’s collection.

Watch the Campaign here (in Greek).

• 242 elderly people from 8 Open Care Centres for the Elderly visited the Neraida Floating Museum in 2024.