You Can Now Book an Uber Boat in Mykonos

Travelers visiting the Greek island of Mykonos have a new way of getting around: Instead of hopping into a taxi cab or riding the bus, they can now take in the sights while sailing on the Aegean Sea aboard an Uber Boat.

The rideshare platform launched the new service in Mykonos this summer, while also expanding a slew of other options throughout Europe. (Sadly, the company didn’t make its coronation-inspired horse-drawn carriage rides a permanent offering.)

Travelers looking to take advantage of Uber Boat can book a ride through the app, just as they would book a ride in a car. A few stipulations exist: Seafaring customers will need to reserve a boat at least 45 minutes ahead of time, and they can only be picked up or dropped off at 25 designated sites around the island. The boats hold up to eight passengers.

Agnes Sali of Time Out was one of several journalists who recently got to try out the new service in Mykonos, which she describes as a “very, very sexy island.” She took an Uber Boat from a beach to a restaurant, and she says she enjoyed the unique perspective she got from the water.

“On a boat, you’ve got a good view of everything in the distance: all the nice architecture, the mountains and hills … everywhere you turn, 360 degrees of beautiful scenes and amazing sights,” she tells Time Out’s Ed Cunningham.

Sali described Uber Boat as a “nice alternative” to riding in a taxi, one that got her to her intended destination “in style and with no risk of traffic.”

Uber has experimented in this space before. In 2013, the company briefly tested a “Boat to Work” option in San Francisco. And since 2020, the company has offered boat rides in London via a partnership with the Thames Clippers. That arrangement lets commuters and visitors travel between 24 piers on the River Thames throughout the city, according to the company. Though the Thames Clippers boats operate year-round, the Mykonos boat services will only be available from now through October, per a statement from Uber.

This summer, Uber is predicting a 250 percent increase in travelers visiting Europe from the United States—which is the impetus behind many of the new services. In addition to debuting Uber Boat, the company is also expanding several other offerings in locations across the continent, some of which have long been available elsewhere.

Those services include Uber Taxi, which lets travelers book a ride in a local taxi via the app, and Uber Comfort, which provides a “larger vehicle with a ‘VIP vibe,’” as Christine Burroni writes for Travel + Leisure. The company also launched its own travel planning tool, Uber Travel, which aims to organize travelers’ flights, rental cars and other travel information. 

Uber Reserve allows travelers to book a ride up to 90 days in advance, and it is often used to travel to and from the airport. “Uber’s flight-tracking technology syncs your rides with your flight info, so you have a car waiting for you when you land at any airport, accounting for delays and busy airports,” writes Yerin Kim for PopSugar, 

That functionality will likely come in handy during the busy travel summer season, which has already been mired in flight cancellations and delays.

Sarah Kuta | READ MORE

Sarah Kuta is a writer and editor based in Longmont, Colorado. She covers history, science, travel, food and beverage, sustainability, economics and other topics.