Hydra Island - Hellas

The National Merchant Marine Academy is the first Marine Academy in Greece and proud successor of the Greece marine tradition.

The Academy started to operate in 1749. At first it was a school with the name "Saint Nikolaos" and from the 1800 it operated as Merchant Marine Academy of Hydra with initiative from the eldership of the island.

In the years before the revolution, foreign teachers from Portugal and Italy mostly, were teaching naval theory and foreign lanquages in to the Academy.

In 1927 was established in Hydra private Naval College under the protection of the naval Society of Hydra.

In 1930 was established from the state the National Merchant Marine Academy as we know it today.

From 1930 the Academy is situated to the Manor where Anastasios Tsamados and Athanasios Koulouras used to live. It is bestowed to the State exclusively for the operation of the Academy.

During the second world war and until 1948 the Acxademy had outliers to Athens and Peiraeus.

The first educational boat of the Academy was called "Saint Gearge" of the fisherman Tsigaris, the second was called "Electra" and the third one "Eugene Eugenidis".

Since 1989 the institute of interchangeable education has been applied.

According to this, the naval cadets are traveling with containers ships and they get paid for that. The apprenticeship in the Academy is four years. From the Academy have already gratuated 2.800 captains.