Greece has the second-highest number of clean and well-maintained beaches out of the 40 countries rated by the Blue Flag campaign in its annual awards, the results of which were made public yesterday.

The Denmark-based organization awarded Blue Flags to 404 Greek beaches (21 more than last year), as they fulfilled 29 criteria, including those for water quality, environmental management and safety. The campaign is run by the independent Foundation for Environmental Education, which is responsible for inspecting thousands of beaches around the world. Spain topped this year’s list.

Among the Greek islands, Crete was found to have the greatest number of suitable beaches, gaining 92 Blue Flags, followed by Corfu with 32 and Rhodes with 31. But Skiathos, in the Sporades, was this year’s big winner as seven beaches on the island were added to the list for the first time.