Santorini is iconic for a reason. With beautiful sunsets, volcanic beaches, blue domed churches, and ocean view plunge pools galore, Santorini cannot be missed if you are making your way through the Greek isles.
Fun fact: Santorini is basically the side of a volcano and most towns overlook the caldera, which is the volcano mouth.
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How to get there
Santorini is accessible by ferry or by plane. If you are arriving by plane, I would recommend taking a plane since it will be significantly shorter travel time (about an hour). A ferry will take you a bit more time (about 5 hours) if you are coming from Athens. Make sure to check Ferryhopper for the best ferry options.
Trip time from popular islands via fast ferries:
- Athens: 4 hours 45 mins
- Mykonos: 1 hour 55 mins
- Paros: 3 hours 40 mins
- Milos: 2 hours 5 mins
- Crete: 1 hour 50 mins
We arrived in Santorini around 2pm via a small Seajet catamaran from Milos and the port area was by far the craziest of the entire island hop. The ferry port is relatively small and busses and cabs line the narrow winding road that lead from the port to the main island roads that sit up high. I would highly recommend arranging transportation ahead of your arrival as this will allow you to bypass most of the insanity.
We were there at the end of may and I truly cannot imagine the mess it must be in high season.
Where to stay in Oia
If you are going to splurge on accommodations anywhere on your trip, I would choose Santorini every time. There are many cave suite options that include plunge pools and great caldera views.
Cave Suite Oia was by far the most incredible place that we stayed on our trip. This suite is situated right between the iconic two blue domes in Oia and truly puts you in the postcard. You access the site via the walkway that people go to take their picture in front of the domed backdrop. While some people would prefer to steer clear of this area, we enjoyed a strange sense of superiority to get to confidently walk right past the long line of photo takes to our suite. We spent our whole afternoon relaxing and drinking complimentary wine in our private plunge pool and taking in the views. In addition, the suite included breakfast delivered to your door and an on call concierge who is amazing.
If you would like to stay in Oia and have these incredible views, and Cave Suite Oia is sold out, I would recommend looking into the following:
- Oia Spirit Boutique
- Luxus VIP Suites
- Santo Blue Horizon
Ammoudi Bay
A must-do in Santorini is having dinner in Ammoudi Bay. Be prepared to walk th endless steps down to the bay where you have the choice of a couple of seaside restaurants. After a bit of researching during our planning, we chose Sunset Taverna.
As we sat down at our table right on the water, my husband exclaimed “I cant believe we scored this table – its one of the best ones here”. As I informed him, these things don’t just happen. If you choose to have dinner down at Sunset Taverna, I would highly recommend booking a table in advance as the restaurant is rated very highly on the “places to eat” lists for Oia. You will pay a fee to reserve your table with the cost dependent on the location of the table. This fee will go towards your dinner cost. Just go ahead and reserve the seaside location (the most expensive option). This is not going to be a cheap dinner and you will likely meet the table cost with your meal. While you are there, make sure you order the Lobster Linguini – it is worth the hype.
After dinner, skip the stairs back up to town and catch a cab at the bottom of the hill back to your hotel or to a fun bar on the streets of Oia.
Sunset Catamaran Cruise
Make sure you spend some time relaxing while you are on the island. Most of the morning on our second day was spent eating our complimentary breakfast delivered to our door, lounging on our private patio, and enjoying our private plunge pool (all with the beautiful Oia views).
Santorini is one of the best places on earth to see a sunset. After viewing a sunset by land, you need to take your sunset view to the sea and book a sunset catamaran cruise. This cruise stopped at multiple swimming spots, including a volcanic spring area. The cruise also included a fantastic Greek dinner on-board and unlimited wine. After dinner, we sailed to Ammoudi Bay to take in an epic Aegean sunset out on the water. Keep in mind that one of the few negatives of Greece in shoulder season is a bit choppier of seas. Our ride was a bit windy and a little rough but it didn’t take away from the view – it just added to our fun!
Lasting memories
One of the best decisions we made in Santorini was booking an hour photoshoot so we can keep the memories alive for years to come.
We didn’t leave Santorini until late in the evening which left us with almost a full day for more exploring. We set up our private photoshoot via viator. Santorini is as beautiful and incredible as we always hoped and we are so glad we hired a photographer. Our photographer was extremely accommodating and took us to a handful of secret spots for fantastic pictures. The shoots are held in the morning before the crowds and the pictures came out amazing!
After the photoshoot, we did some last minute souvenir shopping before checking out of our suite and then headed to the Sigalas Winery. This was a great place to bask in the last couple of hours in Greece. They have a fantastic menu of wine and Greek snacks.
To capitalize on our time in Greece, we chose to fly directly to LHR from Santorini in the evening. I would also recommend ending your island hop in Santorini. The airport is easy to get out of and they have direct flights throughout Europe.
Other things to do
If we had more time on island, there are a few additional things that we would have loved to do.
- Take the walk from Fire to Oia – known for having incredible scenic views
- Spent time on the Black Sand Beaches
- Visited Kamari Beach
- See a 360 degree view of the island from Profit Ilias
- Visit Ancient Thira
What to pack
When it comes to packing, I would say to pack the usual for a beach / warm weather vacation.
- Something nicer for dinner: flowy dresses and skirts for the ladies / linen button ups for the guys
- Swimsuits and cover ups
- Athletic clothes and sneakers for those stairs
- Jean jacket or other light jacket option (if you are traveling in shoulder season, it can get cool in the evening)
Check out the best and cheapest travel tool for packing for a long trip in a carry-on suitcase.
Be sure to check out our 10-night island hop itinerary!
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And just for fun, here are some of our other favorite pictures from Santorini!
Santorini was the very first destination abroad I ever traveled to. This a great post that brings back lots of memories. It still looks the same!
Finding this Santorini post is perfect timing for me as I am planning a trip there next year. Thanks for the tips!