Everything You Need To Know To Plan Your Trip To Santorini, Greece

After three fabulous days in Athens, which also included a quick trip to Meteora, we headed to Crete. Ferries are best for island hopping but Athens to Crete by ferry is a long trip, almost 10 hours, so we had taken a flight instead (Olympia Air). Which not only took just 1 hour to reach Crete but also turned out to be slightly cheaper than a ferry ride.  We had spent another 3 nights at the beautiful old town of Rythemno with old friends of ours who stay in Luxembourg. After Crete it was time for Santorini. And today I am telling you all the details for a fab holiday at the Calderas.

From Heraklion port in Crete we took the first ferry of this trip. It costed us $68/person for a economy class. Where pre booking is always less of a headache, ferry tickets at the port are usually, easily available. We had booked Hellenic Seaways and it was the best ferry of all the 4 ferries we took. Super clean, new and had WIFI (as you may know, network in the middle of the sea is not reachable) and to our delight it was EMPTY. The food at the ferry was great too!

 

Tip#2- Remember a ferry can get late but you certainly cannot. Even if the ferry door is up the port floor just by an inch they would not stop for u even if u plead or become crazy hostile. So be on time.

We reached in the next one and half hour to the port of Thera, Santorini. We had booked a hotel pick up from the port. Santorini has only one port for big vessels and ferries called Port Athinios.

 

Tip#3– Where ever in Greece, having a mode of personal transport is the best way to see around. And the best place to rent a car/quad bike/scooty is from the port itself. I would totally recommend you to hire your ride from the Santorini port because then you don’t have to pay extra money for hotel transfers. And when you leave for your next destination you dropped the car at the port and take your ferry. Rents start at 40 euro per day for a car/quad bike (fuel extra). Driving in Greece is like driving in India. Park anywhere and stop anywhere, we adapted in a minute. So don’t shy away from hiring your own ride. Don’t forget to carry your driving licence!

 

We understood all this during our trip only. So we had paid extra for our Airbnb pick up. Which was around 25 euro. See our gorgeous Airbnb stay and why we choose that particular location (Click Here).

 

After dropping our bags and a quick nap we headed to the south of Thera to a place called Pygros to catch the gorgeous sunset Santorini is famous for. And the best place in Pygros for it was Franco’s. Our Airbnb host had recommended us this place and it was a gorgeous roof top restaurant.

Next day was about exploring Oia. Millions of people come to Oia every year, it’s the tourist hub with lottt of people. We as travellers prefer less crowded/non touristy places but you got to strike Oia of the list to see the blue domes and old windmills.

That day we ate gelato at the very famous Lolita’s Gelato. Strut around to find the domes and the windmills. It was just mind boggling to see how many people took spots to watch the famous Oia sunset. But il tell you the best way to watch it in a bit. It was crazy crowded and we left for Fira for dinner.

Like I was telling the best way to see the famous Santorini sunset is by a boat. There are many agencies and companies that offer boat tours. Some very expensive, some relatively cheap but with flock of people. Our Airbnb host yet again had suggested us a great boat tour. We booked Barbarossa Sailing for a full day tour at Euro 220 for two. A pirate ship with a #2 spot on TripAdvisor. Their maximum capacity is 8 pax but we were so lucky to have just one more person with us. So the whole boat was just to us. With yummy food and drinks on the house, they even provided the pick and drop. Our captain was very informative and friendly. He took as to all the main attractions. We jumped into the hot springs, did some swimming, ate, relaxed and of course saw the beautiful sunset with no distraction or fight for the perfect spot. It was a great day. Remember boat tour takes half of the day so plan your day accordingly.

On the fourth day we did everything to check off everything left on my list. We went to see the Red Sand Beach and Black Sand Beach which were nor red or black in any manner. One can totally avoid it if u ask me. The beaches are rocky so u can’t swim. And almost 45mins away from Fira. Later we went to the Kamari beach which is a way better option to spend a chill out relaxing day by the beach day. Amazing restaurants with organised beaches and great people. The area was buzzing.

Fifth day we took our ferry for Mykonos!

More on mykono soon

SANTO we miss you!

Until then,