DAY 11
Ferry to Santorini & Kamari Beach
Our final ferry of the trip departed Milos around 10:30am and arrive two hours later in Santorini.
Arriving by ferry to Santorini is an experience in itself — I’d visited the island once nearly 12 years ago, and that classic view of the cliff face with white buildings dotted high above the water was instantly recognizable.
Instead of staying on the busier (and more expensive) west coast, we opted for a B&B on one of the island’s famous black-sand beaches on the east, called Kamari Beach, just a quick 30 minute drive away.
We were welcomed to the hotel by the property’s friendly and generous owner, whose family has occupied the house (now part-private residence/part-hotel) his entire life. Once we settled into our room, he brought by a tray of sweets and two glasses of champagne. It’s little things like this that make B&B stays always so memorable.
The property had a beautiful garden out front and the beach just beyond it. We could even see the ocean from our room!
Where we stayed: Ocean Bay Suites
With trip fatigue starting to set in, we decided to keep things easy and headed to the beach for an afternoon in the sun.
Eventually dinner time rolled around and we headed to nearby restaurant Fistikies.
It was super windy, but we still managed to sit outside on their lovely patio lined with pistachio trees.
DAY 12
Caldera Hike from Fira to Oia and sunset from Ammoudi
For our first full day on Santorini, we did the Caldera Hike, which connects the island’s two main towns Fira and Oia.
The hike starts off in Fira. We parked our car in a lot near the center of town and made our way to the official starting point of the hike at the main square near the Candlemas Cathedral.
We brought along our Rick Steves’ travel guide and did his self-guided walking tour through the town. We passed down the main commercial corridor, lined with souvenir shops selling white linen clothes and glass evil eyes of varying sizes.
We reached the path that connects Fira to the old port at the bottom of the cliff, 586 steps beneath the town. The stairs are numbered, of course, which only adds insult to injury for anyone too cheap to get a taxi or ride a donkey up from the port (speaking from experience…).
At last we reached the pale yellow St. John the Baptist Cathedral at the outskirts of town and were awarded with our first views down the coastline toward Oia.
We reached the small town of Firostefani just at the edge of Fira, and another 20 minutes further down the path was another small town called Imerovigli.
Our guide book mentioned these two towns as slower-paced alternatives to the more well-known Fira and Oia. If I return to Santorini, I think I’d give it a try.
Finally at the edge of Imerovigli, we reached the first part of the hike that actually felt like a hike. The stone walkway eventually gave way to a dirt path.
This was the hottest part of the hike (especially with zero shade), but it was also the most beautiful. With no buildings around to obscure the view, we could finally see the full crescent shape of the caldera.
We climbed what felt like an endless uphill dirt road until we finally reached the highest point of the hike and (you guessed it) a small white chapel.
Just on the other side we got our first clear view of Oia in the distance. From here, it was a mostly downhill walk until we reached the town.
Tired and thirsty from the hike, we stopped at a restaurant for a quick bite to eat before heading back out to catch the world-famous Oia sunset.
The most popular place to watch the sunset is Oia Castle. We were rolling in just as the show was getting started, so needless to say, there wasn’t any space up for grabs.
But not to worry, we had other plans for sunset. We started our walk down from Oia to Ammoudi, a small fishing village that’s home to a number of seafood restaurants.
The view from the path looking back toward Oia was actually really lovely — the whole town was glowing in the golden hour light.
The restaurants in Ammoudi are literally right on the water’s edge (you could easily fall into the water if you’re not careful!), and the view of the sunset was spectacular.
While the view from each restaurant is more or less the same, but from what we found, the quality of the food varies quite a lot.
After reading some reviews, we settled on Dimitris Ammoudi Tavern and had a fantastic meal. I ordered the lobster fettucini and was equal parts surprised and delighted when my bowl of pasts featured an entire lobster on top.
After dinner, we asked our waitress to call a taxi for us — restaurants in Ammoudi are happy to do this if you ask… no one wants to hike up hundreds of steps after eating an entire lobster, least of all me. While waiting for the taxi we sat on the pier and enjoyed the nighttime view of Ammoudi and Oia floating above.
The taxi drove us all the way back to Fira where we parked our car at the start of the hike. We drove back to our hotel on the east coast of the island and immediately went to sleep. What a day!
DAY 13
Massages, Oia, and Sunset from Ammoudi Bay
For our second-to-last day of the trip, we had a day of pampering and relaxation… just what my pregnant self needed after a somewhat overly-ambitious hike the day before.
We booked a couple’s massage with Santorini Santo Massages. We opted to pay a bit more to have our massages at the Oia Sunset Villas instead of at our own hotel so that we could make a whole-day event out of it.
We had our massages in the morning and spent the rest of the day lounging by the pool. And as if things couldn’t get any better, there were a couple of adorable kittens living on the property that cuddled up with us by the pool.
We didn’t get much time the day before to explore Oia, so before driving back to our hotel we decided to have one last quick walk around the town.
We checked out a few shops and got a cup of gelato from local favorite Lolita’s.
For dinner, we drove to Metaxi Mas, a restaurant situated on a hillside near Santorini’s wine region.
We made a reservation well in advance and good thing, as the restaurant was packed and many people were turned away. We eventually got a seat out on the terrace. We couldn’t see much, but I imagine the view must be amazing during the day!
We ordered several traditional Greek dishes, following the recommendation of our server. The Santorinian Fava and Broccoli Souffle were the highlights.
DAY 14
Cruise around Santorini
For our last and final day of our two week trip in Greece, we booked a half-day cruise with Luxury Catamarans (the same company we hired for our wonderful tour of Milos a few days before).
The tour stared in the afternoon, so after breakfast on our terrace, we grabbed a couple of our hotel’s lounge chairs on the beach and had ourselves a very leisurely morning.
After lunch, a van arrived to transport us to the boat, picking up our fellow passengers along the way.
Our boat left from Ammoudi and traveled south along the west coast of the island.
The first stop of the cruise was at Palea Kameni, a small island within Santorini’s caldera that’s known for its hot springs. The waters here are heated naturally by the volcanic activity happening underground and are colored brown due to the iron and other minerals found in the water.
Normally you can jump from the boat and swim toward the small white church, where it’s a comfortable 86 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit (30-35°C), but the day we visited was windy, which meant the temperature of the water was more unstable and thus not safe for swimming.
A few brave souls (Dan included) still went for a dip in the icy water at the edge of the hot springs. I was already cold enough without all that, so I opted to stay on board.
After Palea Kameni, we headed back to the main island and continued south along the edge of the caldera.
Santorini is known for its colorful red, white, and black rock formations, which were formed by a series of volcanic eruptions that deposited lava composed of certain minerals that give the unique coloration.
At the sourthern part of the island, you can find all three colors mixing with one another. Two of Santorini’s most famous beaches are here: the aptly named White Beach and Red Beach.
We cruised by the White Beach and soon after reached the Red Beach, where we paused for a swim and our on-board dinner. The area had recently experienced a landslide and was closed for safety reasons, but that didn’t deter the tourists. Luckily, we were able to enjoy the view from the safety of our boat.
After the Red Beach, we turned around and headed back to our starting point at the northern end of the island. By this point the skies had become cloudier and the wind had picked up quite a bit. We found a comfortable spot inside so we could stay warm and dry while the boat navigated the choppy waters.
The main event of the afternoon cruise is watching the famous Santorini sunset from the water near Ammoudi. Our boat found a spot among the dozens of other boats all pointed westward, and we ventured back out to find a spot on the upstairs deck.
Given the cloud coverage, the sunset was not quite as spectacular as we had imagined. Nevertheless, the view of the island and Oia clinging to the cliffside up above was still breathtaking (frankly, I’m sure it’s beautiful in any kind of weather). It still made for a lovely end to our trip.
Don’t miss it…
This post is a part of a larger two-week trip around Greece. Check out the full itinerary and an overview of the trip here!
