Santorini, Greece

Santorini, Greece

Our day in Santorini started before sun up. Our expected arrival time was 7am and this is a tender port. Our plan for the day was to meet up with some good friends from home who are holidaying on the island of Naxos.

There was one other cruise ship in port so to avoid the queues for the chairlift we got off the ship as soon as we could which meant that we were up the top in Fira (pronounced Feara) by 8am. There are three ways to get from the bottom to the top.... walk up the 800 and something stairs, ride a donkey that is more like the size of a horse or catch the chairlift. The chairlift cost 6 euro each and no discount for seniors. The donkey costs 5 euro. We chose the chairlift....

Fira is perched on the edge of dramatic cliffs, is the island's capital and boasts a stunning combination of Cycladic and Venetian architecture.

Not many shops were open and our friends were not ready so we walked to the top of the hill through the cobblestoned alleyways and admired the beautiful vistas of the deep blue ocean and the pristine white houses and hotels perched on cliff tops. Such a beautiful place for a holiday but the tourists might annoy you after a while especially if four or five cruise ships lob up for the day with two to three thousand people on each ship.

After exploring the top we walked down the main vehicular road to the town "centre" where we met up with our friends in the square. On the way we were offered sightseeing tours by private tour operators to see the whole island. The going rate was 4 hours for a flat fee of 200 euros regardless of the amount of people so obviously the more people the cheaper it is. We declined but it's good to know for future visits.

We decided while it was still early and there were taxis available we would go to Oia (pronounced Ear) which is supposed to be the best spot to view the sunset and is also a very picturesque spot for lunch. The taxi cost a flat fee of 25 euros and it is further away then it looks. There is a walking track with an estimated time of 2hrs and 15mins.

Oia is at the northern most tip of Santorini and offers amazing views especially from the old castle with a lot of the typical blue domed churches that contrast so well against the whitewashed buildings. After a walk through the cobblestoned streets we found a cafe perched high on the roof for refreshments.... beer for the men and Rose' for the girls. As there was no free wifi we set off to another cafe which also had amazing views and good fast free wifi which is a must when travelling on a ship with slow expensive wifi! We decided to eat here too...

Next stop Fira.... there were no taxis waiting and the crowds and traffic were building. Luckily there was a public bus waiting and we hopped on that for a price of 1.80 euro each! Cheaper than half the price of the taxi.... bargain!

After walking through the lower parts of Fira and checking out our friend's accommodation we headed to the bar at the base of the chairlift right near the tender wharf. Our intention was to get to the bottom before all the crowds then sit and have a cool drink and play cards! All went to plan but we made a rash decision to walk down the stairs as the path was very quiet and free of donkeys charging up and down the stairs. I think it must have been a very quiet day for the donkey owners but I was told that the owners share in the profits from the chairlift so they are all millionaires! The walk down was long and hot and quite treacherous if you don't have shoes with good grip as the pebbles on the stairs are quite slippery.

Once at the bottom we found a bar with a table in the shade and a nice cold drink.... once again beer and wine. We farewelled our friends after spending a lovely day with them and boarded the last tender back to the ship at around 5.30pm.

All in all a beautiful day in Santorini.... next stop Rijeka, Croatia.

Some quick facts:

Currency: Euro

Language: Greek

Population: 15,500 (est 2011)

Region: located in the Aegean Sea.... approx. 120 miles from Greece. Formed from an intense volcanic eruption over 3000 years ago.