Perfect Day in Santorini?

[onevacationlover]

What would be the perfect day in Santorini?..it is such a gorgeous place..

[anniversay/grad trip]

What would be the perfect day in Santorini?..it is such a gorgeous place..

 

 

 

For us, we really enjoyed renting a car and driving all over the island. It is relatively inexpensive and the road from Fira to Oia is a very easy drive. Fira is more of the shopping area (main town) but once we got to Oia we sat in a cafe overlooking the water and just relaxed. It was an awesome day, and with the hustle and bustle of a Med cruise it was a welcome relaxing day.

[Susan-M]

We too had a fantastic day on Santorini by spending the day exploring in a rental car.

 

Some highlights: Red Beach, the lighthouse (to the west of Akrotiri), Perissa Beach, the hilltop town of Pyrgos, Imerovigli, Oia & Ammoudi Bay.

 

It's an easy island to drive on, hard to get lost because there aren't many roads, and a lot of interesting, scenic sites to stop at.

 

I used this site for much of my research: http://www.frommers.com/destinations/santorini/1647010001.html

 

Enjoy!:)

[katkell]

Any day is a perfect day. Just enjoy the fact that you are there.

[Susan-M]

Any day is a perfect day. Just enjoy the fact that you are there.

 

Some days are more perfect than others.;)

[suenruss]

My perfect day there was spent doing nothing much at all! We took the funincular up to Fira, had a coffee; shopped around the labyrinth of streets - I defy you to go there and not buy something -; had a glass of wine; shopped some more; had a meal and another glass of wine while we people watched .... fab.

[robbydemarco]

trip over to perissa-couple of hours on the beach, few drinks in 'bob's bar', back to fira for last minute shopping then donkey down to ship-bliss:):):)

[jocap]

Bus to Kamari from the bus station....20mins or so....beach, shopping, meal in an open taverna....bus back, stroll through Fira, drink on a terrace, funicular back to ship. Gentle, no rush, pleasant.

Jo.

[zeppysky]

My perfect day there was spent doing nothing much at all! We took the funincular up to Fira, had a coffee; shopped around the labyrinth of streets - I defy you to go there and not buy something -; had a glass of wine; shopped some more; had a meal and another glass of wine while we people watched .... fab.

 

How much does the funincular cost?

[Grannycb]

How much does the funincular cost?

 

I think it was 3.50 Euro one way.

 

DH & I each did different shore excursions. Neither of us would do them again. We wouldn't leave Fira at all. It's that beautiful there.

 

The best part of the day was wandering around, taking time out to sit and enjoy the views with a cold drink, dropping by churches for quiet time, taking pictures of the cats and dogs who were lounging on colorful doorsteps or walking on top of retaining walls, talking to people, sampling food and simply soaking in the atmosphere.

[texancruzer]

Fira is indeed very cool......but Oia is quite something else too. We had a real weird port schedule for Santorini (2pm-10pm) so made it difficult..... but we tendered in, too the donkeys up (not to be missed imo :D) and then a taxi to Oia, walked around, shopped, took pics, then taxied back (our guy waited for us as agreed before we even left Fira) then shopped a bit, had a nice dinner watching the sun set, then funicular down, tender back to the ship = P-E-R-F-E-C-T D-A-Y :)

[misspupule]

Fira is indeed very cool......but Oia is quite something else too. We had a real weird port schedule for Santorini (2pm-10pm) so made it difficult..... but we tendered in, too the donkeys up (not to be missed imo :D) and then a taxi to Oia, walked around, shopped, took pics, then taxied back (our guy waited for us as agreed before we even left Fira) then shopped a bit, had a nice dinner watching the sun set, then funicular down, tender back to the ship = P-E-R-F-E-C-T D-A-Y :)

Hey Tex

Did you reserve your taxi before your cruise or just got one at top after donkey ride? We have a 4pm to 11pm schedule which seems weird but:rolleyes:.... we're on a cruise, got my big girl "hanes her way" on and dealing with it.:D How many hours did you get taxi for and how many euros? If you rented ahead who did you go with? Any info appreciated.

miss pupule

[texancruzer]

aloha pupule !

 

No we did not reserve ahead. We were actually going to take the bus...... but on the way to the bus stop we "found" this taxi. Nice Mercedes and we told him we wanted to go to Oia, shop and then come back. Wanted him to wait for us. Which he did. So over and back and then we were there about 2.5 hours shopping etc. and we paid 50 euros. Sounds like alot but for the piece of mind knowing we had a ride back since it would almost be dark by then was worth it.

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Fira is indeed very cool......but Oia is quite something else too. We had a real weird port schedule for Santorini (2pm-10pm) so made it difficult..... but we tendered in, too the donkeys up (not to be missed imo :D) and then a taxi to Oia, walked around, shopped, took pics, then taxied back (our guy waited for us as agreed before we even left Fira) then shopped a bit, had a nice dinner watching the sun set, then funicular down, tender back to the ship = P-E-R-F-E-C-T D-A-Y :)

 

I would second the vote on Oia. We wandered around Fira, then easily took the local bus to Oia. Easy to do if you don't want to rent a car. Oia is lovely and the bus ride is well worth it for the scenery. Very different views from in Fira. Just doing the bus is fun....the bus yard is an easy walk, they direct you to the bus and it's fun to watch all the commotion of people, drivers, huge buses negotiating tight turns!

 

One note to dog lovers. There are some strays on Oia, and all over Athens (our tour guide said they are abandoned by their families). Many times I wished for dog bones and you can bet I'll have some next time we go. There's one sweet black and white dog on Oia with a terrible underbite...and he really touched my heart. I was patting some dogs on the head and he was hanging back with his tail wagging...when I patted my leg, he trotted up and loved getting his share of pats on the head...a really elegant boy, despite his appearance.

[onevacationlover]

Thanks guys for all the tips...it's great to have such a wealth of knowledge by fellow cruisers;)

 

Georgiapeach - Oh..a few dog bones will be on my list:D

[pjcruise]

We too had a fantastic day on Santorini by spending the day exploring in a rental car.

 

Some highlights: Red Beach, the lighthouse (to the west of Akrotiri), Perissa Beach, the hilltop town of Pyrgos, Imerovigli, Oia & Ammoudi Bay.

 

It's an easy island to drive on, hard to get lost because there aren't many roads, and a lot of interesting, scenic sites to stop at.

 

I used this site for much of my research: http://www.frommers.com/destinations/santorini/1647010001.html

 

Enjoy!:)

 

I have been thinking we might hire a car when we go to Santorini in August. Did you pre booked your car?

[Susan-M]

I have been thinking we might hire a car when we go to Santorini in August. Did you pre booked your car?

 

Yes, we rented from: http://www.santonet.gr/rentals/tonys/

[waverley7]

Hop on a bus to Oia, it is beautiful there and way cheaper than a cab. Just ask as your walking and people will tell you how to get to the bus terminal. You still have lots of time to enjoy Fira, this island is one of the most beautiful ever and the bus is a nice drive. Do the donkey up, it was fun! Took to cable car down though. They will provide change on the bus when you buy your ticket. Easy to get to, just keep asking the merchants.

[derdaddy]

Thanks guys for all the tips...it's great to have such a wealth of knowledge by fellow cruisers;)

 

Georgiapeach - Oh..a few dog bones will be on my list:D

 

 

I'd like to second Georgiapeach--at both Athens and Santorini we saw many dogs roaming. They were very friendly and obviously used to tourists, but hungry. If you're a dog lover, try to have something for them and it will make your day!

[zannie]

We will be going to Santorini in July and I'm interested in taking the bus from the ship. Three years ago we were there on a tour and went to Santos Winery, and that is a high priority for me this time (I'm sending cases of my fave wine back to the states this time!!!). My question is: does anyone know if the bus stops there????

 

I'm a little concerned about doing the rental car. Would parking at the sites be a problem?

[D4]

How much does the funincular cost?

 

In November 2009 the cable car was 4 euros each way and a donkey was 5 euros each way. DH rode the cable cars and I rode a donkey both ways. The donkeys were a highlight of my trip!

[ms.sunburn]

The cable car is still 4 euro each way. We were there two weeks ago.

[onevacationlover]

We will be going to Santorini in July and I'm interested in taking the bus from the ship. Three years ago we were there on a tour and went to Santos Winery, and that is a high priority for me this time (I'm sending cases of my fave wine back to the states this time!!!). My question is: does anyone know if the bus stops there????

 

I'm a little concerned about doing the rental car. Would parking at the sites be a problem?

 

 

Yumm..that sounds great:)

[cruiselvr04]

We just rented a car here 2 weeks ago. No big deal although it was a manual. The cars do drive a bit crazy and the ATV's and motorbikes are everywhere. You can't go too fast as the roads are curvy and all 2 lane. I would suggest you get full insurance just in case. We only paid 42E for the day including insurance and about 10E for gas and drove all over including Oia and to the other end Prusia beach. We had a picnic on the beach with cheese, crackers and cookies from a grocery. A great day of being off by ourselves after being with tour groups amd lots of people the rest of the trip. Parking was not a problem.

[UlvaZell]

What would be the perfect day in Santorini?..it is such a gorgeous place..

 

For us we simply wandered through the town of Fira. In the morning we found a great place for coffee overlooking the caldera. For lunch we stopped at a place called Cafe Vallas and had tzatziki, pitas, stuffed olives and Alfa beer, again overlooking the caldera. The rest of the time we wandered in and out of the shops and chatted with the locals. The Greeks are so friendly and hospitable. It was a blissful day...