Santorini - Have not seen this question

[twoatsea]

I've read a lot on this board about the taking the donkeys, the lift, walking, & taking the ship's tour which provides bus service going up. But I haven't seen it mentioned about taking a taxi or other hired transport from the ship up & back down to the ship.

 

Don't want to take the ship's tour, don't want to ride a donkey, don't want to walk in donkey dung, and would prefer not to wait in the long lift lines that I've read about.

 

Seems like there should be taxis waiting at the ship to take folks up & at the top to takes folks down - No? Were there not any?

 

Anyone know? Or are there hired cars & drivers that anyone knows about?

 

Thanks

[Susan-M]

 

Seems like there should be taxis waiting at the ship to take folks up & at the top to takes folks down - No? Were there not any?

 

 

The ships are at anchor and when you go ashore by tender, you are dropped off at the bottom of the cliff (the Old Port below Fira)... the only way up is by cable car, donkeys or walking. However, if you've purchased a ship's bus tour, you will likely be tendered to a different port, Athinios, which has road access. http://www.santorini.us/santoriniport.htm

[twoatsea]

Per the RCCL excursion site, it says - "After going ashore by local tender boat to the port of Athinios, your coach will climb 800 feet to the top of the caldera."

 

So, is this a different tender site from the donkey/lift site?

 

If so, is it worth it to take the tour in order to get up the cliff by bus & avoid the other hassles, enjoy the tour (which leaves us at the top of the lift), not immediately take the lift back down, tour some more but on our own, & then take the lift down?

 

Essentially, I guess I am pondering just how bad getting "up" the cliff is without the tour bus! We will be there on Wed., 11/12/08; maybe that will be a slow lift day!;)

 

If we do take the lift instead of the tour, what are your thoughts about getting out of the ship immediately to be in the 1st mad rush to the lift, or wait until the lift line is more managable? Does waiting just mean that once we arrive "on top" there will be more crowds?

 

Thanks

[twoatsea]

Oops, sorry Susan-M, I should have clicked on your link first. But would still like to hear your thoughts on my other questions.

 

Thanks for your quick reply & help.

[Maine Coon]

IMO, There is nothing wrong with the lift.

 

There are some spectacular views from the lift as well.

 

If I ever come back to Santorini, I'll take the lift no problems.

[Susan-M]

Per the RCCL excursion site, it says - "After going ashore by local tender boat to the port of Athinios, your coach will climb 800 feet to the top of the caldera."

 

So, is this a different tender site from the donkey/lift site?

 

Yes, pls. see the description of the two ports in my link above (I added it after I first posted, so you may not have seen it when you posted this.)

Athinios has road access and is south of Fira, where the cable car is: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.easy-travel.ro/test_images/santorini-map.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.easy-travel.ro/index.php%3Funde%3Ddespre%26id_cont%3D127&h=465&w=420&sz=34&tbnid=Psomiq9pWt0J::&tbnh=128&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsantorini%2Bmap&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=2&ct=image&cd=1

 

If so, is it worth it to take the tour in order to get up the cliff by bus & avoid the other hassles, enjoy the tour (which leaves us at the top of the lift), not immediately take the lift back down, tour some more but on our own, & then take the lift down?

If you enjoy doing ship's tours, it might be a nice way to do it depending on where the tour goes, and what you would do if you didn't take a tour. (We rented a car and had a fantastic day of sightseeing.)

 

 

If we do take the lift instead of the tour, what are your thoughts about getting out of the ship immediately to be in the 1st mad rush to the lift, or wait until the lift line is more managable? Does waiting just mean that once we arrive "on top" there will be more crowds?

 

On our cruise, those doing bus tours were tendered first. We had priority disembarkation, so were the first off following the bus tour people, and when we got to the cable car there was no wait. It shouldn't be overly busy in Fira in November, other than with the cruise passengers.

 

You'll have two ships in port that day and the good news is that you arrive 1 hour before and depart 1 hour later than the other ship... which means less competition for the cable car.

 

p.s. I should have added that yes...if going on your own, try to get off the ship early to beat the crowds from the next ship and to maximize your time in port. I agree with the above poster that the cable car is fine (we took it up and walked down.)

[twoatsea]

Great responses, and so quick - thanks to you both :D

 

Lift sounds Ok to me after "listening" to you two. Didn't really want a ship tour, just other posts made it sound like quite a hassle with the lift line.

 

We are in a suite, so I assume we can get priority disembarkation also. So sounds good that we can beat the line at the lift.

 

Thanks so much; really appreciate it.

 

And Susan, thanks for the great links; I've saved them! :)

[Susan-M]

You're welcome! :)

[nparmelee]

Just check how many other ships are in port the day you are and what times they are scheduled to be there. If you plan it right the funicular is the way to go for your criteria.

[Andym]

Generally there tends to be not much of a wait to get up the cliff in the cable cars. You are tendered ashore and that limits the number of people arriving at once. This also depends on the number of ships in at that time.

 

Where the wait gets longer is at the top when coming down, especially if there are a lot of ships in. We had a wait of 2 hours once, but there were 5 ships in at that time.

[Ardy53]

Hi

 

www.porttime.com shows Splendour of the Seas and Costa Atlantica tendered in Santorini on 12th November, with a combined passenger load of 4,676.

 

By comparison, we will be there on Monday 1st September with only Summit and Windstar in port and a total of 2,098 passengers.

 

However, on 20th August Splendour of the Seas will be there with 3 other ships and a total of 8,707 passengers, who will most certainly be queing for the cable car.

 

Enjoy your cruise!!

 

 

Roy&Val

[tangles00]

We were in Santorini in May off the cruise ship Musica.

 

As previously posted by others, if you book an excursion you are taken by tender to another port where many buses are waiting then the boat moves on further and stops at the old port below Fira. Local tenders take you to the port and then you have the three options 1. donkeys (more like mules) 2. the cable car 3. to walk up the 16 odd zig zags.

 

1. We chose the donkeys and it was great fun, one in our group had never riden before and she had a great time, definitely an experience I would recommend to anyone. Beautiful views and some amazing photos and videos were taken.

 

2. the cable car, we caught the cable car back down and had to wait for about 45 minutes in a line in the hot sun but it too was an experience to 'drop off the edge' it is a really smooth ride and beautiful views.

 

3. walking up or down....donkey poo aside (there are men occasionally along the path cleaning it up) I think that it would be good except the donkeys move up and down without guides when they get to the top and drop you off they make their own way back down and you would have to be aware of this.

 

Apparently you can catch a bus or find a taxi to take you to Oia which is what we were planning before we arrived but when we got to the top we saw that you could hire quad bikes for 15E - very reasonably priced and for as long as you like. We rode out to Oia, stopping whenever we wanted and going to wherever we wanted.

 

Overall our day in Santorini was one of the best days on our cruise. Definitely a place to go back to and see more of this beautiful island.

 

Hope you enjoy your trip.

:)

[seapenarth]

Never had any problem with waiting for lifts but of course could be a problem if a few huge floating theme parks arrived.:(

[tangles00]

Never had any problem with waiting for lifts but of course could be a problem if a few huge floating theme parks arrived.:(

 

didn't have to wait for the donkeys either!!!!!!:D

[sunnydelaware]

What is a quad bike?

[Ardy53]

What is a quad bike?

 

Click here to see more details.(scroll about halfway down the page)

 

We might also consider hiring one.

 

Roy&Val

[Jade13]

When I was in Santorini 24 years ago I am sure I was dropped off at Athinios port because I came by Ferry and also was driven up by truck to the hotel.

Does anyone know if HAL will let passengers off at Athinios who are traveling on their own and not on a ship sponsored tour?

[Jade13]

Yes, pls. see the description of the two ports in my link above (I added it after I first posted, so you may not have seen it when you posted this.)

Athinios has road access and is south of Fira, where the cable car is: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.easy-travel.ro/test_images/santorini-map.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.easy-travel.ro/index.php%3Funde%3Ddespre%26id_cont%3D127&h=465&w=420&sz=34&tbnid=Psomiq9pWt0J::&tbnh=128&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsantorini%2Bmap&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=2&ct=image&cd=1

 

 

If you enjoy doing ship's tours, it might be a nice way to do it depending on where the tour goes, and what you would do if you didn't take a tour. (We rented a car and had a fantastic day of sightseeing.)

 

 

 

 

On our cruise, those doing bus tours were tendered first. We had priority disembarkation, so were the first off following the bus tour people, and when we got to the cable car there was no wait. It shouldn't be overly busy in Fira in November, other than with the cruise passengers.

 

You'll have two ships in port that day and the good news is that you arrive 1 hour before and depart 1 hour later than the other ship... which means less competition for the cable car.

 

p.s. I should have added that yes...if going on your own, try to get off the ship early to beat the crowds from the next ship and to maximize your time in port. I agree with the above poster that the cable car is fine (we took it up and walked down.)

 

Susan - M, I have looked and looked and can not find your post from a couple of months ago that has your suggested itinerary for the day (or what you recommend not to miss). Can you provide the link?

 

Also, where is the info on the car rental company that you used, and what did you pay? Thanks!

[Susan-M]

Susan - M, I have looked and looked and can not find your post from a couple of months ago that has your suggested itinerary for the day (or what you recommend not to miss). Can you provide the link?

 

Also, where is the info on the car rental company that you used, and what did you pay? Thanks!

 

Hi Jade13,

Was it post #10 in this thread? http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=763516&highlight=pyrgos (Just one correction...it was Perissa Beach and not Kamari that we went to.)

 

We rented from Tony's - 55 euros for a standard, including insurance and gas (in '05). http://www.santonet.gr/rentals/tonys/

He is about a 10 minute walk from the cable car ... but we did notice other rental agencies along the way that were closer to the cable car.

[Jade13]

Hi Jade13,

Was it post #10 in this thread? http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=763516&highlight=pyrgos (Just one correction...it was Perissa Beach and not Kamari that we went to.)

 

We rented from Tony's - 55 euros for a standard, including insurance and gas (in '05). http://www.santonet.gr/rentals/tonys/

He is about a 10 minute walk from the cable car ... but we did notice other rental agencies along the way that were closer to the cable car.

 

Thanks, that is th one that I am looking for.

[syesmar]

Someone had mentioned receiving priority disembarkation for the tender after the ship's shore excursion passengers. How do you obtain this? Can you describe the tendering process? Are tickets issued, or is it first-come, first-served? (Especially interested in HAL's method). Is it impossible for non-shore excursion passengers to be tendered in Athinos? (someone told me even if buses or taxis were not there, a taxi could be called from one of the local businesses at Athinos port, but I don't know if permission is ever granted to leave from Athinos).

[nparmelee]

When we were in Santorini two years ago only the local boats were allowed to do the tendering, no ship tenders. Otherwise the tendering process will vary ship to ship, you may or may not need a ticket to go to the tender area, you then get on the boat and are taken to the pier area. For the process your cruise will have, check the roll call or cruise line specific boards for better answers. One of the reasons we've gone to Oceania is the smaller ships and the very easy on and off at ports. For those afraid of heights, the funicular really is not that scary and you can always close your eyes or even look inward to not see how high you are. Its not like a ski lift or anything like that where your feet dangle and you can see straight down, you are in an enclosed car with other people.

[cujosmom]

Valuable General Information:

 

I wanted to ride the donkey and my husband wanted to do the cable car. We said to each other "see you at the top".

 

Well, just be aware that the cable car stop and where you get off the donkey are two different places :eek:

 

So, if your group is going both ways, make sure one goes to the other. We both wandered around awhile (20 minutes or so) before we finally found each other. :)

[Lsimon]

...Is it impossible for non-shore excursion passengers to be tendered in Athinos? (someone told me even if buses or taxis were not there, a taxi could be called from one of the local businesses at Athinos port, but I don't know if permission is ever granted to leave from Athinos).

 

I don't remeber there being ANYTHING at all at the Athinos port - other than a parking lot for the buses. And even if you could call a taxi on arrival there it would lilkely be a very long wait! Look here and here.

[carolmacey]

I've read a lot on this board about the taking the donkeys, the lift, walking, & taking the ship's tour which provides bus service going up. But I haven't seen it mentioned about taking a taxi or other hired transport from the ship up & back down to the ship.

 

Don't want to take the ship's tour, don't want to ride a donkey, don't want to walk in donkey dung, and would prefer not to wait in the long lift lines that I've read about.

 

Thanks

 

If you really don't want to do any of the above....have fun on the ship. There are no other choices.

 

Once you get to the top you can walk a couple blocks to the public bus and get to Oia for 1.40 euros each way. Buses are very crowded so plan on being persistant.