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| At Piraeus port, Athens |
But I never gave it much thought, because I always assumed that it was a destination for the uber-rich. I figured I'd have to save it for my retirement years...until one day, when I was mindlessly browsing the internet and discovered that Singapore had this budget airline called Scoot, and it was offering round-trip tickets from Kuala Lumpur to Athens (transiting in Singapore) for only RM1600 per person. I quickly took up the offer.
From Athens, there are two ways to get to Santorini--by sea and by air. I think Ryan Air has daily flights between the two. The cheaper option is of course by sea. There are several ferry companies to choose from, Blue Star being the cheapest but also the slowest.
I reckon the price constantly fluctuates, depending on the season. At the time of our booking, they offered a promo price of 20 euros one-way. Because we booked pretty late, we only managed to get one ticket at the promotional price. The other tickets ranged from 32 to 40 euros. You can choose between economy seats and air seat lounge. As the name suggests, the more expensive air seat lounge allows you access to a private lounge. But I think the economy seat is much better. It's free seating, which means you get to walk around the entire ferry and sit outside or anywhere you like to get a better view of the islands.
We stopped at three different islands before reaching Santorini.
Finally, after 7 hours, they announced our arrival at Santorini Port. That was the ferry's last stop before heading back to Athens. From the sea, Santorini didn't look half as nice as the other few islands we saw earlier. There were not many of those white houses that were often featured on postcards and travel magazines.
Day 1
When our ferry reached Santorini, it was close to 3 p.m. Buses were already waiting next to the ferry terminal, to take us to Fira, where our hotel was. The fare was 2.30 euros. Get the front seat if you can so that you get the best view of the road leading up the hill. It was fascinating to watch how the driver maneuvered the bus at those tight corners.
We chose to stay in Fira because it had the main bus hub, making it convenient for us to get around. Otherwise, from any other parts of the island, you'd first have to transit in Fira to get to your destination. We stayed at Villa Ilios. It was reasonably-priced (about 20 euros per night) and had a pretty nice view too.
In the evening, we went out to explore the area. On the same street as our hotel were several cafes and restaurants. Close to the bus terminal was Fira Square, which was a street lined with more restaurants and a supermarket. We walked further ahead till we reached a chapel and turned left. There, we saw the sea and the cliff with the white houses! And there was another maze of shops and restaurants to explore.
We picked one of the restaurants and had a few drinks there while waiting for sunset. Before going back to our hotel, we went to the supermarket to buy wine and some snacks. Their wines were very cheap and some even came in cartons.
Day 2
On the second day, we slept in because our only plan for the day was to have a late lunch at Amoudi Bay and watch sunset at Oia. But by 11 a.m, I was getting restless so we Googled for more things to do on Santorini. We decided to pay a quick visit to Kamari, one of the black beaches on the island. It was about noon when we reached and the weather was very hot. The black sand made it even more so, but this didn't seem to deter the sunbathers. We only stayed long enough to take some pictures before heading back to Fira to get a bus to Oia.
Oia (sometimes pronounced Ia) apparently has the best sunset on the island. That's where most of the prettiest white buildings and blue domes are. It's also one of the best places to stay on Santorini, albeit far more expensive than Fira.
On the second day, we slept in because our only plan for the day was to have a late lunch at Amoudi Bay and watch sunset at Oia. But by 11 a.m, I was getting restless so we Googled for more things to do on Santorini. We decided to pay a quick visit to Kamari, one of the black beaches on the island. It was about noon when we reached and the weather was very hot. The black sand made it even more so, but this didn't seem to deter the sunbathers. We only stayed long enough to take some pictures before heading back to Fira to get a bus to Oia.
Oia (sometimes pronounced Ia) apparently has the best sunset on the island. That's where most of the prettiest white buildings and blue domes are. It's also one of the best places to stay on Santorini, albeit far more expensive than Fira.
We saw several donkeys standing under the hot sun along the stairway. They were so quiet and well-behaved, even without their handler guarding them. You can hire those donkeys to take you down to Amoudi and back, but before you do so, please think twice, thrice, and as many times as you can. There had been news of the donkeys getting terrible cuts and sores on their backs because of ill-fitting harnesses and obese tourists.
Personally, I think if you need to use animals to carry you up and down the steps because you're too lazy or too unfit to do so yourself, then you shouldn't go to Amoudi at all. Just stay in your hotel room and order room service, or better yet, hire a chauffeur to drive your lazy ass back to the airport.
After lunch, we climbed up the 200 steps back to Oia, and spent the rest of the day sightseeing and taking pictures. Oia is an absolutely spectacular place. Everywhere you look, you will see cute little shops and stunning restaurants. We went a little crazy with the camera. There was not one spot in Oia that wasn't pretty enough for a photo.
Sunset was at 8.20 p.m. Around 7, we went to a restaurant that had a rooftop seating overlooking the sea. We had some Greek snacks and sipped on some more wine. This was the famous Oia sunset, as seen from the restaurant:
Day 3
This was our last day on Santorini. We were going to take the ferry back to Athens at 3.30 p.m. In the morning, before checking out, I went on my own to Akrotiri to see the Red Beach. My partner sat this one out because the internet warned us that the hike to get to the beach could be treacherous. This had some truth in it. It was fine when I visited, but I could see how easily accidents could happen. I spent about an hour there and took the next bus back to our hotel. We checked out together, walked to Fira Square again to buy some fruits, chocolates and souvenirs, then took a bus to the Ferry terminal.
Since we reached early, we killed time by having lunch at one of the restaurants near the ferry terminal. The one we went to was a bit hidden, located behind the crowded ones on the main street. It was a family-owned business, and they didn't speak much English. We were the only customers.
Seeing the lack of crowd, we didn't put a very high expectation on it. It was only the cheap price that attracted us. I think their price was the cheapest we had found on the island so far. We ordered two dishes, thinking the portion would be small. And we couldn't be more wrong. It was huge. Although the taste was superb, we still couldn't finish the souvlaki, so we wrapped it up in tissue paper to bring with us on the ferry.
We sat there until it was 30 minutes before boarding. Then we went to join the rest of the passengers for our 7-hour journey back to Athens.
All in all, Santorini didn't disappoint. I think we had chosen the best time to go. In mid-May, the weather was not too hot and not too cold. The summer vacationers had yet to arrive, so accommodation was well within our budget. My host in Athens was surprised that we were paying so little for our room in Santorini. She said, had we come a month later, there was no way we could have gotten that rate.
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| Lunch while waiting for the ferry |
Seeing the lack of crowd, we didn't put a very high expectation on it. It was only the cheap price that attracted us. I think their price was the cheapest we had found on the island so far. We ordered two dishes, thinking the portion would be small. And we couldn't be more wrong. It was huge. Although the taste was superb, we still couldn't finish the souvlaki, so we wrapped it up in tissue paper to bring with us on the ferry.
We sat there until it was 30 minutes before boarding. Then we went to join the rest of the passengers for our 7-hour journey back to Athens.
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All in all, Santorini didn't disappoint. I think we had chosen the best time to go. In mid-May, the weather was not too hot and not too cold. The summer vacationers had yet to arrive, so accommodation was well within our budget. My host in Athens was surprised that we were paying so little for our room in Santorini. She said, had we come a month later, there was no way we could have gotten that rate.
Although small, the island had plenty to offer. If I had stayed longer, I would have hiked to the lighthouse in Akrotiri and maybe taken a boat to see the volcano. The food was great. The Greek people were super friendly. It was cheap and easy to get around by bus. Bus fare was from 1.80 to 2.30 euros per ride. Alternatively, you can rent a car, a buggy, or an ATV.
Santorini is definitely the most magical place I have been, after New Zealand. The whitewashed cubical houses are the prettiest man made structures I have seen (and I've been to Taj Mahal). It took me weeks to get over my Santorini blues.
