Santorini, Greece: Fira & Oia

Santorini has always been on my bucket list because of its undeniable popularity. I’ve been longing to discover what makes it so enchanting. Is it truly a picturesque white, cliffside paradise, or have we all been captivated by carefully curated social media posts? The truth is, Santorini more than lives up to the hype! With its dramatic cliffs, whitewashed buildings, and breathtaking sunsets, it’s a sight to behold. Yet, what truly stole my heart was the island’s volcanic landscape. The rich, red-brown volcanic soil creates an ethereal experience, almost transporting you to the otherworldly realm of Mars.

After leaving Croatia, which seems to be a popular pairing with Greece, we flew into Athens for a day, then to Santorini!

A perfect 3 night itinerary in Santorini:

I am now traveling with my mom and my sister for a girl trip! We all have similar ideas of how we like to vacation, so it works for us and is great bonding time.

Day 1: Fira – Walk the white streets; Relax in your private jacuzzi; 3 Bells of Fira; Admire the sunset

Our flight from Athens arrived at 0745, so super early, and too early to check into the hotel. We took a bus from the airport to Fira’s main bus station, and walked to the hotel from there.

The streets were mostly empty because it was still early. We had our first donkey sighting as they walked down the cliff to get to work. The donkey situation is a discussion for another day…animal abuse?

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We arrive to Caldera Cliff Illusion Hotel at around 9 am. The hotel workers were thrown off by us arriving so early, and were noticeably flustered. We inquired what time we could check in and if we could drop our bags off early. They were extremely accommodating, telling us to enjoy the view on the main deck and surprised us with breakfast!

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Walk the white streets, stopping at shops with items only made in Greece! Made in Greece items included olive wood utensils, soaps, olive oil, clothing, shoes, etc!

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Our hotel room was ready around 11, so after some shopping and buying wine for later, we head back to the hotel. The goal of Santorini was not only to see the island, but also to relax. Our hotel room had a private hot tub with an amazing view.

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FYI…If you go to Santorini, this is the way to do it. The town can get SO crowded, especially when there are thousands of people dumping in from cruises. You will be thankful you have a place to relax in the jacuzzi and still enjoy the island!

That being said, I think it is worth the money to spend a little extra on a nice cliff side hotel. Relaxing in your private jacuzzi is a “thing to do,” instead of the vacations where you are only in your hotel to sleep. Santorini is the perfect place for relaxing.

(I would probably not recommend coming here on a cruise. The port is at the bottom of the cliff, so the only way to the towns is by cable car, donkey, or walking. The cable car is only 6 euros and is pretty quick, but the lines get so long that you can be waiting for hours. It can get so crowded. The donkey an be an option if you want to support that and was 10 euros for a donkey ride. We walked down from the town to the port and it was really steep and pretty long. I think it would be difficult to walk up it.)

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We pop the cork to wine made in Santorini and hangout in the private jacuzzi! It has a view of the entire caldera.

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Walk to the famous 3 Bells of Fira Catholic Church: You have to walk through town and head up around the church. There is a map on the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic Church showing how to get to the famous 3 bells view point. It is iconic not only because of the 3 bells, but also for the blue dome! This is a popular destination to watch the sunset in Fira. People were lining up early to get a front row view of the sunset!

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As the sun starts to set, we run back to our hot tub for a relaxing sunset show.

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Walk into town for dinner at Fanari.

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Take in the sparkling cliffside lights:

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Day 2: Fira – Breakfast on private patio; Shop; Falafel Gyro; Walk to the Port; Excursion to the active volcano & hot spring; Cable Car

We wake up to a knock on our door. It is breakfast from the hotel! We eat this expansive breakfast by our private jacuzzi.

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Check out the shops: We were all on a mission for different things. There were so many shops to choose from, so we had to look at them all to make sure we’re getting the best item for the best price!

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Falafel Gyro for lunch!

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Walk down to the port: this famous path was previously the main way to get to the port. It is 600 steps, but they are huge steps! So, plan to take 3 steps, per “step.” The donkeys can also take you up and down, as they used to be their transportation to the port.

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Book an excursion to the Santorini Volcano and hot springs that leaves from the port. The hotel recommended this tour, so we did not find it online or read reviews. It was interesting, taking a pirate ship over to Nea Kameni, which is an active volcano.

We then rode the boat over to Palea Kameni for hot springs.

Thinking about swimming in hot springs is what made us book this excursion. When we arrived, it was a very rushed experience where everyone watches you jump in the water, quickly swim to the warmer water, then hurry back. Nothing about it was relaxing. I actually opted not to go in, but my mom and sister did it while I took their pictures.

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We took the cable car back up. We were very lucky that most of the cruise ships were leaving by this point so we didn’t have to wait to get on the cable car. It was a beautiful ride!

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Falafel gyro for dinner in the jacuzzi! The falafel from lunch was so delicious, I had to eat it again. We picked up a few desserts for after our falafel gyros. We ended up talking for a while and watched the water and sparkling lights from the town, so we stayed in for the rest of the night.

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Day 3: Fira & Oia – Breakfast on patio; Lunch at Lupo; Bus to Oia; Sunset at Ammoudi Bay in Oia

Wake up to breakfast by the jacuzzi.

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Appetizers for lunch at Lupo Restaurant with a stunning view. We ordered a few appetizers, which included bruschetta and a few different Greek dips for the bread.

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Ride the bus from Fira to Oia. This bus station was absolute madness. You have no idea which bus is going where until they announce it at the last second. Everyone runs to the bus to make sure they’re on before you, so be careful you aren’t trampled on the way to the bus.

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We arrive in Oia and check into the hotel. This is the first time I have ever been so grossed out by a hotel that we had to leave. I could not get passed the ick I felt from the owner. The door had cracks in it that give a view of the bed, which he probably looks through. We left and found an amazing hotel at a discounted price because it was so late minute.

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Check into Madeleine Hotel. The manager, Anna, was so kind and accommodating. We had to wait an hour or so for our room to be ready, which prompted some heart to heart conversations with Anna. And a few hugs.

View from the nice, new hotel (Madeleine)

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Walk to the famous Oia Sunset Lookout. (Agios Nikolaos Castle). I wanted to see what the hype was about. This lookout spot has an unobstructed view of the sunset over the water. We decided that because it was so crowded there, to walk to Ammoudi Bay for sunset.

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We decided that because it was getting so crowded at the Agios Nikolaos Castle, the famous spot (the pictures above were taken an hour before sunset and people started to pile in as we were leaving), that we would walk to Ammoudi Bay for sunset. To get there, we walked down the steps, which took about 20 minutes. It had incredible views the entire way, though.

Sunset in Ammoudi for dinner. My mom, sister, and I ordered appetizers again for dinner. I could eat apps for every meal!

The sunset was pretty amazing to me. There was land that technically obstructed the view on the water, but it was worth it to having a relaxing sunset experience while sipping my Greek wine, without people bumping into me.

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We walk back up the stairs from Ammoudi Bay to the town. This time it was in the dark. Some of the steps were lit up and I didn’t feel unsafe, but I would avoid doing it in the dark next time. We were so confused how everyone was getting to and from Ammoudi Bay, because we didn’t realize there were taxis down at the bay! We actually thought the only way was to walk. So, you can take a taxi if you prefer.

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I found Oia a little bit creepy at night. We walked back to our fabulous hotel and fell asleep.

Day 4: Ferry Oia to Paros

Wake up to breakfast on our private patio. Delicious!

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Take in the last sights of Oia before leaving.

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It was time to go to take the Blue Star Ferry to Paros. We didn’t have too long in Oia, but it was long enough to get a feel for it!

We had to go to the other side of the island to catch the ferry, which required 2 buses. The roads are insane (pictured below).

The ferry was about 3-4 hours, so we arrive to Paros at night. Pictures on the Blue Star Ferry are below. Check out my Paros blog for your perfect Paros itinerary!