There are
four main towns for choosing where to stay in Santorini, Fira, Oia,
Imerovigli and Firostefani. In this video we'll give a brief introduction to each of these areas,
plus other parts of the island popular with visitors. These four towns are the most famous,
because they line the edge along the crescent cliff of the island facing into the caldera,
Santorini's signature view. On Santorini the word caldera is used to describe both the steep
cliff side and the area of ocean created when the original volcano blew its top.
First, we'll start with Fira. The island's largest
town, and one of the most picturesque spots in all of Greece. It's perched on the steep caldera
cliff and has amazing views of the volcano. Fira is Santorini's busiest town with the greatest
concentration of hotels, restaurants and shops. And sitting in any one of the myriad cafes with
views out over the caldera is just spectacular. It also is the center of nightlife. If you like
action, shopping, lots of choice for where to eat and dance clubs, then this is where you'll want to
be. If you want peace and solitude, then you'll likely find Fira busy, hectic and touristy. That
said, if you're just a little off the main street, it's pretty quiet until you step into the fray.
Fira has many hotels with
wonderful caldera views. But also a large number that are back from the cliff and without a view,
which means they're cheaper and makes Fira a good choice for travelers on a budget.
As can be expected of the commercial and geographic center of the island,
it's the hub of Santorini's bus network. So you can get pretty much anywhere on the island
with just one bus ride. It takes roughly 30 minutes by bus to Oia. The closest beach to
Fira is in Kamari about 15 minutes away by bus and explored later on in this video.
Oia is Santorini's fanciest town and
the second most popular destination, with many of the island's best hotels. Located at the northern
tip of the island, it's famous for its fabulous sunset views. There's lots of high-end shopping,
many great restaurants and plenty of spots to enjoy a meal or sit and sip a cold drink.
The town is busy through the day up until sunset when it's packed in the high season,
but then gets quiet quickly as many tourists return to other parts of the island.
Much of the main area
for visitors to Oia is pedestrian only, along a central marble promenade with lots of small
lanes that descend between hotels on the caldera side and between shops and restaurants throughout
the village. During the high season, the road through Oia is a one-way loop that often gets
clogged with vehicles. In the off season vehicles move in both directions. Most of Oia's best hotels
face the caldera, which in Oia is facing south, not west the direction of the sunset. This means
that the hotels that do face the sunset do not look into the caldera. Only a few Oia hotels have
unimpeded sunset views toward the west. The walk from Oia to Fira is beautiful, but takes several
hours. So for the most part, Oia is a taxi or bus ride away from the hub of the island.
Imerovigli is Santorini's quietest
town along the Caldera and has the island's best sunset views, as the orientation is toward the
west. The cliff is higher here and the view of the sunset is unimpeded by any neighboring islands,
which isn't the case in Fira and Firostefani. Imerovigli is also home to some of the island's
best resorts and sheer drop-offs down the cliff side below the hotel rooms and patios
covering the hillside. Imerovigli is a 20 to 30 minute walk from Fira along the beautiful
walking path or a short bus ride or taxi ride. Imerovigli doesn't have a lot of restaurants,
but the ones that are here are all excellent. There are no bars or nightlife in Imerovigli.
Firostefani is a short
10 minute walk along the footpath from Fira. If you want to be close to the action of Fira,
but don't want the crowds then Firostefani is a great choice. Caldera views here are
equally dramatic and wonderful. There are 10 to 12 restaurants in the area,
a bakery, shops and a couple of markets, but not the nightlife of close by Fira.
If visiting or staying near the beach appeals to you or you have a longer stay on the island,
you'll want to check out some of Santorini's towns away from the caldera,
which include Kamari, Perissa, Perivolos, Pyrgos, Akrotiri and Megalochori.
Kamari on the other side of the island with
beach side towns has a wonderful family friendly atmosphere, a pedestrian beach front walkway,
and plenty of good restaurants, if not the great ones found in the most popular areas of Santorini.
Kamari has a pebble beach and the swimming is cool, refreshing and wonderful with crystal clear
waters. There's also the lovely Kamari open-air cinema, one of the best outdoor cinemas in Europe
showing English language movies nightly and serving cocktails and snacks in a charming
atmosphere. It's a 15 minute bus ride to Fira from Kamari, making day trips to the caldera easy.
Perissa beach has nicer sand than Kamari, but it's farther from Fira than Kamari, which makes visiting
the caldera a bit more time consuming. A few new luxury hotels and upscale restaurants have opened
here. Though there are still plenty of great, affordable hotels and low-key restaurants and
bars all along the pedestrian-friendly beach road. Perissa offers a nice alternative to
the crowded caldera villages with sunrise sea views and direct access to the water.
Perivolos is an extension of Perissa Beach. There's no defining border between the two
towns. Perissa is the northern busier section. Perivolos is the southern quieter section. And
the name Perissa is often used for the whole strip of coast. Perivolos has a few new luxury
hotels opening up, as well as some fine dining restaurants and upscale beach clubs, especially at
the south end of the beach strip, Agios Georgios Beach. Perivolos is emerging as the most luxurious
beachfront area in Santorini. It takes about 30 minutes to get to Fira from here by bus.
Pyrgos is the most charming of Santorini's traditional villages. From its mountain top perch at the
highest point on the island, it offers panoramic sunset views over the whole of Santorini. This
is an ideal place to stay in for living like a local in an area that's not the caldera or
the beach. Most of Pyrgos is pedestrian only with its maze-like footpaths dotted with restaurants,
local boutiques, picturesque churches and the ruins of a Venetian castle. The foothills
surrounding the village are full of vineyards, many offering tours and tasting rooms. From the
main square, it's about a 10 minute ride into Fira for more dining, nightlife and shopping.
Akrotiri is a catch-all name for the village, ruins and southern peninsula of Santorini. The village itself is quite small
with just a few restaurants, chapels and castle ruins. From the village and the main bus stop,
it's only a 15 minute walk to the excavation site of the prehistoric town of Akrotiri,
believed to have inspired the legend of Atlantis. The ruins are a UNESCO World
Heritage site and the main attraction in this part of the island. The Akrotiri peninsula is
also home to several of Santorini's best beaches, including Red Beach, White Beach,
Vlichada Beach and Caldera Beach and great views of the rest of the island looking
north. At its western tip is a lighthouse, which is the quietest and most romantic
sunset viewpoint on the island. A car is strongly recommended to stay in this area, as most hotels,
restaurants, beaches and attractions are fairly spread out over the peninsula.
Megalochori is a charming labyrinth of winding alleys, traditional houses and churches with ornate
bell towers and a good number of trees. The central plaza is full of charming sidewalk
cafes and tavernas. A handful of boutique hotels offer views of the sea and vineyards
in the surrounding hills that ring the village. And Megalochori is home to the oldest and one
of our favorite vineyards on the whole island, the fifth generation family run Gavalas Winery.
While most first-time visitors to the island choose hotels in the four main towns along the caldera, returning visitors or those
with enough time to stay in multiple locations may enjoy some of the other areas we've discussed.
We've got lots of other videos all about Santorini and the other Greek Islands and many other places
on our YouTube channel and throughout our site, SantoriniDave.com. Thanks for watching.