Santorini Help/Advice/Suggestions

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting after lurking for awhile :) This is a great community and I've already learned so much about the ports I'm going to, and have so many ideas about what to do.

I'm going to be in Santorini at the end of August, and luckily we have a very long time in port (7am-10pm) and we will be the only cruise ship there.

Because there's so much time, I was hoping to do as much stuff as possible, but was wondering if any other cruisers could let me know if what I want to do is possible or not? We would be using the public bus system for our transportation. Also, how long would it take to get a tender to the island since we are not booking any shore excursions?

1) Exploring Oia--what is the best time to do this? I have seen a lot of people saying it is best to go early in the morning to avoid the crowds, but I was kind of thinking it would be best to do other activities first and then spend the rest of the day/sunset in Oia? Will it be very crowded if I do this?

2) Prehistoric Museum and Akrotiri--I definitely want to visit the museum, but is Akrotiri worth it? I have read conflicting things here and on tripadvisor

3) Ancient Thera--I'm a little dubious about this destination since the hike seems quite long, and I'm afraid it will be very hot when we go. Since we'll be visiting a lot of different ruins (also will be going to Taormina, and Pompeii), is it best to skip this?

Thanks so much! Sorry this post is so long. Of course I would love to hear suggestions for other activities or even things to do in Oia and Fira! :)

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting after lurking for awhile :) This is a great community and I've already learned so much about the ports I'm going to, and have so many ideas about what to do.

 

I'm going to be in Santorini at the end of August, and luckily we have a very long time in port (7am-10pm) and we will be the only cruise ship there.

 

Because there's so much time, I was hoping to do as much stuff as possible, but was wondering if any other cruisers could let me know if what I want to do is possible or not? We would be using the public bus system for our transportation. Also, how long would it take to get a tender to the island since we are not booking any shore excursions?

 

1) Exploring Oia--what is the best time to do this? I have seen a lot of people saying it is best to go early in the morning to avoid the crowds, but I was kind of thinking it would be best to do other activities first and then spend the rest of the day/sunset in Oia? Will it be very crowded if I do this?

 

2) Prehistoric Museum and Akrotiri--I definitely want to visit the museum, but is Akrotiri worth it? I have read conflicting things here and on tripadvisor

 

3) Ancient Thera--I'm a little dubious about this destination since the hike seems quite long, and I'm afraid it will be very hot when we go. Since we'll be visiting a lot of different ruins (also will be going to Taormina, and Pompeii), is it best to skip this?

 

Thanks so much! Sorry this post is so long. Of course I would love to hear suggestions for other activities or even things to do in Oia and Fira! :)

We will be there in Sept. will definitely go to the Prehistoric Museum and Akrotiri. We missed seeing Akrotiri twice, first time it was a holiday and the second time they were working on the roof over the site. They are still excavating the site, many people say it is the lost colony of Atlantis. We are very excited about seeing it. We are renting a car on our trip, have done this twice before. It is very easy driving, the car was a Smart car and you could really find parking spaces easily. We did the local bus to Oia, on a previous trip, beware if you go there late, don't wait too late as if the bus is full you are out of luck. I don't understand why people think you have to be in Oia, you can see the sunset at outdoor restaurants near the cable car at the top.

beware if you go there late, don't wait too late as if the bus is full you are out of luck. I don't understand why people think you have to be in Oia, you can see the sunset at outdoor restaurants near the cable car at the top.

totally agree with this! just think of all the other people on your ship also coming back from Oia after the sunset!! chaos! it's a good idea to be in Fira, near the cable car station area for the sunset and then catch the cable car down to the tender.

when we were there a month ago, it took us about 1 hour and 45 minutes to get from Oia back to the ship...this was a smooth run with no waiting for the local bus from Oia to Fira and no waiting for the cable car or the tender to the ship.

I agree with other posters, sunset is seen from the rim anywhere. Took us 2 hours to walk down the donkey path in October; should have got in the line that was over an hour to get to cable car.

We did a private tour that did a loop around the island, scenic spots for photos & took us to Venetasanos Winery, is located right above the port of Athinios. The caldera view here was stunning and the desert wine, taste was out of this world good. Really enjoyed seeing the coastal area of the island that is never featured in the pictures.

This may be a silly question, however not having been to Santorini before and knowing that sometimes there can be a few cruise ships in port on the same day, I know that our ship (a Princess ship) will tender but have no idea where abouts the tender arrives.

Do all the ships use the same dock ? If so, is it at a town centre ?

Many thanks

Heather

This may be a silly question, however not having been to Santorini before and knowing that sometimes there can be a few cruise ships in port on the same day, I know that our ship (a Princess ship) will tender but have no idea where abouts the tender arrives.

 

Do all the ships use the same dock ? If so, is it at a town centre ?

 

Many thanks

Heather

Ships tenders go to two places. If you are on a ships tour they will take you to the old port where the buses will meet you. If you are OYO or on a private tour you will tender below Fira where you have the options of cable car, donkey or walking to get you up to the town. From there you can also arrange a boat trip to Oia.

Virtually everything ends up in Fira at the end of the day so the route back is then Cable car, Donkey or walk (at least downhill) to get to the tenders. The cable car thus gets busiest at days end, especially with multiple ships in port.

Ships tenders go to two places. If you are on a ships tour they will take you to the old port where the buses will meet you. If you are OYO or on a private tour you will tender below Fira where you have the options of cable car, donkey or walking to get you up to the town. From there you can also arrange a boat trip to Oia.

Virtually everything ends up in Fira at the end of the day so the route back is then Cable car, Donkey or walk (at least downhill) to get to the tenders. The cable car thus gets busiest at days end, especially with multiple ships in port.

Thanks very much for that information wheezed ... very helpful

Cheers

Heather

Hi Starshollow

My husband and I were on Silver Sea two years ago and we tendered in Fira. We actually walked to Oia - it was a long walk - about 4 hours of up and down hills but absolutely amazing! As i write this post, my husband is laughing and saying next time he is going to "buy a donkey" to get there :D If you do the walk, there is a "path" to follow and you will pass some beautiful sceneries - much of what can't be seen from the road and truly a spectacular site. It was an extremely hot day and we brought lots of water and bananas for our walk - it certainly was a hike and we are very fit :) we loved it so much that we are doing again this year when we journey back to Greece - this time on Celebrity! Once in Oia we wandered the streets, had a lovely lunch, and took the city bus back to Fira. Just an idea...hope it helps. Have a wonderful trip!