Santorini - avoiding the cable-car madhouse?

[brian711]

From what I've read, getting back to the tender port at the bottom of Fira in Santorini can be challenging with large crowds all trying to do the same thing.

 

There are 4 ships scheduled in Santorini when my ship will be there, all of them scheduled to depart at 1600 and 1700, so I expect the cable-car and donkey operation in Fira to be a madhouse in the afternoon, with all the cruise ship guests fighting to get back to their ships on time. It can be walked, but some have said you can't avoid stepping in donkey excrement. That does not sound pleasant, so I am trying to plan our day to avoid being at the top of Fira later in the day, and competing with thousands of other people.

 

questions...

 

1.) There is a ferry that goes from the tender port at the bottom of Fira to Oia. But does the ferry operate in the opposite direction? Everything I've read seems to indicate that the only way to get back to Fira is by bus which puts you at the top (which would be fine if we can get there by mid-day), or by chartered boat for a pre-arranged group of 15+.

 

2.) What other activities can we do that start mid-day instead of morning, that don't put us back at the top of Fira in the evening? All of the cruise-line's excursions seem to begin in the morning, so I'm looking for independent excursions that would start around noon or 1300. Do any of the volcano or Akrotiri excavation tours return to the BOTTOM of Fira?

[Gourmet Gal]

You can book a private tour to accommodate your schedule. I am not sure the tender port is accessible by car so the only option may still be to be returned to the top of the cable-car.

[Got2Cruise]

I had the walking down as my backup. We lucked out and the two mega ships left 90 minutes before our ship so the cable car was fine. But the line was an hour wait when those ship's pax wanted to return. I know people who walked down, it's doable, the donkey dung is the worst part.

[Travelling2Some]

Sorry I don't have a constructive solution. I have been wondering why the boats that take people to Oia in the morning do not offer transport back to the tender port later in the day. There is certainly a market for their services then. Why would they not want to make twice as much money by providing service both ways??? Anybody know the answer to this?

[brian711]

I suspect it's a regulation to protect the cable-car and donkey operators union. Same reason that cruise ships have to tender to Fira instead of Athinios, unless booked the Oia Village excursion from the cruise line.

 

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[Travelling2Some]

I suspect it's a regulation to protect the cable-car and donkey operators union. Same reason that cruise ships have to tender to Fira instead of Athinios, unless booked the Oia Village excursion from the cruise line.

 

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I'll bet you are right. Whenever something makes no sense bureaucracy is usually involved, lol.

[kuldalai]

Its high time all the beneficiaries of cruise boat visits to Santorini upgraded the existing cable car to a continuous belt operation where the volume of pax in each cabin and more cabins on the rope would double the capacity like the cars on the Lantau island cable ropeway in Hong Kong . the existing operation like an elevator with 3 cabins going up and 3 going down is so slow and low capacity .

[Travelling2Some]

Its high time all the beneficiaries of cruise boat visits to Santorini upgraded the existing cable car to a continuous belt operation where the volume of pax in each cabin and more cabins on the rope would double the capacity like the cars on the Lantau island cable ropeway in Hong Kong . the existing operation like an elevator with 3 cabins going up and 3 going down is so slow and low capacity .

 

Yes, sounds like that's long overdue. But it will probably happen right after they start making those donkeys use the restroom . . . and pigs fly . . . and hell freezes.

[Got2Cruise]

I'm thinking the reason is the tenders back to the ships. The want all the pax to be in one location to best utilize the tenders and get all pax back to ship on time. We were very pleased with the Santorini tenders

[brian711]

From my understanding, the ferries that go between Fira and Oia are not the same as the tenders, and will leave when they have ~15 people, compared to the tenders which carry 100 people...

 

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[zqvol]

Don't over think the issue. Walking down is easy, and avoiding the donkey dung is not a big deal, it's not like the entire path is covered.

[Larainerenee]

We were in Santorini in June with 5 ships (over 10,000 passengers) in port that day. We were off the first ship and in the first tender with no line at the cable car going up. We had an amazing day with a photographer guide, but then endured the nightmare of getting down...The queue for the cable car was about 2.5 hours long in the hot sun at 2PM, so we decided to walk. It was very crowded and we saw numerous people stumble and get pushed into the wall by the donkeys. Needless to say we had to watch every step.

What started as a wonderful, delightful day ended quite miserably.

We kept thinking, "there has to be a better way".

[brian711]

I'm sure tons of people want to be first off the ship... Any tips to accomplish that? Does it mean skipping breakfast?

 

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[kuldalai]

The alternative it is to take a ships excursion where the cable car is not used at all . The shore excursions tender to a different area where the road coaches come down to the tender jetty .

[Got2Cruise]

The alternative it is to take a ships excursion where the cable car is not used at all . The shore excursions tender to a different area where the road coaches come down to the tender jetty .

 

 

I can only speak of the excursion we were on but the bus picks you up at the other pier but at the end you are dropped off in Fira to take the cable car down. I'm almost positive all excursions are like this.

[brian711]

I'm with Got2Cruise... From what I've read, even if you take an excursion that starts from Athinios, you still have to go back to the ship at Fira.

 

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[agabbymama]

I'm with Got2Cruise... From what I've read, even if you take an excursion that starts from Athinios, you still have to go back to the ship at Fira.

 

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Not all of the tours end at Fira. We were on Grand Princess and booked a cruiseline tour to avoid the cablecar. When we headed back, the bus driver gave us the option of getting off in Fira or continuing back to Athinios. About half of the bus continued back to Athinios and tendered back to the ship. Thereby avoiding the cablecar ride totally. Just read the description of the tour. Ours clearly stated either/or for staying in Fira.

[texancruzer]

Not all of the tours end at Fira. We were on Grand Princess and booked a cruiseline tour to avoid the cablecar. When we headed back, the bus driver gave us the option of getting off in Fira or continuing back to Athinios. About half of the bus continued back to Athinios and tendered back to the ship. Thereby avoiding the cablecar ride totally. Just read the description of the tour. Ours clearly stated either/or for staying in Fira.

 

Just out of curiosity…..was this a mobility challenged tour ? I know that some cruise lines offer them as I researched it prior to taking my MIL to Europe a few years ago. She can walk but not far or for very long. I know you travel with a friend who is mobility challenged also……. so just wondering. As a side note she stayed onboard that day as she didn't think she could tender either.

[brian711]

Don't over think the issue. Walking down is easy, and avoiding the donkey dung is not a big deal, it's not like the entire path is covered.

 

I just found this video of the donkey path. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a thousand pictures. It doesn't look at all how I had imagined it from some people's descriptions! Not bad at all.

 

Edited July 24, 2015 by brian711

[Got2Cruise]

I just found this video of the donkey path. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a thousand pictures. It doesn't look at all how I had imagined it from some people's descriptions! Not bad at all.

 

 

 

That's perfect. Also remember that the donkeys are actually mules so they are the size of horses. Some folks are petrified of animals. Our CD told us to wear long pants if planning to ride mules. Also everyone should wear closed toe shoes so you don't have to worry about the dung touching your feet.

[GrammySpo]

That's perfect. Also remember that the donkeys are actually mules so they are the size of horses. Some folks are petrified of animals. Our CD told us to wear long pants if planning to ride mules. Also everyone should wear closed toe shoes so you don't have to worry about the dung touching your feet.

 

 

This looks doable that's for sure but It may take me awhile because of the view. I think I won't share with hubby though.

[agabbymama]

Just out of curiosity…..was this a mobility challenged tour ? I know that some cruise lines offer them as I researched it prior to taking my MIL to Europe a few years ago. She can walk but not far or for very long. I know you travel with a friend who is mobility challenged also……. so just wondering. As a side note she stayed onboard that day as she didn't think she could tender either.

 

Yes, it was an "Easy" rated tour. Our biggest problem were the steps going into the bus (one step was a large step). We did stop at a Winery with a little walking, but nothing we couldn't handle, with a patio for viewing down to the Caldera. We then went to a Black Sand Beach where we stopped for photos and maybe 15 minutes to walk on the sand. A drive to the highest point of the island, then through Fira to see the buildings, churches, etc. But mostly on a bus for most of the 3 hour tour. It was a great tour for anyone with limited mobility. The tender we took looked like an old pirate ship (not one of the ship's normal tenders), and neither of us had any problems boarding it.

[jodav40]

Hi - how long does the walk down take? And the walk up? Just looked at a video and it looks do-able and I wouldn't want to put the poor donkeys to the effort of having us lot on their backs when I'm sure we're up to it ourselves!

Many thanks

[Langley Cruisers]

Don't over think the issue. Walking down is easy, and avoiding the donkey dung is not a big deal, it's not like the entire path is covered.

 

Absolutely agree with you. We decided to walk down when we saw the cable car line was over an hour long in the summer sun. It was a no-brainer - we walked. I fully understand that people with mobility issues cannot walk down, though. This would not be an option for those folks.

 

 

Hi - how long does the walk down take? And the walk up? Just looked at a video and it looks do-able and I wouldn't want to put the poor donkeys to the effort of having us lot on their backs when I'm sure we're up to it ourselves!

 

We walked down - I would guess it took maybe 20-25 minutes? We took our time, avoided the dung, took some pictures.

 

We did not walk up, nor did we take the donkeys up. Umm... no offense as many thousands of people have certainly ridden the donkeys up, but I wouldn't want to smell "like that" for the rest of my fabulous day in Santorini. Trust me, it stinks. We took a ship's tour which was fabulous - we were tendered to the alternate port of Athinios and got on a bus to go to Oia. THIS was incredible. So we really only had to deal with the decision of cable/car/donkey/stairs once for the day instead of twice. :):):)

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[Got2Cruise]

Absolutely agree with you. We decided to walk down when we saw the cable car line was over an hour long in the summer sun. It was a no-brainer - we walked. I fully understand that people with mobility issues cannot walk down, though. This would not be an option for those folks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We walked down - I would guess it took maybe 20-25 minutes? We took our time, avoided the dung, took some pictures.

 

 

 

We did not walk up, nor did we take the donkeys up. Umm... no offense as many thousands of people have certainly ridden the donkeys up, but I wouldn't want to smell "like that" for the rest of my fabulous day in Santorini. Trust me, it stinks. We took a ship's tour which was fabulous - we were tendered to the alternate port of Athinios and got on a bus to go to Oia. THIS was incredible. So we really only had to deal with the decision of cable/car/donkey/stairs once for the day instead of twice. :):):)

 

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We took the tour also. Our tour went to Akotori and then Oia. Akotori was fascinating and it's contained in an air conditioned structure. Some tours do the winery instead of Akotori.