Anyone done the walk from Fira to Oia?

[Hydro ergo]

Pretty much exactly as the title says!  Wondering about doing this.  Will be there at the end of October (in port on the 25th).  Ship is in port from 1pm -10pm.  I'm an avid hiker, my partner is reasonably fit.  Are there any bus stops not too far off the route about half way?  I'm wondering about taking most of the day for the adventure.  Any thoughts are very welcome---love to hear about other's experiences.

 

thank you!

[mapleleaves]

Didn't do this hike. We had a 2 hr wait for the cable car so we didnt get out of Fira!   But there is a lot of information in this very long article from Santorini Dave.

 

Fira to Oia Hike (with map) - Updated for 2023 (santorinidave.com)

 

Keep in mind that sunset will be around 6:30pm so you don't have as much time as you think. 

 

The bus is KETL Santorini. Schedules will be on their web site.  And on Santorini Dave's web site.

[Milhouse]

The missus and I did the hike during our second visit to Santorini in mid-October 2016.  Our ship was in port from 2pm to 9pm so we did the hike from about mid to late afternoon.  

 

From a degree of difficulty perspective, we did not find it strenuous from a walking perspective.  However, I got pretty hot and sweaty even in mid-October because you're pretty exposed to the sun along the trail with limited cover.  I'd suggest bringing a hat with a brim.  I should have brought more water too as there didn't seem to be a lot of "convenience type stores" once you get further out from Fira.  

 

I forget how close the trail was/parallelled the main road but IIRC, it's within reasonable distance at the start and the end of the hike but further away during the mid-part (don't quote me on this).

Further complicating things:  We were in Santorini again this past June and I just looked at my Google Maps timeline.  The buses we took between Fira and Oia took the back/eastside road both there and back and not the road that runs along the trail.  So not sure if you would be able to ditch the trail halfway and jump on a bus.  

 

Great views.  Happy we did it.  Would consider doing it again but it's not at the top of my list. 

By the time we finished the hike, we didn't have a lot of daylight hours in Oia to explore all the little areas (and it was dark by the time we got back to Fira).  However, as mentioned, we did the hike during our second visit so we didn't feel like we missed out since we explored Oia extensively and watched the sunset there during our first visit. If it's your first time, IMO it's kind of a shame not to have more daylight hours in Oia.  (Also recommend eating at Pitogyros in Oia for a casual meal somewhat near the bus stop.)

 

Leave yourself enough time to get back to Fira and back down to the tender station.  "Everyone" is trying to catch one of the latter buses from Oia back to Fira so the queue can get pretty long.  Same goes for the for the tram in Fira down to the tenders.  The tram queue was pretty long and we didn't want to risk it so we hoofed it down the donkey trail which was pretty dark and somewhat slippery.

[edinburgher]

14 hours ago, Hydro ergo said:

Are there any bus stops not too far off the route about half way?

bear in mind that the buses between Fira and Oia are popular, therefore busy.  Even should there be any stops, if buses are full and nobody is getting off, they may not even stop.

[Hydro ergo]

5 hours ago, edinburgher said:

bear in mind that the buses between Fira and Oia are popular, therefore busy.  Even should there be any stops, if buses are full and nobody is getting off, they may not even stop.

yes, thank you!  That occurred to me last night after I posted this. 

[Hydro ergo]

@Milhouse, thank you so much for this detailed response!  It is always so helpful to hear real life experiences from others.  

[edinburgher]

1 minute ago, Hydro ergo said:

yes, thank you!  That occurred to me last night after I posted this. 

Great minds etc. Thinking that if you decide to walk you might need to be prepared to complete it on foot, in which case I hope you are not visiting in one of the warmer months.

[Hydro ergo]

58 minutes ago, edinburgher said:

Great minds etc. Thinking that if you decide to walk you might need to be prepared to complete it on foot, in which case I hope you are not visiting in one of the warmer months.

We'll be there end of October.  And...I live in South Carolina US now...previously in Phoenix, AZ, US for ten years prior.  I'm no stranger to heat and how careful one must be in those conditions.  I don't think I would want to do it in the summer.  Thank you again!

[edinburgher]

9 hours ago, Hydro ergo said:

Thank you again!

Thanks for acknowledging as not everyone does.  Good luck if you decide to walk it.

[Kiwi Dreamer]

We did this but the other way and at the end of April.  Was a great work and would highly recommend it.  Our cruise ship had an included tour to Oia so we took that and then let them know that we would meet them back at the boat.  Had a tour of Oia first and then off we went.  Arrived back at Fira to have a beer (well earnt) and had no problems getting the cable car back down to join our ship.  If there are long lines you could walk up or down rather than waiting for the cable car. 

     

[Hydro ergo]

We ended up getting into port late and didn't make it to Oia... just enough time to explore Fira before sunset. We'll try it next time though! Thank you, it sounds like fun. 

[capecruzer]

My daughter and I did this in late May 2019.  I was just almost 60 and in okay physical shape.  We found it long but not too strenuous.  Great views.  Happy to finally get to OIA for a cold beer though.  There were plenty of people on the trail so we felt safe.  Started out early in the morning to avoid the heat.  Nice way to kill a few hours and enjoy the views.  I think it took us 3 hours, maybe a little more?  We did get off the path a bit near the very end which cost us another 15 or 20 minutes.