The best Santorini hotels with caldera views: from budget to luxury. Luxury hotel in Fira: Athina Luxury Suites

The beaches of Santorini are as popular as the legendary sunsets. On this Greek island there is always a place where you can sunbathe, swim, spend time with the children, dance and have a snack - with other travelers or as far away from them as possible. Let us immediately note that people do not go to Santorini for a beach holiday.

The local beaches are a landmark that remains in memory of the volcanic eruption that occurred long before our era, plunging the island into the sea and covering the remaining part on the surface with ash.

The most famous beaches on Santorini are Red and Kamari with black sand, but besides these two the island has many places in the sun for a pleasant pastime.

Multi-colored coastlines with intricate shapes, covered with dark gray sand, black pebbles or red volcanic scoria, are definitely worth seeing with your own eyes, as is the surface of the sea - blue, turquoise, green or almost black. If you are going to Santorini for a couple of days, stay at the most accessible beaches, a visit to which can be combined with excursions to ancient cities, archaeological sites, churches and monasteries. And if you have enough time, explore the entire coast, following the advice of experienced tourists.

Perissa Beach

Located in a small village at the foot of Mount Messa Vuno, 15 km from the capital of the island. You can get here by car, bus or water taxi. The black sand of the coast, hot from the midday sun, stretches for almost 7 km, which the owners of numerous taverns, nightclubs, attractions and diving centers took advantage of, placing their establishments along the recreation area.

There are practically no winds on Perissa, so the sea is calm, the water is crystal clear, but you shouldn’t run into it from a running start - you risk slipping on slabs of solidified lava. It is better to go in carefully, feeling for the rocky bottom. Otherwise, the beach is absolutely safe and well-maintained - there are showers, changing cabins and toilets, paid sunbeds and umbrellas.

Kamari is the pride of Santorini; this beach is chosen by most vacationers for its spaciousness, well-groomed water area and clear water. The beach is covered with a mixture of black sand and small pebbles, making it easy to get the perfect tan and have fun.

The black beach of Kamari is one of the most unique in all of Greece. People come here by regular buses, cars and island taxis to spend the whole day. For adults - badminton, beach volleyball and mini-football, restaurants, taverns and souvenir shops, for children - animators and attractions in the children's area. The beach is fully equipped with everything you need, but be careful - the entrance to the sea is not entirely comfortable in some places due to volcanic plates.

Perivolos

Perivolos beach is located 3 km from Perisa beach, in the south of Santorini. The sand is also black, the water is just as clean, and entering the sea is much more comfortable. The wide coastline meets all the standards for a pleasant stay: changing rooms, showers and toilets, sun loungers and umbrellas, rental of water sports equipment, playgrounds. The beach is surrounded by eateries, luring visitors with the wonderful aromas of Greek cuisine.

When it is unbearably hot in Santorini, this black beach invites you to plunge into the cool waters of the Aegean Sea, and then wait until the evening and light up at the disco that is held during the tourist season.

Vlychada Beach

A secluded place near Perivolos, 13 km from Fira, in the southernmost part of Satorini. Everything here resembles the planet Mars - the harsh rugged rocks, the black sand and pebble beach, and the turquoise water rising into high waves. The unusual landscape is either beautified or spoiled by the chimneys of a former brick factory.

The advantages of Vlychada are a smooth descent into the sea, distance from a noisy resort, the presence of the necessary infrastructure, including eateries. The beach, stretching for 2.5 km, will appeal to romantics and those who like to soak up the sun without clothes (nudists usually sunbathe on the right side of the beach). There is only one drawback - a pier for mooring private yachts, which can interfere with your vacation.

Red beach

The red beach on Santorini is called Kokkini Paralia by Greek residents. It is located near the archaeological site and pavilion museum of Akrotiri, 8 km from Fira. You can get to this part of Santorini by car, reaching a certain point with a large parking lot - then you have to walk 200 meters along the path.

It’s worth taking a photo at the observation deck in front of the rocky descent (bring sports shoes) - this is where you can enjoy an incomparable view of the Red Beach. A fantastic combination of brick-colored rocks and greenish sea waves can only be seen in Santorini in Greece. The beach strewn with porous pebbles with rocky shores is landscaped in season, but has a deep entrance to the sea, so be careful.

And remember - it is better not to come to Red Beach in light-colored clothes for swimming, as they may take on a reddish tint.

Eros

Eros Beach, 6 km long and 35 meters wide, is located in the south and is considered one of the most glamorous holiday spots in Santorini.

They say that nudists often come here, but they are quite difficult to find - apparently, they prefer to remain unnoticed.

A quiet and calm beach, protected from strong winds by a high hill, is conducive to relaxation. There are no noisy restaurants and bars - only huge umbrellas, comfortable sun loungers, dark gray sand, unusual rock relief and reconnection with nature. If you want to have a snack, you can go a little higher and look into a tavern serving Mediterranean cuisine. The water is blue, clean and transparent, but sharp stones near the shore spoil the swimming experience a little. You can only get to Eros with a rented car, leaving it in the parking lot adjacent to the beach.

White Beach is 14 km away from Fira and is “hidden” in a small bay, accessible only to those who are ready for a sea voyage by boat or speedboat - they regularly depart from the Red Beach, disembarking passengers directly into the water, since there is no pier on the beach provided.

It is shallow here, there are stone slabs of natural origin near the shore, there is a rental of sunbeds and umbrellas, and a food tent. The most romantic beach of Santorini, photos of which cannot reflect the grandeur of the white rocks and blue water, will be appreciated by couples in love. Wear comfortable shoes to explore the caves of White Beach and simply walk effortlessly on the sand and large rocks that cover the coast.

Caldera

Caldera Beach bears a name reminiscent of the disaster that changed the face of Santorini. As a result of a powerful eruption of the Santorini volcano, its crater collapsed, forming a crater (caldera), which was immediately filled with sea water. Caldera Beach is a rare Santorini beach facing the volcanic caldera. It is located next to the village of Akrotiri, near which archaeological excavations are being carried out. Black sand and pebbles, easy access to the sea, several taverns - the infrastructure is modest, but sufficient for an unpretentious holiday.

Mesa Pigadia

Mesa Pigadia beach in the southwest of Santorini attracts with its privacy and silence. Located in the Akrotiri area, close to the lighthouse, it is accessible to boats, cars and ATVs - from the main road it is approximately one kilometer on dirt to a compact parking area. The small beach, surrounded by steep white cliffs with caves and “houses”, is divided into two parts according to the type of coverage - sand and pebbles. The water is clear, there are few people, and in the winter fishing boats stop at Mesa Pigadia, so the doors of the nearby restaurants and taverns are open year-round.

Katharos

Katharos is close to the town of Oia (aka Oia and Oia), making it an ideal choice for those staying in the northwestern part of Santorini and don't want to travel long distances to take a swim. The black pebble beach of Katharos, surrounded by high cliffs, cannot boast of amenities. Among the amenities there is only a smooth entry into the sea, but many come here for the Katharos Lounge restaurant.

This beachfront establishment is said to offer the best food not only in Santorini, but in all of Greece.

Monolithos

Monolithos Beach is located in the village of the same name in the southeast of the island, just behind Santorini airport, so you can while away the time on the beach while waiting for your flight. Excellent for parents with children due to the gentle and long entrance to the sea, as well as fine and soft sand, on which walking barefoot is a real pleasure.

Monolithos has everything you need for convenience - clear water, sun loungers and umbrellas, a playground for children, cafes and taverns. The perfection of Monolithos is disturbed only by the periodically rising strong wind, swirling clouds of sand.

Vourvoulos

Vourvoulos is located in the north-eastern part of Satorini, 7 km from Fira. The sandy and pebble coastal strip of dark gray (sometimes deep black) color, turquoise water and complete isolation promote relaxation from the hustle and bustle. It’s nice to walk along the shore and have picnics at a safe distance from the surf line - due to the winds, the sea is sometimes stormy and waves rise. The rest of the time, Vourvoulos is a quiet surf beach without sun loungers or umbrellas, but with a small restaurant.

Cambia

Kambia Beach is located in the southwest of Santorini, between Mesa Pigadia and Red Beach. You can get to it by car - it’s good if it’s an SUV, since the road to the beach is quite difficult. Not far from the beach there are two churches and a picturesque cave.

Cambia is securely hidden from the winds by coastal cliffs and strewn with large pebbles. On thoughtfully installed beds, in the shade of large umbrellas, you can hide from crowds of tourists, and in a typical Greek tavern you can try simple but tasty food.

Baxedes

Baxedes Beach is an ideal option for those who want to avoid overly busy beaches, do a lot beautiful photos and fully enjoy the atmosphere of Santorini and Greece. Baxedes, with a narrow coastal strip, a mixture of black sand, small pebbles and large stones, is located 3 km from Oia.

Entry into the sea is convenient, but the depth begins immediately from the shore, and high waves rise due to the northern winds, so the beach is not recommended for elderly people and families with children. The rest are provided with an acquaintance with untouched nature, rental of everything necessary for relaxation and a pleasant pastime in a local tavern.

Columbus

Koloumbos is a small beach ten minutes walk from Baxedes. The road to the “secret” place is surrounded by rocks and bottomless gorges. Along the way you can see a small church - white, with a blue dome, like many others in Santorini.

Previously, Columbus, with dark pebbles and an underwater volcano, belonged entirely to nudists - today everyone relaxes on the beach, but it remains uncrowded due to undeveloped infrastructure, which only adds to its natural charm.

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Paradisos

Paradisos Beach or Paradise Beach is located a short drive from Oia. It will appeal to those who are looking for peace and are ready to give up some of the benefits of civilization for the sake of it. During the season, sun loungers and umbrellas are installed on the coastal strip, covered with black and gray sand interspersed with small pebbles. The sea is shallow near the shore, but large rocks make it difficult to enter the clear water. Like other beaches in Santorini, Paradisos is surrounded by restaurants, eateries and taverns.

Map of Santorini with beaches in Russian.

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Caldera is a word of Spanish origin meaning a "cauldron" or pool of sea water formed by a volcanic eruption at least one and a half kilometers in diameter.

More than two million years ago, Santorini was a tiny island, not at all of volcanic origin. Individual specimens of non-volcanic limestone from this “ancient” island can still be found on Mount Profitis Ilias in the southeast of today’s Santorini.

About two million years ago, an underwater volcano to the west of the island began to erupt magma, giving rise to several new islands. As a result, at this place, about 500 thousand years ago, 2 underwater volcanoes formed, the walls of which came to the surface in the form of cone-shaped mountains. These mountains merged with a non-volcanic island to form one large island. And although none of these mountains exists at the present time, geologists gave them names: the northern one became Peristeria, and the southern one Thera.

About two hundred thousand years ago, the active volcano of Mount Thera began to actively spew magma and ash, eventually completely depleting their reserves under the mountain. In the absence of a foundation, the mountain began to sink down into the resulting niche, leaving in its place a caldera - a deep pool filled with sea water.

This process repeated itself repeatedly over the next two hundred thousand years in the form of magma eruptions from both the northern and southern mountains. The result of the destruction of the island, its repeated sinking under water and the ever-increasing deepening of the underwater crater was the caldera that we see now.

Today, the caldera covers an area of about 52 square kilometers of sea and goes 300 - 600 meters deep. In its western part there are the islands of Therasia and the uninhabited Aspronisi. By visually connecting these 2 islands to Santorini itself, one can imagine what used to be on this site before the caldera was formed.

The height of the walls of the caldera, that is, the rocks of the island of Santorini emerging from the depths of the sea, ranges from 150 to 350 meters. The length of the island from Cape Exomitis to Cape Mavropetra is 18 km.

And who knows how the crater of an underwater volcano filled with the waters of the Aegean Sea will behave further in this part of Europe, where beautiful Santorini exists today. The main thing is not to miss the chance when choosing a place for a wedding abroad, and to hold it on one of the terraces of this mystical island and certainly with a view of the caldera!

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Hotels on the island of Santorini: difficulties of choice, or so that later it will not be excruciatingly painful.

The transport issue is described in detail in the previous article, now it remains to decide where it is better to live in Santorini - which hotel and in which place to choose in order to fully enjoy the stunning Aegean views, which is what, in fact, everyone goes there for.

The most popular place among tourists in Santorini is the caldera. To understand what it is, you need a short historical excursion.

History of Santorini

Today, the archipelago of Santorini islands is partially shaped like a huge ring-shaped crater, formed approximately 1,500 years ago after the eruption of the Santorini volcano on the island of Fira, which was not even an eruption, but a volcanic explosion. The explosion was followed by an earthquake and a giant tsunami, which virtually destroyed the existing ancient Minoan civilization (2700-1400 BC). True, archaeologists discovered that the Minoan civilization existed for at least another hundred years after the eruption (during excavations, buildings were found on top of layers of volcanic ash), but this still does not change the essence: the disaster put an end to it.

Satellite photos of the Santorini islands clearly show a volcanic crater, the walls of which collapsed into the sea after the explosion, and water instantly flooded the resulting space.

Caldera Santorini photo

Caldera- these are the very steep walls of the ancient crater, the surface part of which is 300-400 meters high, built up with “postcard” white houses, architecturally traditional for all the Cyclades islands. The best and most expensive hotels in Santorini are located on the caldera. For the opportunity to admire the view from the window of your own room or balcony (and not from the street, where many visiting tourists crowd), you have to pay several times more than for rooms in hotels located in villages away from the caldera or on the opposite side of the island of Fira.

The main cities of Santorini, of interest to tourists, with the best views - this is the capital Fira And And I, located in the northwestern part of the island. In these two towns there are restaurants, taverns and bars, many hotels and apartments “tailored” for the “visual pleasure” of travelers, entertainment venues, shops, shops, etc. Meanwhile, Fira as the capital is the noisiest and most densely populated town, but Oia is much quieter and has less entertainment. A small place called Imerovigli, adjacent to Fira (the distance between them is about 2 kilometers).

So, if what is important to you above all is a beautiful view from your room (check and clarify in advance whether your window really has a view of the sea, caldera, etc): hotels in Fira, Oia and adjacent Phenicia (the views here are simpler), Imerovigli, possibly Akrotiri (beautiful views to the islands of Nea Kameni and Palea Kameni). Prices for rooms in the “top” places can reach tens of thousands of euros, especially if these are honeymoon rooms or VIP villas.

Sunset in Santorini is a famous brand of the island. “Sunset” is included in the list of excursions and is sold here as something tangible. To be fair, it is truly a beautiful sight. That’s why the “best places” for watching sunsets and taking photographs are so expensive and so in demand by thousands of tourists. During the high season (which is almost all summer and early autumn), it is worth booking tables in good restaurants with a view in advance.

If the view is not important (after all, you will still go to the caldera in the evening to watch the sunset), and you also want to save a lot on accommodation: hotels in Kamari, Perissa, Perivolos, Agios Georgios, Karterados, Firostefani, Messaria and some other villages. Rooms here are usually inexpensive: in fact, you only pay for an overnight stay, because life in the small villages outside the main cities of Santorini quiets down in the evenings and there is not much room to walk there.

Santorini Hotels

The best way to get around Santorini is by taxi (due to the short distances on the island) or rented car. There is also a developed bus service, buses run until 23.00-24.00, so you can go for a walk in the evening on the caldera and have time to return to some distant villages by bus (but this must be clarified in advance so that there are no unpleasant surprises). The principle is this: all the villages are directly connected to the main city of Santorini - Fira, from there you need to get to other places. There is also a bus service between some neighboring villages.

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In some places of Santorini there are always crowds of tourists, but if you step away a little or move to the side - and now you are almost alone with the island, quiet after a noisy day.

Santorini one of the most romantic islands in the world. Popularity of the island recent years colossal. This is the stop of almost all cruise routes on the Mediterranean Sea; people come here on a one-day excursion from Crete (in my opinion, this is not worth doing!).

At its core Santorini it is an archipelago of several islands: Santorini (Thira or Fira), Therassia, Aspronisi, Palea Kameni and Nea Kameni. This cluster of islands was formed as a result of a series of powerful volcanic eruptions.

Santorini Archipelago

Aspronisi, Palea Kameni and Nea Kameni are uninhabited islands; about 300 people live on Therasia. The largest island is Thira, which is called Santorini.
In the very center of the archipelago is the island of Palea Kameni - this is the crater of a volcano (an active one, by the way). Around it is a flooded depression - the Caldera.
As a consequence of this, Western and East coast The islands are dramatically different.
All the luxury hotels are located on the Caldera side Santorini.

The popularity of the island is so great that since 2016, the authorities have been forced to limit the flow of tourists to the island - no more than 8,000 people per day. This mainly applies to cruise ship passengers. Every year the island is visited by 750 - 780 thousand people, this has a colossal environmental impact.

Santorini often compared to Mykonos. Probably because both islands are suitable for a holiday without children. In my opinion, a completely incorrect comparison: Mykonos- it's fun all day long, Santorini- romance, relaxation and contemplation.

Island for Two

All hotels are located only on the main island and when choosing a hotel you need to take into account some nuances. The west coast (view of the Caldera) and the east are very different.

Hotels with Caldera View

In a continuous chain there are Fira (the capital of the island), Firostefani, Imerovigli, Oia. The villages merge with each other, only Oia is a little to the side, forming a necklace of small hotels along the edge of the Caldera. All of them are located on a high cliff, with breathtaking views of the volcano and the Aegean Sea. Almost all hotels have swimming pools and offer SPA services. The most luxurious and unusual hotels are located in this part of the island. Santorini .

All hotels with Caldera view

A significant part of the hotels are located in Fira. Here you need to be prepared for a large crowd of people (all excursion groups head here). IN Fira quite active and nightlife, in addition, it is the transport center of the island - the road to any village or to the beach lies through Fira.
Firostefani And Imerovigli much calmer, in the evening life here comes to a standstill (at the same time in Fira you can walk).

Oia is located a little further north and is the most popular place for lovers. When they talk about Santorini As an island for two, we are talking primarily about this fabulous place.

What all hotels in this part of the island have in common is the lack of beaches. The nearest beaches are 7 - 10 km.

Beach hotels

A beautiful view of the Caldera isn't all it has to offer Santorini. The island is famous for its beaches with black, red and white sand.
The best beaches are in the area Kamari And Perissa. There are also numerous hotels (cheaper, by the way), taverns, and restaurants. IN Perisse In high season you can have some good fun in the evening.

Kamari is a great option if you need a beach close to your hotel

If proximity to the beach is a priority for you, then it is more logical to settle in Kamari or Perisse, and you can look at the famous sunsets by going out in the evening Fira.

Santorini Hotel Map

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How to get to Santorini

You can get to the island either by water or by plane.

Regular flights operate from the following airports:

Athens;
Mykonos Islands;
island of Rhodes.

If you prefer a sea travel option, then by ferry:

Athens (port of Piraeus, about 9 hours to get there);
ports of Heraklion or Rethymnon on Crete (about 4 hours travel);
Mykonos port (about 3 hours).

If the sea is calm, then from any island you can get to Santorini by high-speed catamarans, the journey from Athens in this case takes 5 hours.
There is a ferry from Thessaloniki to Crete, Santorini along this route as an intermediate stop.

These are the kind of passers-by you meet!