Oh, Santorini. [Insert big sigh.] Are you worth the hassle?
Santorini holds a special place in my heart. It is the first port I ever woke up in. 22 years ago our 800-passenger ship called into Santorini every Sunday morning for a half day before the ship headed to Egypt. I don’t remember there being many ships in with us, or if there were, we didn’t feel the effects. However, since 2011, when I was back in Santorini on a regular basis, Santorini has had more and more cruise ships calling. And it can certainly color satisfaction and experience. I find Santorini a complicated port of call.
Santorini…
… is a bucket item port for many people. Whitewashed buildings, blue roofs, bougainvillea, against a backdrop of stark volcanic rocks, blue skies and blue seas. It’s the stuff of postcards. So usually folks want to maximize their time here.
… is a tender port. Small boats are used to ferry guests ashore from ship. Tendering is usually not an instant process, unlike a docked port, where when you choose to step off the gangway, you are on land. Every cruise line is different, but chances are the ship has two separate processes for getting guests ashore:
one for guests who are on a ship-sponsored excursions that leave shortly after arrival
one for those who want to go out on their own (“independents”), e.g. a tender ticketing or numbering system
It is important to follow the instructions for whichever you are. Once the majority of guests are ashore, the ship will move to “open tenders,” which means the numbering system is no longer needed and guests can head to the tender platform as they are ready. Depending on the port, it may take a couple of hours until open tenders. I have seen guests wait 5-90 minutes before their number was called to board a tender. The longest I have ever seen for a ship to go to open tenders was five hours.(Maui - sorry, Maui, I know you are hurting right now. Bar Harbor comes a close second.)
… is a port in which most attractions are at the top of the caldera and for which there are limited options from getting from the bottom to the top:
Ship-sponsored tours or ship-arranged private vehicles. There is no road to the Old Port, where the tenders arrive, so automotive vehicles go to Athinios port, which does have a road. Therefore guests who are on ship-sponsored tours (or who have booked private vehicles through the ship) will be dropped off at Athinios to board their buses/vehicles for their tours. I have never researched booking a private (non-ship arranged) vehicle to pick you up at Athinios, so I do not know if this is possible. If it is, be sure to check with your cruise line what you need to do, as usually tenders to Athinios are only for guests with ship-sponsored tours/vehicles.
Cable Car - 6 euros per person, per direction. A short, dramatic ride, but often with LONG lines. It is only a 2-3 minute ride, but it takes time to load and unload the carriages. So if you are lucky, and I mean lucky, there is no line or a short line. The cable car is wheelchair accessible.
Ride a donkey - 10 euros per person, per direction. It’s definitely an experience. Donkeys that hug the edge, donkeys that stop - you never quite know what mood your donkey is in. Downhill looks terrifying, uphill seems like hard work. And while they look well-taken care of, you still wonder if that is the case with the heat and their heavy burdens.
Walk/hike the donkey path - It’s just under 600 stairs to climb the donkey path (about 650 foot elevation gain). You will be sharing the path with the donkeys and all that implies. If you choose this option, I would highly recommend shoes that have good traction and that you don’t care if they get smelly and dirty. Yep, those donkeys leave many fragrant “gifts” on the path. And the donkeys don’t really care if you are in their way, they are on a mission. Also, bring lots of water; shade is limited. I am moderately fit and it takes me about 30-40 minutes to get to the top. I found this cool You Tube video by John Delaney that condenses the climb into 7 minutes of film time - check it out!
Ferry over to Oia - this is probably the least used option. There are travel agencies in the Old Port where you can purchase a (30-minute) ferry ride over to Oia, which is one of the picturesque island attractions you might want to visit anyway.
Here are a few photos; for more visuals, check out the YouTube video by Greece Explained.
… is a port visited by more and more cruise ships. This means a heavy port load. How many ships and how many passengers will be heading ashore will more than likely (negatively) impact your day.
I highly recommend looking up any cruise you are considering on cruisetimetables.com. There are different ways to search within the site, but I will usually search by cruise month and ship name. Once you find your itinerary, select “port load” and cruisetimetables.com shows which other ship(s) will be in with you, their arrival/departure time, and how many guests the ship holds.
It is important to note that the guest numbers are based on double occupancy, not maximum occupancy. During school holidays those guest numbers may be much higher due to children sailing in third and fourth berths. Some ports also publish their own port schedules, eg. Ft. Lauderdale, all Alaskan ports, so these are also a good reference (see here for Santorini's). So, yes, good to do for any cruise, but especially important if your cruise includes Santorini. More on this in a bit. In summary:
| Cost | Time | Good for Limited Mobility or Fitness | Long Line Potential |
Ship Sponsored Tour | Moderate to High | Usually one of the quicker ways to see more | Probably at least a few options | Perhaps for initial tendering, but once on transportation, none |
Ship Arranged Private Vehicle | High | Usually one of the quicker ways to see more | Yes | Perhaps for initial tendering, but once on transportation, none |
Cable Car | Low | Can be quick, but most likely a lengthy wait time | Has stairs, but is also wheel chair accessible. May require long periods of standing waiting in line | Most likely YES |
Donkey | Low | Approx. 15 minute ride | Requires ability to get on/off the donkey | No |
Walk/Hike Donkey Path | None | 30-45 minutes | Not recommended | No |
Ferry to Oia | Moderate | 30 minute ride + 5 minute ride up top (depends also on timing of next ferry departure) | Inquire with travel agency | Unsure - TBD |
So, how do you choose the best option for you? I’d figure out the YOU factor first - how much do you want to see and where you sit on the variables above. Then I’d look at what you can’t control - the port load.
We have had two Santorini calls in the time I have been onboard, and I went with two different options. As practical examples:
First Call
Variables: H. just wanted to get some photos (low investment of time needed up top). We could have booked the Fira on Your Own tour through the ship, but we weren’t pressed for time. And there were only a few (although large) ships in.
Selected Option: We waited for open tenders, about 11:00am. As we arrived at the Old Port, we could see the cable car line was lengthy. We are both physically able, and had worn shoes that would work for hiking, so we decided to hike the donkey trail. Took 35 minutes to get up top. Once up top, we had a coffee, took some photos, and were able to get on the cable car back down with no line. As we were getting on the cable car (12:30pm), we saw people who had ridden the tender with us exiting the cable car, so they waited 90 minutes to get up top.
Second Call
Variables: Port Load trumped all on this one: 4 medium-sized ships and 2 small ships? And they are all arriving around the same time? Yikes! I have been to Santorini many times and could have skipped it, but gosh darn it, I love Santorini and so, port load be darned, I still wanted to go.
Selected Option: I went on a ship-sponsored tour. It was a half day tour that got us to Fira about 1:00pm. It was a lovely tour and included some beach time.
But wait, there’s more. What goes up, must come down. And sadly, this has become more and more of a hassle. If you watch the above video by Greece Explained, you can see the visual of what that cable car line is like coming back DOWN….
TIP: Times to avoid the cable car heading down: when those half day tours are all ending (around 1pm), lunchtime, and close to all aboard times. If you are in with (or on) a 3,600 passenger ship and their departure time is 5:00pm, from 3;30-4:30pm that cable car line will probably be long.
In our two calls this summer, Harrison and I just missed the tours ending and lunchtime crowds. This last time, as my half day tour was ending when the other half day tours were ending, I had already planned on eating a leisurely lunch up top. But even with the later departure times of the ships, at 4:00pm the cable car line was still long. So I decided to walk down and take my time as it can be slippery. It’s also a little tough on the knees, but I was hot and tired at this point and was happy to get to a shower sooner rather than later.
Anyway, these are all the basics. You can also say, forget it! There are also options that don’t take you up top, such as a day cruise, visiting the hot springs or a trip to hike the caldera.
Wellness Round Up
Sleep, Stress, Nutrition & Movement: These all have maintained the status quo - no big changes. Here’s one of the views from jogging on the promenade deck (Rhodes).
Hydration: Happy to say that I have been getting at least my pitcher of water in daily!
And a book recommendation. I just finished reading The Lazy Genius Way: Embrace What Matters, Ditch What Doesn't, and Get Stuff Done by Kendra Adachi. My travel philosophy is very much in line with the subtitle - finding what matters to you most and building your plans from there. It was nice to reflect on ways to transfer this to other aspects of life. Kendra’s style is very conversational, and I felt like I was chatting with a friend who is cheering on smart wellness choices.
Santorini is now a few days in the rear-view mirror. I explored some villages I had not visited before. I relaxed on a black sand beach & in the sea. I enjoyed a lovely lunch at an off- the-beaten path spot, Pink Sophia Maria (see my restaurant recommendations) and I cooled off with drink at a place that I really wanted to like because the location was amazing (but the service not so much). And I had a nice chat with a fellow guest hiking down the donkey path. Overall a good day.
Santorini rose-colored glasses back on. Already dreaming of next season where I think I would like to try the ferry to Oia option.
Bon Voyage & Bon Appétit!
Updated August 25, 2024
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