The best things to do in Santorini are watching the famous sunset from Oia, cruising the caldera to the volcano and hot springs, hiking the cliff path from Fira to Oia, tasting Assyrtiko wine and exploring the buried Minoan city of Akrotiri. This guide covers the island’s top attractions and experiences and how to fit them into a trip.
Santorini packs a remarkable range of experiences into a small volcanic island, the heart of the wider Santorini travel guide. Its caldera setting shapes everything. The sections below cover what to do.
What is the number one thing to do?
The number one thing to do is watch the sunset from Oia, the most famous sunset in Greece, as the sun drops into the Aegean behind the caldera and blue-domed churches. Arriving an hour or two early for a spot near the Venetian castle is essential in summer.
The Oia sunset is Santorini’s signature experience. Each evening, crowds gather along the cliffs of the island’s prettiest village to watch the sun sink into the sea, turning the whitewashed houses, windmills and blue domes gold and pink. The ruins of the Venetian castle at the village’s tip are the classic viewpoint, filling up one to two hours before sundown in high season, so it pays to arrive early or book a caldera-view restaurant terrace. For a calmer alternative, the steps by the church of Panagia Platsani or the harbour of Ammoudi Bay offer the same spectacle, set out in the guide to the Santorini sunset. A caldera cruise is the other essential.
Why take a caldera cruise?
A caldera cruise is one of the best ways to see Santorini, sailing to the active volcano of Nea Kameni, the warm hot springs, the cliffs of Thirassia and finishing with a sunset over Oia. Catamaran and boat trips of five to eight hours are the classic Santorini excursion.
Seeing Santorini from the water reveals the scale of the caldera. The island is the rim of a vast flooded volcanic crater, and boat trips sail across it to the dark volcanic islet of Nea Kameni, where a short hike climbs to the steaming craters, then to the warm, iron-rich hot springs for a swim. Many cruises continue to the cliffs of Thirassia and finish with the sunset viewed from the sea off Oia, often with a meal on board. Semi-private catamaran trips add swimming and snorkelling stops, set out in the guides to the Santorini boat tours and Santorini sailing tours. The caldera hike is a free classic.
What is the Fira to Oia hike?
The Fira to Oia hike is a roughly 10-kilometre caldera-edge trail linking the capital with Oia, taking two and a half to five hours past Firostefani, Imerovigli and Skaros Rock. With non-stop caldera views, it is consistently rated the top free thing to do on the island.
The cliff-top walk is Santorini’s finest free experience. The trail follows the rim of the caldera for about 10 kilometres from Fira through the villages of Firostefani and Imerovigli, past the dramatic Skaros Rock, and on across open hillside to Oia, with the blue sea and volcanic cliffs in view almost the whole way. Most walkers take between two and a half and five hours, depending on stops and the heat, so an early start or late afternoon is best, with good shoes and water essential. Many finish in Oia in time for the sunset, set out alongside the guides to Fira and Oia. The beaches are unlike any others.
What are the beaches like?
Santorini’s beaches are volcanic and dramatic rather than classic golden sand, with the black sand of Perissa and Kamari, the striking Red Beach near Akrotiri and the white-cliff coves of Vlychada. They are best for their scenery and warm water, organised with sunbeds and tavernas.
The island’s beaches reflect its volcanic nature. Instead of pale sand, you find long stretches of black volcanic sand and pebbles at Perissa and Kamari on the south-east coast, both fully organised with sunbeds, watersports and seafront tavernas, and the famous Red Beach below towering rust-coloured cliffs near Akrotiri. The moon-like white cliffs of Vlychada and the colourful pebbles elsewhere add to the variety. These are beaches to enjoy for their unique scenery and warm, clear water rather than soft sand, and a hire car or the buses reach them easily, set out in the guide to Santorini beaches. Wine is a highlight too.
Should you do a wine tour?
A wine tour is a Santorini highlight, tasting the island’s crisp, mineral Assyrtiko white and sweet Vinsanto at clifftop wineries with caldera views. Tours visit two or three estates over four to five hours with hotel pick-up, since the volcanic vines and ancient soils are unique.
Santorini’s wine is as distinctive as its landscape. The island’s vines grow in volcanic ash and pumice with almost no rain, trained into low basket shapes called koulara to shelter the grapes from the wind, producing the famous bone-dry, mineral Assyrtiko white and the sweet, sun-dried Vinsanto. A half-day guided wine tour visits two or three wineries, such as the renowned estates near Pyrgos and Megalochori, for tastings paired with local mezze and spectacular caldera views, with hotel pick-up so no one has to drive. It is a relaxed, delicious way to understand the island, set out in the guide to Santorini wine. History runs deep at Akrotiri.
What history and culture can you see?
The cultural highlight is Akrotiri, the remarkably preserved Bronze Age Minoan town buried by the eruption around 1600 BC, often called the Greek Pompeii. The villages of Pyrgos, Emporio and Megalochori, the capital Fira and its museums add layers of medieval and island history.
Beyond the views, Santorini holds extraordinary history. The archaeological site of Akrotiri preserves a sophisticated Minoan port town with multi-storey houses, drainage and frescoes, frozen in time by the volcanic ash that buried it some 3,600 years ago. Inland, the traditional villages of Pyrgos, Emporio with its inhabited medieval castle, and Megalochori reveal a quieter, older Santorini of Venetian fortresses and shaded squares, while Fira’s museums display the finds and frescoes from Akrotiri. Exploring these brings depth to a trip beyond the caldera, set out in the guides to Akrotiri and Santorini villages. Planning ties it together.
How do you fit it all in?
You fit it all in with three to five days, mixing a caldera cruise, the Oia sunset, the Fira-to-Oia hike, a wine tour, Akrotiri and a beach day. Private tours and day excursions cover the highlights efficiently, while basing centrally and using buses or a car links them.
Santorini rewards a relaxed pace over a rushed checklist. Three to five days let you spread the highlights, perhaps a caldera cruise one day, the Oia sunset and hike on another, a wine tour and Akrotiri on a third, with time for a black-sand beach and long meals in between. Guided private tours and day excursions are an efficient way to combine several sights with a driver and local insight, while basing centrally in Fira or Imerovigli and using the KTEL buses or a hire car keeps everything within reach, set out in the guides to a Santorini itinerary and Santorini private tours. The questions below cover the points travellers ask most.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the number one thing to do in Santorini?
The number one thing to do is watch the sunset from Oia, the most famous in Greece, as the sun drops into the Aegean behind the caldera. A close second is a caldera cruise to the volcano and hot springs, and the Fira-to-Oia cliff hike is the top free activity.
Is Santorini worth visiting for more than the sunset?
Santorini is well worth more than the sunset, offering caldera boat cruises to the volcano and hot springs, the Fira-to-Oia hike, Assyrtiko wine tours, the Minoan site of Akrotiri, black-sand beaches and traditional villages like Pyrgos and Emporio.
How many days do you need in Santorini?
You need three to five days to enjoy Santorini’s highlights without rushing, allowing time for a caldera cruise, the Oia sunset, the Fira-to-Oia hike, a wine tour, Akrotiri and a beach day. Three days covers the essentials; five lets you relax into the island.