The Santorini volcano lies at the heart of the caldera on the islet of Nea Kameni, an active volcanic island you can hike to steaming craters, usually paired with a swim in the warm, iron-rich hot springs of Palea Kameni. This guide covers the volcano, the hot springs, the boat tours and how to visit.
The volcano created Santorini and remains its dramatic centre, a highlight of the wider Santorini travel guide. It rises from the middle of the flooded caldera. The sections below cover the visit.
What is the Santorini volcano?
The Santorini volcano is the active volcanic system at the centre of the caldera, its visible peak the dark islet of Nea Kameni. The huge eruption around 1600 BC blew out the island’s centre, creating the flooded caldera, and the volcano remains active, with the islets formed by later eruptions.
Santorini itself is a volcano, and its caldera is the crater. The catastrophic Minoan eruption of around 1600 BC, one of the largest in human history, destroyed the centre of the island and left the vast sea-filled caldera ringed by cliffs that defines Santorini today. In the middle of that caldera rise two dark volcanic islets, Nea Kameni and Palea Kameni, built up by eruptions over the following centuries, with Nea Kameni the active peak you can visit. The volcano is dormant but not extinct, with hot springs and rising sulphur fumes as living evidence, set within the wider things to do in Santorini. Nea Kameni is the island you hike.
What is the Nea Kameni volcano hike?
The Nea Kameni hike climbs a volcanic path to the craters at the heart of the active islet, taking about 20 to 30 minutes up and 15 down. You walk on warm lava rock among rising sulphur fumes, with a small entrance fee of a few euros and superb views back to the caldera cliffs.
Setting foot on the volcano is a memorable experience. Boats land at Nea Kameni, the bare, brown-black islet in the caldera, where a marked path of crunching volcanic gravel and lava climbs gently to the crater area, a walk of roughly 20 to 30 minutes up and 15 back down. Along the way you cross warm ground, see the layered lava flows of past eruptions and catch the sharp smell of sulphur from steaming vents, while the views back to the white-topped caldera cliffs are spectacular. A small entrance fee of around five euros applies, and a guide adds the geology and history, set out alongside the guide to Santorini boat tours. The hot springs come next.
What are the hot springs like?
The hot springs are at Palea Kameni, where warm, iron-rich volcanic water mixes with the cooler sea in a sheltered bay. Boats anchor offshore and you swim in to the lukewarm, rust-coloured water, around 30 to 33 degrees in the warmest spots, said to have curative mineral properties.
The hot springs are the relaxing counterpoint to the volcano hike. At the islet of Palea Kameni, warm volcanic water seeps up and mixes with the Aegean in a sheltered cove, and boats anchor a short distance out, leaving you to swim in to the warmest patches near the shore. The water is lukewarm rather than hot, around 30 to 33 degrees Celsius at best and cooler elsewhere, and stained a rusty orange by the iron and manganese that geologists believe give it curative properties. Be warned that the minerals can darken jewellery and stain pale swimwear, so wear an old swimsuit, set out alongside the guide to Santorini beaches. A boat tour ties it all together.
How do you do a volcano tour?
You visit the volcano on a boat tour from the Old Port of Fira, with half-day trips of three to four hours combining the Nea Kameni hike and a hot-springs swim, often adding Thirassia or a sunset. Tours typically cost 20 to 40 euros, departing daily, with longer cruise options available.
A boat tour is the only way to reach the volcano, and a rewarding half-day out. Trips set off from the Old Port below Fira, with the classic volcano and hot springs tour lasting around three to four hours and combining the Nea Kameni crater hike with the swim at Palea Kameni, often for a modest 20 to 40 euros. Many cruises extend the trip with a stop at the quiet island of Thirassia for lunch, or build toward the famous sunset off Oia on a longer sailing or catamaran cruise. The volcano and springs are a highlight for families and a fine half-day in their own right, set out alongside the guide to Santorini sailing tours. The questions below cover the points travellers ask most.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Santorini volcano still active?
The Santorini volcano is dormant but still active, not extinct. Its visible peak is the islet of Nea Kameni in the caldera, built by eruptions over recent centuries, where steaming sulphur vents and the nearby warm hot springs are living evidence of ongoing volcanic activity.
Can you walk on the Santorini volcano?
You can walk on the volcano at Nea Kameni, reached by boat tour from the Old Port of Fira. A marked path climbs to the craters in about 20 to 30 minutes, crossing warm lava rock among sulphur fumes, with a small entrance fee of a few euros and fine caldera views.
How much is a Santorini volcano and hot springs tour?
A Santorini volcano and hot springs boat tour typically costs around 20 to 40 euros for a half-day trip of three to four hours, combining the Nea Kameni crater hike with a swim at the warm springs. Longer cruises adding Thirassia or the sunset cost more.