Santorini is one of the most well known Greek Islands and for good reason! After leaving Mykonos we took a short ferry ride to the island of Santorini. We spent 3 full days in Santorini taking in incredible views of the cliffs and experiencing beautiful sunsets every night! Here is our guide for how to spend 3 days on Santorini and make the most of it!

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Every Greek island is unique and offers something different to visitors. The western side of Santorini sits atop the famous cliff and provides expansive views of the island, the caldera, and the surrounding blue water of the Aegean Sea.

Many people stay on the west side of Santorini in either Fira (sometimes spelled Thira), Firostefani or Imerovigli, or at the northern tip in Oia. We stayed in Fira which provided many options for places to stay as well as shops, restaurants and white streets to walk through. Fira is at the center of the crescent that makes up Santorini and allows you to easily access all the other towns.

Read More: Where to Stay in Santorini

Day 1: Arrive in Santorini

Most ferries will arrive to the Athinios port in Santorini. This port has a couple of stands, a lot of people, cars and buses. You’ll quickly notice that you are down at sea level and the way up is a thin, windy road up the cliff.

There are public buses from the port to Fira. These buses are coach style with plenty of room for your bags on the bottom. We walked around for maybe 5 minutes towards the area where buses were parked, asked the driver if they were going to Fira and got on.

Check to see if your hotel or acommodations includes transportation from the port. There were some taxis there but it was really easy and the bus is the least expensive way to get to Fira from the port.

Drop off your stuff at your hotel and go admire the cliffs of Santorini! The contrast of the rocky cliffs, the blue ocean, and the white buildings and white pathways is absolutely beautiful. There is nothing quite like the views from the cliffs in Santorini!

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Day 2: Explore Fira

To start your day go grab a crepe or Greek yogurt overlooking the caldera. There are so many restaurants to choose from to admire the incredible views! Iced coffee is really popular all over Greece and really delicious especially if you’re visiting during the summer!

Spend some time walking around all the shops and small pathways. They all look slightly similar and also different at the same time. Wandering through the pathways of Fira is so much fun!

There are many half-day or day trips to the nearby volcano and hot springs. We thought about going to the hot springs but wanted to be able to wander around and explore Fira on our own pace. So we ultimately against it. If you have an extra day it’s definitely something to consider!

You can also take the cable car down to the old port. Many people coming in on cruise ships arrive to the old port and therefore take the cable car up to Fira. It’s an inexpensive activity and provides fantastic views but beware the lines can be long when a cruise ship (or two) are in port. The times going up and down vary significantly by season so plan ahead if you need to be somewhere.

Make sure to find a good spot for an amazing Santorini sunset! There are countless restaurants to choose from and all of them offer perfect views. The surrounding white buildings, volcano in the distance and blue waters create one of the best sunsets we have ever seen, only outdone by the sunset at Oia!

• Because the western side of Santorini is significantly higher in elevation, it can get quite windy at night! I always brought my fleece because the views, no matter how windy, are definitely worth it!

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Day 3: Hike from Fira to Oia

The highlight of our time in Santorini was by far the hike from Fira to Oia. Fira sits in the middle of the island and Oia sits on the northern tip. You don’t necessarily need to do the entire hike. Even doing a section of it will give you outstanding views of this beautiful island!

We hiked from Fira to Oia in about 5 hours stopping along the way to take (a lot) of pictures. We also chose to walk out to Skaros Rock and back which is the rock in the picture above. As well we stopped to eat lunch at a very nice little restaurant along the way!

With very little shade there are not a lot of opportunities to escape the sun so make sure to bring lots of water with you. We always travel with this reusable container filled with sunscreen and were glad to have it for the hike! We would highly recommend doing the hike from Fira to Oia! It was one of the best hikes we’ve ever done!

Read our Travel Guide: Fira to Oia Hike

Even if you don’t want to do the hike we would still recommend going to Oia. Many of the pictures you have seen of Santorini are of the blue roofed churches and beautiful sunsets in Oia. Oia attracts many tourists so if you go to see the sunset find a spot to watch early or grab a table at a restaurant beforehand in order to guarantee a good view!

• There is a public bus that goes from Fira to Oia. It’s the same bus that goes from the port to Fira.
• After watching the sunset we took the bus back from Oia to Fira. We did have to stand for part of the ride back, though, so just know it can get crowded at times.

Travel Truth: Many people choose to watch the sunset at Oia castle. While this location has an amazing view it gets incredibly crowded. We chose a nearby restaurant instead which gave us the same view but offered a bit more personal space.

Read More: 10 Tips for Hiking from Fira to Oia

Day 4: Leave Santorini

You will likely need to head back to the Athinios port to catch a ferry off the island. The bus station in Fira is very close and easy to find. We took the bus from Fira to the port. The bus route between Fira and the port is very narrow and thin. The whole ride only takes about 30 minutes but if you get carsick be prepared for lots of turns!

If you have more time consider a day trip to visit the volcano or hot springs. There are also some very nice volcanic beaches on Santorini if you’re looking for some more beach time. Or if you’re heading out to other islands we absolutely loved the beaches on Mykonos as well as the relaxed feel on the less visited island of Sifnos.

Interested in more posts about Greece? Read here!

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