After a great day visiting Olympia our next stop was the small island of Santorini, one of the Cyclades Islands of Greece.

In the preceding year when Shelley and I researched things to do on a cruise stop for Santorini, we were often left without a clear answer. There were a couple small museums, some small wineries, and further away the site of Ancient Akrotiri and the town of Oia. There were also a couple very small beaches.

The cruise ship offered some horribly overpriced excursions, but we were also looking at the overall budget for the trip and were picky about what we spent our money on. For the most part we had either decided to make our own day like we had in Cannes and Rome, or used a transportation only tour to visit places like Lucca, Taormina, and Olympia.

But when it came to Santorini, knowing we had two kids with us, none of the attractions seemed to warrant the effort and expense to go out of our way. The most intriguing and popular activity to me as a hiker, was the Fira to Oia trail, which followed the cliffside around half of the island (6.5 miles one way).

We watched a video together of the hike and Shelley admitted it didn’t look very exciting to her. A lot of the trail follows passageways in crowded tourist areas of Fira before it finally opens up to a very dry, cliffside trail the rest of the way to Oia. The videos also made it clear that it was usually very hot, and just getting to Fira from the tender port meant ascending a switchbacking trail right up the cliffside.

So when we arrived in what was once the island of Thera before a massive eruption destroyed most of the island, I was not surprised when Shelley told me that partly due to her arms, she was going to take a day to rest on the ship.

But not only was Shelley in need of a rest day, 17-year-old Daniel also had a sore throat and wanted to rest. Typically, he’s been excited to do a hike, but he was simply feeling under the weather and wanted to relax.

And finally 11-year old Evan, who I would have happily brought with me onto Santorini had he been interested, wanted to take a day to chill out on the ship. Which left me alone going to Santorini. If I chose to go.

I debated staying on the ship too. It was going to be another day of 100F+ degree weather making the full hike to Oia in direct sun somewhat of a no-go. But I did know what I was getting into if I at least started out on the hike, and it wouldn’t hurt to try for a less distant objective like Skaros Rock…

Well, I could decide when I got there. But whatever I did I would go it alone.

Arrival in Santorini

When the ship arrived in the caldera of Santorini the sight of the island with the whitewashed buildings and surrounding volcanic islands was rather fascinating. Most of the ship gathered on the decks to watch the ship make its way to anchorage.

So, using the priority access we had to board the early ship tenders (they were backed up all day and when I returned from the island many people were still waiting to depart), I departed the ship with my backpack and water bottles for a day of hiking.

On arrival at the Old Port which sits at the halfway point on the coast of the half moon of the island I realized I would benefit from a hat before starting on the journey. As a rule I usually don’t buy food or souvenirs right at the point where cruise ships unload tourists since the prices are usually terribly overpriced, but I did find a fairly nice Greek fedora for 10 Euros.

With that done is was time to start the steep ascent up the donkey trail to Fira.

The Donkey Trail to Fira

The ascent up to Fira was a long section of switchbacks straight up the cliff to Fira above. It’s the equivalent of 800 steps (or so I’m told). It kind of reminded me of hiking up to the rim of the Grand Canyon because of the heat and exposure.

You can take the gondolas as an alternative and I would recommend this for anyone with mobility issues. The donkeys are both a blessing and a curse on the trail. They are fun to see but they do leave stinky manure on the pavement. Also the surface gets hot and a little slippery. I saw one guy fall, and with all the manure remnants it’s not a good place to lose your footing.

Fira to the Skaros Rock Trail

Once I arrived in Fira I was met by a throng of cruise port travelers all packed into the narrow alleyways of Fira. It was a little discomfiting, to be honest, but by walking a little ways further I was able to get some much needed breathing space.

At first I admit that I found the hike to be a bit frustrating. The sun’s heat radiating off the white walls around me and the crowds of people made for a very uncomfortable experience. Fortunately, I think the heat had pushed a lot of people back indoors because the further i walked from Fira the quieter and more relaxed it became.

There was still quite a climb even after reaching Fira to reach the high point of the trail at Imerovigli just before the Skaros Rock spur Trail. Finally, at Imerovigli I was able to enjoy some of the unique and historical architecture of Santorini: the old churches with blue domes, the windmills, and the striking views back over the town and over the ocean where far below the cruise ship sat in the blue ocean of the caldera.

I didn’t come to see souvenir shops and cranky cruise ship passengers. I came to see a Greek island. Now I found it. Even if I was sweating like crazy and needed a cold drink.

Skaros Rock

To get to Skaros Rock you need to take a spur trail of about a half mile down from the Fira to Oia trail. Since I had decided the Oia hike would take too long and I lacked the water and resolve to complete the journey to Oia, Skaros Rock was a perfect option.

The descent down to Skaros Rock was my favorite part of the trail. You have views in every direction to the surrounding seas and islands and back up to Imerovigli, the town that sits above it and has the blue-domed churches I mentioned earlier.

Skaros Rock itself appears to just be a promontory jutting out to the sea from the caldera rim. But there was a Venetian fortress built on the site that no longer exists (or at least I could find no indication of it even after hiking to the opposite side). Signs also indicate that earlier archaeological artifacts were found dedicated to Athena from the Classical era.

After my brief foray at the rock I started back, first stopping for a cool drink then a Greek pita lunch. The heat by now had really driven people indoors because the areas that were previously packed with tourists were calm and largely empty.

With my lunch eaten, it was time for a souvenir shot glass in the more peaceful souvenir shops. With one in hand I returned to Fira, and then hiked back down the donkey trail.

Santorini Sunsets

One thing we had heard prior to coming to Santorini was that the sunsets were something to behold, particularly from Oia. The trouble was that Oia was reputed to be very crowded every evening at sunset, and whatever majestic value was to be found was lost while standing in a packed crowd.

So before departure we made reservations for a restaurant on the NCL Getaway called Cagney’s Steakhouse. The nice thing about Cagney’s is that it has outdoor seating and the ship is aways oriented while at anchor at Santorini with the restaurant facing to the west. Toward the sunset.

So we had our romantic dinner (the only really great meal we had on the ship) watching the sunset. We’ve seen some very beautiful sunsets in our lives and I’m not sure where Santorini ranks. It was certainly charming. But it was the ambience of the moment that made it particularly great.

The following day would take us to Mykonos and an journey to the ancient city of Delos.