Getting to the capital town Fira
From The Airport
The Santorini/Thira international airport is located at the northern part of Kamari village. Fira is the capital Town of Santorini Island and Fira city centre is located north west of the airport at a distance of around 5 kilometres. Santorini airport is well connected with other international airports like Fiumicino Rome, Linate Milan, London, Manchester, Brussels, Vienna, Belgrade, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Munich, Geneva, Zurich etc.
There are also daily flights between Santorini and domestic destinations of Greece such as Athens, Heraklion and Thessaloniki. Often tourists fly into Santorini in order to reach even the islands of Ios, Anafi, Folegandros, Naxos and Thirassia as this is the only airport in this region. Fira city centre and Athinios Port (the main ferry port of Santorini) are well connected with the airport by bus, taxi and chartered vehicles. However the bus service between the airport and the ferry port is via Fira (change a bus) and time consuming.
You can take a KTEL bus from outside the airport terminal building to get into Fira. There are only 8 services daily from airport to Fira. During summers there is usually huge rush for buses so be among the first to board a bus and get seats. The first bus departs from airport at 6:10am and the last bus leaves at 5:10pm. There is no night bus service. Ticket for an adult is €1.80 and it has to be purchased from the driver only against cash payment. No other ticketing option is available.
If you want to transfer to any other place from the airport, for example Oia, you need to travel to Fira bus centre first and then take another bus for Oia. Buses do not have any seat numbers. The journey time to Fira is around 25 minutes. Summer sees maximum rush.
A pricer yet comfortable alternative is taxi. You can go to any village or town in Santorini directly by a taxi. You will find plenty of taxis waiting outside the terminal building. Taxis are available 24X7. It takes 15 to 20 minutes to reach Fira city centre by a cab and the estimated fare is around €30 (taxis are metered).
There are several private taxi services available too (charges are usually higher). You can book one online through their websites or calling their numbers (Santorini Taxi: +30 690 679 4316; Santorini Airport Taxi +30 211 198 5644).
You can choose from a wide range of private transport and transfer services (including airport transfers) and book online from this Viator site.
From Athinios Port
The port is located around 8 kilometres south of Fira and is the main ferry port of Santorini. Athinios port receives ferries from Athens, Patras, Kalamata, Lavrio, Gythion etc. The port is connected to Fira by bus and taxis. The single way bus fare is €2.30. There is also a night line service between the port and Fira between 12:30am to 5:00am and the one-way fare is €2.90. Ticket has to be purchased on board. One-way trip takes about 20 minutes.
Apart from Fira, the port also connects Mesaria, Pyrgos and Perissa by direct bus. Bus fares for Mesaria and Perissa during day time is €2 and by night lines (12:30am to 5:00am) is €2.50. Fare for Pyrgos is €1.80 during day and €2.30 at night.
You will find taxis at the taxi rank outside the arrival building. Taxis are grey in colour with ‘taxi’ signage on the roof. See the airport taxi section above to book a private taxi online or over phone. Usual Taxi fare from the port to Fira is around €10 to €15 and €2 extra if booked in advance.
You can choose from a wide range of private transport and transfer services (including cruise port transfers) and book online from this Viator site.
From Fira Old Port
This cruise port is officially known as Skala port and sees as many as 5 cruise ships daily during summer. Many tourists choose to visit Fira as well as Santorini for a day trip from different places of Greece. There is no cruise terminal here; visitors are transferred from the docked cruise to Skala pier by small boats.
There are also daily boat services for Volcano Island, Sulphur springs and Thirassia Island. Note that only day trip cruises are allowed here. For a transfer to Santorini from other parts of Greece, the port of Athinios is used.
Fira old port is located at the bottom of Caldera cliff 260 metres down from Fira. You will find seaside cafes, trinket shops and boat rental agencies around the pier. There are three different ways to reach Fira from this old port.
You can take the Cable Car Service up the mountain. The cable car service operates from 6:30am to 10:00pm daily at an interval of 20 minutes (journey time is 13 minutes from the port up to the mountain top). A single journey ticket is €6 for an adult and €3 for a child between 5 to 10 years. Luggage costs €3 per passenger. Ticket can be purchased only at the terminal against cash or credit card.
The second option (traditional way although a little controversial and uncomfortable) is to take a mule or donkey ride to Fira which is very common in Santorini. One-way donkey ride costs €8. The third option is hiking up the mountain from the port to Fira; for that you need to climb 580 steps and the path is same as that the mules follow.
Public Transport
The backbone of public transport in Santorini is the bus service. Taxis, car rentals, motorbike, buggy and quad (ATV) bike hire services are also available.
Bus
Bus service offers the most cost effective and convenient way of travelling around Santorini. This is also the best way to know the locals. Almost all bus routes radiate from Fira bus station to connect destinations like Oia, Perissa, Kamari, and Akkrotiri. Bus fares vary from €1.80 to €2.50 depending upon the distance. The longest route is Fira to Oia and it takes around 45 minutes by bus. Tickets can be bought only on board against cash payment.
There are no travel cards or day tickets available in Santorini for public transport. There are round trip buses too like the Fira-Imerovigli-Firostefani route. Make sure to let the driver know if you intend to get down at any in-between stops. There are bus stops at several convenient locations in Santorini and you can usually find bus time tables there.
Donkey Rides
Donkeys or mules are quite adept at maneuvering uneven terrains. Fira port to town is a popular donkey route. Another popular donkey route is Ammoudi Port to Oia. An interesting thing is you will find a donkey terminal too and the funniest part is you can even book your donkey ride online in advance. Here is the Santorini Donkey Website.
Day Trips from Fira
Fira has transport connections to almost all towns, villages and holiday resorts in Santorini, thus it is an ideal base for day trips. You can either board a bus and travel to any destination or take a package guided tour.
Santorini full day sightseeing package usually includes Bronze Age civilization at Akkrotiri, Black Sand Beach at Perissa, Red Sand Beach, visit to the traditional Greek village Megalochori, Prophet Elias Monastery (the highest point of the island), visit to a local winery and breathtaking sunset view from Oia. It would be hard to visit all these points by public bus on a single day. A guided tour costs around €50 per person.
There are also many day cruise trips available from Santorini. Among the most popular boat trips are Volcano tour that includes Thirassia island and sunset view from Oia. This trip costs around €50 per person. Another interesting trip is Santorini Catamaran Sunset Trip. And there are many others, costs depend upon the trip duration and destinations.
Here are few boat rental agencies for popular day cruises:
- Alex Motorboat rental (http://www.santoriniboatrental.com)
- Santorini Exclusive Sailing (http://santorini-exclusive-sailing.gr)
- Andiamo Private Yacht Tours (Phone:+30 228 603 6175; no website)
- Explorer1 Yachting (https://www.explorer1.gr)
Car Rental
You will find car rental companies at the airport. You can also book one online. To rent a car you must be at least 18 years old and have an International Driving Permit (not applicable for EU driving license holders). Rental rate starts from €25 per day during off-peak season and it starts from €35 during summer.
During off season it barely takes 10 minutes to reach Fira from the airport but during summer it might even take an hour due to traffic. Drive cautiously as the road conditions are quite treacherous. The roads are mostly narrow within the towns and villages. It will be hard to find any road signage. Google driving app also doesn’t work properly particularly in Fira and Oia. However Santorini is not a big island. Keep yourself prepared for hairpin bends. The busiest areas are Fira, Oia and outside the airport.
Following are a few well-known car rental companies…
- Autoeurope (https://www.autoeurope.eu)
- Sixt Rent a Car (https://www.sixt.com/car-rental/greece/santorini)
- Hertz Car Hire (http://www.hertz.gr/en/Santorini)
Motorbike/Quad Bike (ATV) Rental
Santorini terrain is uneven with lunar craters and quad bikes (i.e. ATV or Buggy) are good to negotiate this. In Greece you need a car license to drive a buggy or quad bike, and a motor cycle license of B1 category to drive a motorcycle or scooter. Also note that wearing a crash helmet is mandatory for two wheeled power vehicle as well as four wheel quads.
To drive a quad bike or motorcycle of capacity 150 cc or higher you must be 23 years of age. A lower capacity requires minimum 18 years of age. Two wheeler as well as quad bike rates start from €20 per day. Note that collecting your vehicle from airport or ferry port will attract additional charge of €10. Following are a few well-known scooter/motorcycle/quad bike rental companies…
- Santorini Bike Rental (https://www.santorinibikerental.com)
- Motor Inn (https://www.motorinn.gr)
- Santorini Rent Me (https://santorini-rentme.com)
- Tony’s Rent a Car & Moto (https://www.santorini.com/rentals/tonys/)
A travel addict. Still celebrating the day when he quit his high-profile corporate job to pursue his passion for travel writing.