Volcano Travel · Tour
Santorini by Private Car: Oia, the Black Beach and the 1711 Monastery
Ratings collected by Viator and Tripadvisor
SantoriniA private car and a guide for a full day, taking in the villages, the volcanic beaches and the high points of the island. The villages are Firostefani, Oia and Megalochori, the ones with the blue domes. Both volcanic beaches are on the route, the Red and the Black. Lunch at a restaurant on the sand is an option at the Black one. The north end of the island is Oia, the south end is Faros, the lighthouse of Santorini. Between them stands the highest point on Santorini, with a chapel that has been there since 1711, the Monastery of Prophet Elias. Being private, the day is put together around whoever books it, and it goes to the traditional places as well as the famous ones.
What's included
- Experienced tour guide-driver
- WiFi on board (Hotspot)
- Cold bottled of water
- Air-conditioned vehicle
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- Private transportation with comfortable luxury vehicles
- Our tours are fully customized to the choices and priorities of our travelers
- Maps and a private tour of each attraction we will visit together
- Alcohol based hand sanitizer/gloves/mask
Itinerary
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Fira
Meet at the cable car entrance, at the top of the Old Port of Fira.
Firostefani
Firostefani sits north of Fira. It was its own settlement once and now counts as part of the capital. The name translates as the Crown of Fira, which is where it stands, on the highest part of it. The view from the village takes in the capital, the sea and the volcano. There are a few restaurants, cafés, some shops and a mini market, along with some of the most striking hotels on Santorini and traditional rooms where quiet and nightlife are both within reach.
Oia
Oia stands on the north-west edge of Santorini and runs almost 2 km (1.2 miles) along the northern rim of the caldera, at between 70 and 100 m (230 and 330 feet) above the sea. It is built into the steep slope, with houses and restaurants set in niches cut out of the rock on the seaward side. Three hundred steps go down from the village to the port. Inside there are narrow passageways and a central square, and around them whitewashed churches with blue domes and Cycladic houses. The sunset over the caldera is what the position is known for.
Megalochori - Traditional Village
Megalochori is 9 km south-west of Fira, with cobbled stone streets and about 300 permanent residents. It is worth an evening for the buildings: neoclassical houses, stately homes, and old cave houses with heavy wooden doors and high fences, built that way as protection against pirates. The churches have elaborate steeples, two of them in the middle of the village. The area is known for its vineyards and wineries. Two remote beaches sit on the caldera side, Plaka and Thermi, both named after churches nearby and reachable only on foot or by boat. Taverns and cafés serve the local dishes under the shade of the trees.
Akrotiri Lighthouse
The Lighthouse of Santorini stands in the village of Akrotiri. A French company built it in 1892, which makes it one of the oldest in Greece. It went dark during the Second World War and lit again in 1945, after the Greek Navy rebuilt it. The square tower rises more than 10 metres above the warden's house. The light is white, shows every 20 seconds, and carries about 24 nautical miles out to sea. The view over the water is long, and the sunset from here is why most people come. The ruins of the ancient Minoan settlement are the other reason.
Perissa Black Sand Beach
The Black Sand Beach is on the south coast. Two beaches run into each other, Perissa and Perivolos, and together they make one long stretch. The surface is black volcanic sand and pebbles, grey to black, which is where the name comes from. Beach bars run along it, with restaurants behind, and there is windsurfing, canoeing and a diving centre. The stop here lasts an hour and thirty minutes if you want it, for a swim and lunch at a restaurant on the beach.
Less than five kilometers (3
Less than five kilometres (3.1 miles) from the village of Pyrgos is the mountain of Profitis Ilias, the highest point on the island at 567 metres above the sea. The Monastery of Profitis Ilias, or Prophet Elias, stands on the top, and it is among the oldest and most important Orthodox sites on Santorini. Two monks, Gabriel and Ioakeim, founded it in 1711, and it was built in the style of a fortress. A school ran here from 1806 to 1845, with Greek language and literature among the main subjects. The monastery has its own museum now, holding rare ecclesiastical books, Byzantine icons and sculptures. The chapel and the gardens are open, and more than 700 olive trees have been planted around them.
Santorini
The day covers the traditional villages, the red and black beaches, the sunsets over the caldera, and the vineyards and wineries. The blue domes with the caldera behind them are the photograph most people are after, and there are quieter places along the way that never make the postcards. The company stays small on purpose. Everything is private, with an experienced guide and a comfortable vehicle.
Fira
Not included
- Gratuities
Good to know
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
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- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- This is a typical itinerary and the times we will need per destination are likely to change due to traffic.
- Up to 8 travelers per booking.
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Guiding available in: en.
Reviews
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Ratings collected by Viator and Tripadvisor