Santorini Recap

Less than 24 hours after getting married, my new husband and I whisked away to Greece for some much needed relaxation. Santorini, for us, was heaven on Earth. Pure magic. Bliss. A beautiful escape. Honeymoon perfection!

Where to Stay

I recommend staying in Oia, the little town that you picture when you think of Santorini. Oia’s white and blue colors, quaint alleyways and beautiful views give it such a charming, island feel. We were so happy we stayed here!

We stayed at Charisma Suites which was just perfection. We never wanted to venture too far away from our room because it was just so comfortable, beautiful, and the staff was so fantastic! It has beautiful caldera views, a swimming pool, and an area where guests could lounge in the sun. The sunset view was unparalleled and absolutely incredible.

We had a private jacuzzi outside of our room as well as the most comfortable bed and big bathroom. Every evening we would choose breakfast items for the next morning and they would bring it promptly at the time we requested. Heaven!!! Breakfast time were some of my favorite moments in Santorini. Such a fresh selection of fruits and delicious flavors that were made to order. Mouth-watering deliciousness!

We ate so many delicious meals in Santorini, from breakfast to dessert, check out this post where I share my favorites!

Highlights:

Catamaran trip

We heard the best thing to do in Santorini is to take a catamaran cruise around the island. We decided to take a sunset trip so we would end our 5-hour ride with beautiful scenery.

We used Santorini Yachting Club, they were so professional, fun and easy! Included in the ticket price was a hotel pick-up. They drove us to the other end of the island where we boarded our boat. Our cruise ended in Amoudi Bay – right by our hotel. We stopped at a few beaches and hot springs, and they served us a delicious dinner of typical Greek cuisines on board.

Hike between Oia and Fira

The full hike going from Oia all the way to Fira takes about 4 hours one way. People typically walk one way then take a bus back. By the time we started our hike, it was too hot and late in the day to complete the full trail, so we decided to complete a shorter hike than originally planned.

We took a bus half-way to Imerovigli and hiked back to Oia. It took a few hours and it was definitely worth it! The views here were unlike anything else I’ve ever experienced and although it was a hot day and the sun was beating down on me, I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Amoudi Bay

Amoudi Bay is a little area on the water below the cliffs in Oia. It is populated with many restaurants and cute, colorful fishing boats. We had lunch at a yummy restaurant named Katina, where we sat right next to the water, which was the most beautiful hue of blue.




There are two ways to get to Amoudi Bay: by road or by stairs. We walked down to Amoudi Bay from our hotel via road; we heard that the stair route also has donkeys on them, and when it’s hot out and donkeys have been climbing all day it tends to get a little smelly!


Cooking Class

Our favorite experience in Santorini was a private wine tasting and cooking class. We spoke to locals and really got a feel for the whole island, from north to south. We went to a few look-out points and it was just incredible seeing the island through a locals eye!

Santorini Experts did a wonderful job of showing us around the island and teaching us about the vineyards. Our last stop, the cooking portion, was just as fun! Here is the link that we booked. Our tour guide was named Arsenois but we met Markos too and he was also so pure and knowledgeable.


Other tips

  • Oia is actually pronounced “e-ya”
  • We had a measurable time difference once we arrived in Oia and it took a few days to get used to the time change. We woke up early the first two mornings and walked along the empty streets to the Byzantine Castle Ruins to watch the sunrise. These were some of my favorite moments… empty streets allowed for beautiful pictures with no tourists!
  • The caldera view (what you see from the top of the cliffs looking down into what’s left of a once-active volcano) gets really busy at night for sunset, because the sun sets on the same side, so try to plan your dinners around them. We typically watched the sunset from our hotel then went to dinner around 9:30PM, after the crowds were gone.



Our stay in Oia was all around wonderful. I am still dreaming about it and will be back one day to relive the magical feeling. It was a perfect mix of relaxing, romantic, and beautiful for our first stop on our honeymoon!

Stay tuned to hear more about our second trip of our honeymoon: the Amalfi Coast!

Have you ever been to Santorini?

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