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| Small church in Oia |
Santorini is known for its white homes, businesses and churches, many with blue roofs. Several of the iconic pictures of Greece are taken on the island of Santorini. It’s a favorite destination for travelers from around the globe. Many arrive by plane or ferries and enjoy time at the numerous boutique hotels around the 29 square mile island (by comparison, Manhattan in New York City is 22 square miles in size). Many day trippers arrive by cruise ship.
The island came into existence in the mid-1600’s BC as a result of a massive volcanic eruption. The island has around 18,000 residents, and often plays host to that many visitors on a daily basis.
We had been to Santorini a couple of times in the past and enjoyed our visits. It had been a number of years since our last visit, and quite honestly we saw that Santorini is facing some challenges. The biggest challenge is its beauty has made it popular to the point that the rocky islands infrastructure can’t keep up with the demand. It’s really putting strain on the island’s resources.
There are two main towns, Fira and Oia that are about 6 miles apart. There is one connecting road between the two towns. Public transportation is available, but limited. Parking is also limited.
There are no docking facilities for cruise ships and only one small docking space for tender boats to bring passengers ashore. Once passengers arrive at the dock, they face another challenge. The city of Fira is on a hillside 588 slippery, steep steps up! Oh by the way, if you choose to walk up the steps, you’ll be sharing the path with a number of donkeys that for a fee will transport you up and/or down. The donkeys have been around for a long time, but their use has been questioned in recent years. Another way to get to the top is by cable car, but this is a very slow process that moves less than forty people each way every four to five minutes. The line for the cable car reminded us of the lines at some of the most popular Disney attractions (over two hours).
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| Approaching Fira on the ship tender. The zig zag path is the path to the city. 588 slippery steps and dodging donkeys! |
If you don’t want to go to Fira, there are options to take a ferry to the town of Oia, but that’s not an easy process either. The fee is around $30 per person for a one way ferry ride with bus transportation back to Fira every hour. For some reason, it didn’t seem like return options by ferry were offered.
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| On the ferry to Oia |
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| Approaching Oia, which also sets high above the water. There is a walk up required from this dock as well. It’s steep but not as steep….. and no donkeys to deal with! |
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| Docking in Oia. The water around Santorini is amazing! |
Not wanting to stand in line for hours, climb 588 steps or ride a donkey, we took the ferry to Oia. We enjoyed looking around a bit although it was hot and crowded. The “below normal” temperatures we enjoyed for much of the past two months had given way to “above average” temperatures. The day was starting to pass by quickly so we caught the bus back after a couple of hours of strolling around and stopping for a cool drink in the shade. We headed for the cable car with hopes that the lines going down would now be shorter……they weren’t! After standing in the slow moving line for a bit we accessed our options. 588 steps down wasn’t a great option, but it was the best option we and many others had available.
We made it down with just an occasional slip (but never falling) and without stepping in donkey poop! Gravity was our friend but it was still a challenge.
I hope that no one misunderstands this blog. It’s not meant to be negative. Santorini is a magical place that was thousands of years in the making. Hopefully it’s around for future generations to enjoy. The natural resources and infrastructure are being pushed to the limit and beyond. It’s going to probably involve some tough choices. Venice, Italy has made them and it appears to be working!
