raven2003

My husband and I are coming to Santorini for 3 days in Sept. and want to stay in Imerovigli because we heard the views are gorgeous!! One day maybe we can take our time and walk to Fira and also take the cable car to the village, and we heard about the submarine that sounds interesting-anyone do that? The next day we were thinking about renting a car to see OIA, Pyrgos, Perissa, Akrotiki...and anything else. And the next day we were thinking about an excursion trip mini-cruise around Santorini and to IOS. Does this sound like a good 3 day trip?? ANY advice as to what else to see or what you recommend would be helpful and I will respond back!!!

beanweb24

View are gorgeous along the whole caldera side...not just Imerovigli. That's the beauty of that location!

Don't rent a car to see Oia. You can't drive through Oia -- shops, restaurants, etc are really only accessible by foot. There's a very small car park for the village. I would either taxi or take the bus to Oia. Your car rental will be better spent driving around the rest of the island. We enjoyed a brief visit to Pyrgos, and we drove clear to the other tip of the island and stood underneath the lighthouse and enjoyed the view back to Oia. There are some nice beach areas very near Akrotiri to enjoy.

Check out my trip report for more Santorini info (http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34615427). I know that Akrotiri is closed one day but I can't remember which.

Also, I don't think you take the cable car for exploring Fira. Fira is a village high on the cliff. When we were there, it looked like the cable car was only used to transport people between Fira and the cruiseships...I don't think there's anything to do below Fira (someone else might prove me wrong).

You have a lot planned for a 3 day trip to Santorini -- I think adding the mini-cruise to Ios is too much...you mentioned plenty of other things that will more than take up the time you have available on Santorini! Enjoy your trip - it's a beautiful island.

brotherleelove2004

Your perception of Santorini is a bit distorted. Yes the views from Imerovigli are gorgeous, but any of the cliffside villages will provide you with the same spectacular view-Fira, Firostephani, Imeovigli and Oia.

The cable car is for the cruise ship passengers convenience to get from the dock below to the village of Fira above. True, there might be a couple of restaurants and/or shops on the dock, but it's not really anything of much interest.

The submarine ride might be interesting, but don't expect a lot of tropical underwater scenery, just fish and a sunken ship.

Renting a car to get around the island is not a bad idea if you've got time limitations.

The island excursion in the caldera will take at least half a day, and a day trip to Ios will take up most of a day by itself. I suggest you forget about Ios.

AKNIC

raven2003:

While you are in Oia, plan to have a great lunch at Amoodi Beach (spelling?), Katina's
restaurant. The view, the food and
the atmosphere is so great. They grill your meal while you wait and enjoy watching the boats in the harbor. We were in Greece this past June and this is one of our favorite memories. Santorini is such a picturesque island and we also enjoyed renting a car for a day and driving around the island and stopping at the various beaches. We stayed in Oia and did not need a car as the streets are so narrow and walking is the easiest way to see the sights.

raven2003

Thanks for advice, we were only thinking of staying in Imerovigli because it is between oia and fira, but we may stay in OIA, not sure. We are not going to do the cable car, IOS island or submarine, so it gives us more time to relax! I will have to check out Katina's restaurant. Thanks!

polly229

We were on Santorini in mid May. Stayed in Imerovigli at my daughter's urging and I'm not unhappy that we did. Views were somewhat better than elsewhere on the island because it's the highest point. But that provides one drawback. While it's a reasonably short walk to Fira - maybe 20 min. - the walk back will take a little longer - more like 30 min. or so. Certainly not impossible because my husband and I did it several times and we're in our 60s. But after the 3rd trip I decided to rent a car rather than use public transportation for our last day. Had no trouble finding parking in either Fira or Oia. Plenty of room in the lot on the outskirts of Oia about 6PM, and we found a lot down the hill from the main street/plaza area in Fira behind where taxis park one afternoon and there were several spaces. I suspect parking in Sept. might be similar.

Although most people on this forum sing the praises of Oia, I found it more crowded than Imerovigli. We stayed in a cliff house apt. with 5 units at the very top of the cliffs and saw few other people; we could sit on our private patio and not see more than half a dozen people in nearby houses in an hour. And there was parking at the top, just up a flight of stairs from our apt. There are places to eat closer than Fira, though we usually ate there just by default unless we were in Oia, Akrotiri, etc.

neejas

Your going to be blown away at the views. I've been to Europe about 8 times and went to Santorini on my last trip to Greece. It was one of the most awesome memories. I'm sure you've checked out sites online. We stayed at Dana Villas. The price at the time (2years ago) was very economical. Blown away with the accommodations and the VIEWS!!!! Your actually hanging off the side of the cliff. We were there I think 3 nights, 4 days. Just relaxing on your own patio and seeing the water and ships below. We walked to a market and bought fresh meats and cheese and other Greek items and had a picnic one day. Awesome trip. Really jealous. Hey, check out the Dana Villas page if you get a chance, see some photos.

http://www.greekhotel.com/cyclades/s.../dana/home.htm

Or plug in your search Dana Villas. I know you will have great time just by relaxing to the views.

jdak

Reality check! Santorini is not Tahiti nor is it Seaworld. It is a volcanic island, the beaches are by and large either black sand or rocks and tend to be quite narrow. You will not be reliving scenes from Swept Away here! Oia and Thira are beautiful but have succumbed to mass tourism, which is unfortunate. Finally, it takes perhaps 40 minutes to drive from one end of the island to the other - the island is small and is very stressed by the sheer number of tourists who have invaded her once tranquil landscapes. If you are looking for a large island with more resources and possibilities, go to Crete!

WTexan

Don't plan something for every moment in Santorini. One day in Fira, one in Oia, and one just to relax and enjoy the beauty of it.

Panos

Hi there there is a site where you can get what you need to scedule your own visit www.santorini-culture.gr/santorini Today

Panos

all your possible interests they are listed in santorini-culture.gr/today