4 nights in Santorini
 

My family is staying in Santorini for four nights. We arrive at 8pm and leave at 6:30am. Would it be best to stay near the airport for the first and last nights and then find a nice place on the caldera for the middle two nights? I am traveling with four young children. I'm not sure how long the drive is from the airport to the caldera nor how we are going to transfer there. Maybe just the last night by the airport?
Also, any recommendations for a good place for kids?
Thanks

You don't need to waste your first night staying near the airport, and the shuttle services are used to the early-morning pickups for the 6:30am departure. You'll need to be back at the airport by 5:30.

The caldera-side villages (Fira, Firostefani, Imerovigli and Oia) range from 10 minutes to 25 minutes from the airport. Which one have you chosen for your stay, what are your travel dates and what is your maximum combined daily room budget?

If your hotel does not provide an affordable transfer service, for a party of 6 your best option would be a transfer shuttle service. Otherwise you'll have to pay for 2 taxis. A2B Transfers and Santorini Transfers both have websites for booking.

Agreed, one hotel for all 4 nights.

There are transportation of some kind on this busy island to meet all ferry boats and flights. I have flown out of Santorini on 6am flight and there were many taxis leaving Oia at the time heading to the airport at the same time.

The difference between "taxi" and "transfer" in Santorini seems to be blurred. If you ask hotel to have "taxi" ready at some time, what might arrive is a small bus that can carry 12 people or so heading to the same direction with other people already on the "taxi" or picking up others on the way. Whether you are provided with a small van or a small bus, you pay the "taxi" rate.

Think this way, if you did what you proposed, you will be spending two nights and two morning out of four nights stay away from the Caldera. That means losing whopping 50% of your time along Caldera when the rim is particularly pretty in the twilight!

You don't state their ages, but with four small children I would think seriously about spending all four nights on the beach side of the island where there are more things for them to do. Santorini is so small that everywhere on the island is near the airport, but Perissa and Kamari are the closest.

Taxis in Greece are the official taxis as you know them worldwide.

A transfer can be with a taxi, or with another vehicle.
Hotels on certain islands are allowed to use mini busses ( up to 9 seats)to serve their clients.
Not all the hotels have them though , some will send you a taxi, or will book a transfer from an agency that owns mini busses.

Last week the law changed completely, and very soon you will see private companies offering transfers in all major airports. ( this wasn't allowed in Athens for isnatnce)

Thank you for all the information on the transfers. Very helpful.

Frankly, being near the airport was just one of the reasons I thought of splitting up the stay.
We were hoping to stay at about $300 a night but realize this is difficult on the caldera side. Budget is one of the reasons I was thinking of splitting up the stay. Splitting up the time between gorgeous views and more room for the kids to explore (beach side). My children are young 6-13. Fira would probably be too busy for us and my husband really would like to stay in Oia because many people he knows have raved about it. Where would you recommend we stay? What about staying the first two nights on the caldera side and two nights on the beach side? The views on the caldera are just too amazing to miss out on completely.

Check Caldera Butterfly Villas, Villa Ilias, Gizis Apartments, Caldera's Memories, Amoudi Villas, Anemomilos Hotel, Maryloujohn Villas and Villa Marina.

What do you think of Atlantida, , Aris Caves, the Boathouse or Old Oia House? I had read an old blog that mentioned you had highly recommended Atlantida back in 2007. Today I have been searching old forums posts and found the others. Are the ones you mentioned lower cost then these? Thank you again!

Yes. The ones I mentioned are lower priced. Also check Olympic Villas, I forgot to mention it earlier.

Boathouse is on the other side of the island on Kamari Beach. It has a good reputation but has no caldera view.

At this time I do not recommend Atlantida.

Old Oia Houses and Aris Caves are both good choices. I think Aris is beyond your budget and you'd need to check to see if they have something large enough for your family.

I'm having trouble finding a place on the caldera side with a pool that will accommodate my family. Is planning to use the community pool a good alternative? How hard is it to get to the beach from Oia?

There is a beach close to Oia in the area called Baxedes. The beach is called Kouloumbos and in the last couple of years has been maintained enough to make it clean and useable. Before that there was usually a lot of flotsam washed ashore that no one removed. The best swimming on the island isn't at a beach anyway. It's below Oia at the end of the seawall that begins on the wharf in Amoudi Bay. You have to navigate over a pile of loose rock but this is what you'll see when you get there: http://www.larios.gr/photo_1156998.html There's no beach but there are large rocks and a man-made platform for sunbathing and another platform out on the little rock island.

The Lioyerma Cafe/Pool is an excellent alternative to a hotel pool. http://www.lioyerma.gr It's free if you buy food and/or drinks. Close by are Fotinos Houses, Golden Sunset Villas, Esperas Houses and Marizan Villas. 10 minutes away are Old Oia Houses, Chelidonia Villas and Lena's House.