hcoombs

Hi. I'm planning a trip to Athens and the islands for the late summer/early fall and have a little flexibility with the dates. I noticed that the high/low season cutoff for most hotels is right at Oct. 1, and the price drop is significant in most cases. My question is, will the ocean still retain enough warmth to be tolerable for swimming (I'd say 65 F or so for me) in early Oct.?

Also, any recommendations for lodging? The plethora of available hotels on Santorini is a little daunting. I'm looking for a small place, right on the rim of the caldera, that caters to couples (the trip is my honeymoon, though the "honeymoon suites" at many hotels I've seen are rather out of my price range.)

Thanks muchly for any advice.

Caston Jarvis

tropo

Caston - apparently each greek island group experiences "differing" water temperatures/air temperatures, by late September/early OCtober. We have booked a self contained apartment on the island of Samos for 1 week, and I have been told, that the sea temperature at that time of the year, is still warm, and very swimmable.
Sorry I don't know much about Santorini, but you should be okay. I have heard that by the middle of October, the greek islands can experience windy weather, and cooler nights. I guess its all a luck of the draw. Islands like Tilos, Symi and Halki, are still operating right up to the end of October, I believe, much warmer.

brotherleelove2004

The water is still swimmable in early October as long as the wind isn't too strong. Because the sun is low in the sky the water doesn't have a chance to get hot, but when I was on Santorini in October I was still swimming every day.

If you want special "couples" treatment you have to pay for it. There are so many small hotels along the rim of the caldera you only have to choose the village you want to stay in and look around until you find something you can afford. If you want a swimming pool you'll definitely pay more. If not, in Oia I can recommend the Chelidonia Villas as a good possiblility.

http://www.chelidonia.com/

sqskybed

I actually have been in Santorini and Athens last October and it was stunning. The best part was definitely Santorini but Athens was also interesting. In Athens I stayed at the St George Lycabettus and it was quite dissapointing. If you want to stay in a truly exclusive place I suggest the Grande Bretagne hotel, managed by Starwood. On Santorini you should note that many hotels will close end October, nevertheless you might find excellent deals. I stayed in Kamari, near the beach. While Oia, with the famous views, is beautiful I advise you to stay somewhere near the beach. Oia is located very high in the mountains and is not really exciting. I went by bus to Oia and saw in 2 hours. It's really small. The sea water is excellent and not too cold. By the way, I rented some fine beach seats and umbrellas for just 2 euros for one day, very nice compared to the 25 euros they ask in summer in Saint Tropez! I recommend the Notos hotel and spa, a quite new small luxury hotel:
http://www.slh.com/greece/santorini/hotel_sannot.html

If you have any questions, just ask. I hope I helped you a bit!

brotherleelove2004

The closest thing to a "mountain" on Santorini is on the other side of the island from Oia, the granite rock formation above Kamari Beach on top of which are located the historical ruins of "Ancient Thira." Oia sits on the cliffs above the sea, the same way the villages of Fira, Firostephani and Imerovigli do, and there is a strenuous hike down to the water below, 238 steps to be exact, but there's NO mountain there. In fact, the other cliffside villages are higher in elevation than Oia.

I agree that Kamari Beach is a good choice if you want to stay right on the beach.

brotherleelove2004

The closest thing to a "mountain" on Santorini is on the other side of the island from Oia, the granite rock formation above Kamari Beach on top of which are located the historical ruins of "Ancient Thira." Oia sits on the cliffs above the sea, the same way the villages of Fira, Firostephani and Imerovigli do, and there is a strenuous hike down to the water below, 238 steps to be exact, but there's NO mountain there. In fact, the other cliffside villages are higher in elevation than Oia.

I agree that Kamari Beach is a good choice if you want to stay right on the beach, just keep in mind that there is no caldera view from the beach.

brotherleelove2004

Sorry about the double posting, Fodor's is being temperamental today.

I just wanted to add that if you want a caldera view you won't get it from any of the beachfront villages except those I mentioned: Fira, Firostephani, Imerovigli and Oia.

taggie

The whole reason to go to Santorini is to have the view of the caldera IMO. There is nothing like gazing at that view first thing in the a.m., when you're relaxing on your terrace, or at night for the sunset. Oia is gorgeous but more expensive than some of the other villages. Of course the island's beach-side accomodations are cheaper, but I really urge that you do "beach" stuff on other islands and enjoy Santorini for the caldera.

sqskybed

I do agree the caldera view is stunning. Maybe you should combine the caldera and the beach. A very spectacular designer hotel on Santorini is the Chromata in Imerovigli with stunning service and an exceptional pool! I had a very nice stay in this hotel! In october room prices start at 160 euros including breakfast and taxes. Take a look www.chromata-santorini.com

Another hotel which is also spectacular and much written about is the Katikies in Oia. Especially the pool is lovely. I didn't sleep here but have been there and it looks great! Room prices in october start here at 225 euros, so this spectacular view doesn't come cheap.

hcoombs

Thank you all for your advice. It was good to hear the water keeps its warmth into October. We've reserved a room at the Artemis Villas in Imerovigli. It looked fabulous and the price was reasonable for a boutique hotel.

Thanks again.

Caston