Santorini questions
 

I'm in the early stages of planning a 3-4 day trip to Santorini and have some questions:

1) What time is sunset around the end of May/early June?

2) I'm considering a Superior suite at Astra Suites in Imerovigli. Has anyone stayed in one of the Superior suites there and can give some feedback on the level of privacy on the balcony?
From what I've researched, it seems like regardless of the hotel or room type, because of the way the hotels are built on the cliffside, there's not much privacy -- if you're near the top, people can see you on your balcony when they climb up the steps of the hotel; if you're at the bottom, everyone above you looks down onto your balcony. And it's possible that you'll have another balcony right next to yours. Is this a fair statement?

3) If I'm prone to motion sickness, should I stay away from a cruise to the volcano? How rough is the water?

4) Is it windy in late May/early June? I heard it can be very windy around Sept/Oct.

I'm sure I'll have more questions, but those are the ones to start with. I appreciate any feedback anyone can provide.

1. http://www.timeanddate.com/sun/greec...th=5&year=2016

We stayed there years ago - lovely place; delightful suite but privacy notsomuch.

I guess the trip to the caldera could be rough; it wasn't when we took it.

We were there in late May and had a terrific hail storm - v dramatic; it was very windy and cold for two days; May is a transition month for weather.

The caldera is sheltered from the wind by the cliffs of Santorini, so the sea is unlikely to be rough. You might be disappointed by the volcano, though.

Motion sickness? Then definitely stay away from those mules.

The caldera gets plenty rough when the winds are strong and blowing in from Africa. I've seen turbulent whitecaps inside the caldera lasting for a couple of days. This mostly happens when the Meltemi Winds are at their strongest in July and August, but the first time I went to Santorini there was a hellacious windstorm in early May that shut down all businesses, planes and ferries for 2 days and covered the island with a layer of nasty red dust. The wind was so strong you couldn't walk upright. That was, of course, not the usual weather. May/June is usually very calm and pleasant.

If the caldera is rough the excursion boat out to the caldera won't be leaving the dock. You'll know once you're there.

If you want specific feedback about a hotel find the reviews for it on www.tripadvisor.com and send your questions to some of the more current reviewers.

Meltemi winds are always from the north, and usually aren't very strong in May/June. Occasionally winds shift to the south, and every few years one of the dust storms brotherleelove described occurs. Dust reaches all the way to mainland Greece, and are quite impressive when viewed in satellite photos:
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=85218

I spend most of my time on a nearby island, but when I've been to Santorini the caldera was smooth as glass.

This particular wind that blows from the south is quite rare, and happens 2-3 times per year, usually in the winter and spring. It then carries either yellow or red sand from the Sahara ( depending from where it comes) and you can see then all cars in Athens and elsewhere covered with dust and being yellow or reddish....

Meltemi winds are always in the summer, especially in July and August, and are to be found in the Aegean Sea and parts of the Mainland. (They don't exist in the Ionian Sea as an example) In Athens they are always welcome, because temperature is cooling down....

One of the best explanations I've seen of the Meltemi and why it occurs comes from a sailing website:
http://www.sailingissues.com/meltemi.html

Love that explanatory website, Heimdall.

Travelerjan, Sailing Issues is a really good website, and not just for sailors. It has information about seawater temperatures and lots more.

Thanks for all the responses.

Also, I'm crazy about baklava. Any recommendations for good places to buy some? And any recommendations for non-touristy restaurants that serve good quality local cuisine (I'm looking for places where the locals go)?

We just returned from 4 nights at Nostos Apartments in Oia and found our room to be completely private, our balcony could not be viewed from above or from walking up the stairs. There was no other balcony around us but others could see the balcony from far away. But I would agree that many of the balconies/patios that we saw lacked privacy.

My daughter and I are prone to seasickness. We took a catamaran ride in the caldera, on a fairly windy day, and we were completely fine.

Thanks, odie1. I read your TR ... thanks for posting it. There's a lot of great details.

1. It's around 8.40pm

http://travelholidayblog.com/santorini-greece/

If you go to Oia try the Melenio Pastry shop for baklava. If it's available there it will be the best you've ever had.

brotherleelove2004 - I'll definitely put Melenio on my list to try. I found some reviews and it has high marks. Thanks for the tip.