Thira (pronounced Θήρα/थ़िरा) is one of the famous Greek islands, globally known as Santorini. It was formed by a volcanic eruption in ~2000 BC, which created a caldera (a large volcanic crater) as well. This is probably the only island that I have visited where there is almost nothing along the coast, and all the habitation is on the cliffs.

Fira (pronounced Φηρά/फ़िरा) is the central city of the island. It is best to stay here if you are coming for a short trip,p as all the buses go from here.

The famous blue dome is located in the town of Oia (pronounced EE-aa/ईआ), which is a 2.2 Eu,ro 25-minute bus ride from Fira.

And the famous red beach is located in the town of Akrotiri (pronounced Ακρωτήρι/अक्रोतिरि), which is a 2.2 Eur,o 25-minute bus ride from Fira.

The prices in Greece are so depressed that even the touristy parts of Santorini feel cheap compared to say Paris or even Prague.

Day 1 - Fira and Oia

Check out the city of Fira.

Then visit the famous blue domes in Oia via the 2.2-euro, 25-minute bus ride from Fira.

Blue domes of Santorini, Greece
Blue domes of Santorini, Greece

From here, I would recommend hiking back to the city of Fira along the cliff, it is a 3-hour, 7.5-mile hike.

Oia-Fira hike

Day 2 - Caldera tour

I took a 6-hour boat tour of the Caldera, which included a hike to the volcano, a swim in the hot springs, and a visit to the island of Thirasia.

The boat picks up from the new port, and for that, I had to walk down alongside the mules. You can also use mules for transportation.

Mules are used to transport goods and people up the cliffs

The round-trip hike to the volcano is only a ~1-hour chill hike, with slight elevation, but you can even do it in sandals if you want to.

Hiking along the caldera cliffs

The hot springs are muddy and lukewarm; it is still worth visiting.

Touring the caldera by boat

Our final stop was on a new island; I hiked up to see the city of Manolas instead of sitting on the beach. The beach was fairly basic anyway, and it was more about having a meal. The blue dome in Manolas is definitely better than the ones in Oia.

The famous blue dome in Manolas

So, if you are short on time, just do a 3-hour tour of volcano and hot springs instead.

Afterward, I took a 2.2-euro, 25-minute bus ride to the town of Akrotiri to see the prehistoric ruins of Akrotiri. This city was destroyed in the volcanic eruption of ~1600BC! Yeah, it is the same volcano that I hiked earlier in the day. The entrance fee is 20 Euros. And I think the fee is only justified if you are a history buff. otherwise, you can skip it and just enjoy the red beach nearby. One hour is more than sufficient to see the ruins.

Akrotiri ruins

And then you should check out The Red Beach, which is a 15-minute walk from the ruins.

The famous red beach in Akrotiri

Note

  1. I took a 4-hour, 8 AM, 15 Euro ferry from Heraklion (Crete) to Santorini. You can take a faster ~100 Euro, 90-minute ferry as well. Due to bad weather, it was 2 hours late. It didn’t make a difference, as my bookings in Santorini were canceled as well!
  2. The inter-island ferries land at the old port, which is 8 km from Fira. You can take a public bus for 2.5 euros, 30 minutes, to reach Fira. This bus runs according to the ferry schedule.
  3. Track the live location of your ferries, as they can be late due to bad weather.