And the Greece adventure continues. In my last post - Travel Guide: Athens, Greece - I mentioned that I would be doing a Travel Guide for Santorini next. I'm so glad to hear you all enjoyed the format of it! Without further-a-do let's get into Santorini aka the place you probably see on your twitter timeline WAY too often.
📍Santorini, Greece
As I mentioned in my Travel Guide: Athens, Greece post I went with EF Tours Ultimate Break. Included in the tour for Santorini was an excursion but I decided to opt out.
Now, I am going to tell you what my dad told my sister and I (Fun fact: My dad actually used to live in Greece):
Ask the hotel if they have any day-tours happening.
Chances are, they do have something happening. Best part? IT WAS ONLY 50€ TO SEE EVERY PART OF SANTORINI - my wallet was doing a happy dance.
Ask the hotel if they have any day-tours happening.
Chances are, they do have something happening. Best part? IT WAS ONLY 50€ TO SEE EVERY PART OF SANTORINI - my wallet was doing a happy dance.
Red Beach
I overlooked the beach from a cliff
GENERAL TIPS:
TIP #1: It is a bit of a rocky climb, so wearing sneakers or Toms is a must here so you're guaranteed not to fall/misstep.
TIP #2: As you walk back down from your climb, there is a small little souvenir shop there. It is actually normally priced -although a touristy area, it wasn't anything too crazy.
TIP #3: Our Tour Guide for the day mentioned that you can swim there however, he advised against it because mudslides occur often.
TIP #4: This cliff is child safe, there is rope lining around the cliff itself so no one can actually go all the way to the edge.
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS:
TIP #1: There are a lot of people there trying to get their perfect shot, so you're going to have to wait your turn - when you have that turn, take your time with taking a photo. Chances are, the opening won't come up again.
TIP #2: Wear your sunglasses for photos, if you feel like opting out of wearing sunglasses please take a look at how that went for me:
my eyes were blinded by the actual sun
TIP #3: Taking a jumping photo here wasn't really the best, I'd recommend taking a photo of you standing with your back to the cliffs and water. Here's how my jumping photo went:
I'm not the HUGEST fan of this photo, partly because my 5'5'' 1/2 self couldn't jump higher (Ok my doctor said I'm 5'6'' but everyone I know tells me I am not 5'6'' so 5'5 1/2 is what I'm going with)
TIP #4: For the person taking the photo of you, make sure they get each angle. What I mean is have them take a photo of you with them standing directly in front of you, then have them take a step to the left and take a photo, and lastly have them step to the right.
Straight in front of you: You get the view of the water and a cliff behind you.
Standing to the left of you: You get more of the cliff you are on behind you.
Standing to the right of you: You get the full view of the vast amount of water behind and maybe even of people canoeing in the background!
_____
Not a tip but here's a small blurb from my day-tour map about Red Beach so you have a bit more of an idea of where you'd be visiting:
Short stop for photos at the famous volcanic beach, well known for the unique color of the sand, it's soaring red lava cliffs and clear green waters.
just so you know I'm laughing at ~short stop~ for photos because you and I both know for the memories & 'gram you are taking 3902+ photos
Akrotiri Excavation Site
GENERAL TIPS
TIP #1: This tip is for my students: Bring Your Student ID! The original ticket was I believe 14€ but for students, it is brought down to 7€.
TIP #2: There are multiple tours happening at the same time so make sure you have you eyes on your tour and aren't standing too long in one spot reading small blurbs.
TIP #3: This kind of goes hand in hand with the tip above, make sure you are close enough to the tour guide to hear what they are actually saying - there were times where I couldn't hear what was said because I was too far in the back.
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS
TIP #1: The lighting in here is actually sunlight so rest assured your photos will have nice lighting. Not really a tip, but thought to mention!
TIP #2: When taking photos of the different artifacts, make sure to take a photo of the blurbs alongside. I have a few photos I took in here that I actually don't remember what they were.
TIP #3: Take your photos as you are walking through your tour and not try to make a mental note to take them when you have free time. I did this and wish I took photos right-then and there instead of thinking I'd have free time afterwards to retrace my steps.
I did want to note that I wasn't COMPLETELY blown away at this. If given the opportunity to see this place again, I think I'd pass it. I found it interesting, of course. But not to in a wow this is so cool kind of way. Fun lil fact though: This ancient civilization had a full draining system while the civilization at the time of discovering this didn't.
Perivolos Beach
Here! you! can! swim!
GENERAL TIPS
TIP #1: You can't just walk right onto the beach. There are taverna's lined up where there's a section to eat/grab drinks + this also includes going to the beach right in front of said Taverna. So, look for a beach section you want to go to and then go and get a drink from the place there. Win Win situation. You pay for your 3.50€ drink and get to swim in the beach!
TIP #2: The beach here is interesting. You know how on a beach you can walk and walk until you can't reach anymore and then you're floating? Yeah, so this beach isn't like that. You walk about 15-20 steps and suddenly you can't reach - there's a massive drop.
TIP #3: Keep watch of your bags while you're swimming. This might just be me being paranoid but while swimming I didn't want something happening to my money + phone!
TIP #4: Try grilled Feta cheese. (I didn't get a chance to due to being short on time on this day-tour in each area but I really wish I did.)
TIP #5: If you also manage to find yourself on a day-tour then you may also have to decide between going for a swim OR eating lunch. My sister and I opted to swim and didn't have time to eat lunch
If you are not on time constraints, take your time here and eat some seafood. Since you're literally right by the sea it can't get any fresher than that! There are some places along the boardwalk that are expensive and some that are nicer on your wallet - so pick and choose the best one for yourself there!
TIP #6: Uh this isn't really a tip, more of a don't be alarmed by the sand being black - it's black volcanic sand!
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS
So I'm just going to leave you with one Photography Tip because I'm just going to assume you all know how to take photos on a beach!
TIP #1: Remember how I mentioned you take 15-20 steps and then there's a huge drop? Yeah, so make sure you aren't walking backwards in the water trying to get a good photo of yourself and then suddenly down you go.
_____
This Travel Guide is being split into 2 (or maybe 3?) because there is actually 4 more places I visited within Santorini, places to eat, weather, hotel, and transportation that I want to write about + give tips on and I think this post would turn into a novel if I wrote all of that here.
I think I may do:
Part 2: 4 other places I visited + Tips (General & Photography)
Part 3: Places to Eat, Hotel, Weather & Transportation
Does that sound okay? Let me know your thoughts!
I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of Santorini - SEE YOU ALL IN PART 2!
If you haven't already, you can read up on Travel Guide: Athens Greece which is actually more of a novel than this post.
I overlooked the beach from a cliff
GENERAL TIPS:
TIP #1: It is a bit of a rocky climb, so wearing sneakers or Toms is a must here so you're guaranteed not to fall/misstep.
TIP #2: As you walk back down from your climb, there is a small little souvenir shop there. It is actually normally priced -although a touristy area, it wasn't anything too crazy.
TIP #3: Our Tour Guide for the day mentioned that you can swim there however, he advised against it because mudslides occur often.
TIP #4: This cliff is child safe, there is rope lining around the cliff itself so no one can actually go all the way to the edge.
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS:
TIP #1: There are a lot of people there trying to get their perfect shot, so you're going to have to wait your turn - when you have that turn, take your time with taking a photo. Chances are, the opening won't come up again.
TIP #2: Wear your sunglasses for photos, if you feel like opting out of wearing sunglasses please take a look at how that went for me:
I can confirm I couldn't actually see out of these glasses because of how tinted they were but! great for a photo
TIP #3: Taking a jumping photo here wasn't really the best, I'd recommend taking a photo of you standing with your back to the cliffs and water. Here's how my jumping photo went:
TIP #4: For the person taking the photo of you, make sure they get each angle. What I mean is have them take a photo of you with them standing directly in front of you, then have them take a step to the left and take a photo, and lastly have them step to the right.
Straight in front of you: You get the view of the water and a cliff behind you.
Standing to the left of you: You get more of the cliff you are on behind you.
Standing to the right of you: You get the full view of the vast amount of water behind and maybe even of people canoeing in the background!
_____
Not a tip but here's a small blurb from my day-tour map about Red Beach so you have a bit more of an idea of where you'd be visiting:
Short stop for photos at the famous volcanic beach, well known for the unique color of the sand, it's soaring red lava cliffs and clear green waters.
just so you know I'm laughing at ~short stop~ for photos because you and I both know for the memories & 'gram you are taking 3902+ photos
Akrotiri Excavation Site
GENERAL TIPS
TIP #1: This tip is for my students: Bring Your Student ID! The original ticket was I believe 14€ but for students, it is brought down to 7€.
TIP #2: There are multiple tours happening at the same time so make sure you have you eyes on your tour and aren't standing too long in one spot reading small blurbs.
TIP #3: This kind of goes hand in hand with the tip above, make sure you are close enough to the tour guide to hear what they are actually saying - there were times where I couldn't hear what was said because I was too far in the back.
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS
TIP #1: The lighting in here is actually sunlight so rest assured your photos will have nice lighting. Not really a tip, but thought to mention!
TIP #2: When taking photos of the different artifacts, make sure to take a photo of the blurbs alongside. I have a few photos I took in here that I actually don't remember what they were.
TIP #3: Take your photos as you are walking through your tour and not try to make a mental note to take them when you have free time. I did this and wish I took photos right-then and there instead of thinking I'd have free time afterwards to retrace my steps.
I did want to note that I wasn't COMPLETELY blown away at this. If given the opportunity to see this place again, I think I'd pass it. I found it interesting, of course. But not to in a wow this is so cool kind of way. Fun lil fact though: This ancient civilization had a full draining system while the civilization at the time of discovering this didn't.
Perivolos Beach
Here! you! can! swim!
GENERAL TIPS
TIP #1: You can't just walk right onto the beach. There are taverna's lined up where there's a section to eat/grab drinks + this also includes going to the beach right in front of said Taverna. So, look for a beach section you want to go to and then go and get a drink from the place there. Win Win situation. You pay for your 3.50€ drink and get to swim in the beach!
TIP #2: The beach here is interesting. You know how on a beach you can walk and walk until you can't reach anymore and then you're floating? Yeah, so this beach isn't like that. You walk about 15-20 steps and suddenly you can't reach - there's a massive drop.
TIP #3: Keep watch of your bags while you're swimming. This might just be me being paranoid but while swimming I didn't want something happening to my money + phone!
TIP #4: Try grilled Feta cheese. (I didn't get a chance to due to being short on time on this day-tour in each area but I really wish I did.)
TIP #5: If you also manage to find yourself on a day-tour then you may also have to decide between going for a swim OR eating lunch. My sister and I opted to swim and didn't have time to eat lunch
If you are not on time constraints, take your time here and eat some seafood. Since you're literally right by the sea it can't get any fresher than that! There are some places along the boardwalk that are expensive and some that are nicer on your wallet - so pick and choose the best one for yourself there!
TIP #6: Uh this isn't really a tip, more of a don't be alarmed by the sand being black - it's black volcanic sand!
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS
So I'm just going to leave you with one Photography Tip because I'm just going to assume you all know how to take photos on a beach!
TIP #1: Remember how I mentioned you take 15-20 steps and then there's a huge drop? Yeah, so make sure you aren't walking backwards in the water trying to get a good photo of yourself and then suddenly down you go.
_____
This Travel Guide is being split into 2 (or maybe 3?) because there is actually 4 more places I visited within Santorini, places to eat, weather, hotel, and transportation that I want to write about + give tips on and I think this post would turn into a novel if I wrote all of that here.
I think I may do:
Part 2: 4 other places I visited + Tips (General & Photography)
Part 3: Places to Eat, Hotel, Weather & Transportation
Does that sound okay? Let me know your thoughts!
I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of Santorini - SEE YOU ALL IN PART 2!
If you haven't already, you can read up on Travel Guide: Athens Greece which is actually more of a novel than this post.
wow this place.....*_* great post and lovely pics!kiss
ReplyDeletehttps://chiaradipalma92.blogspot.com/
thanks!
DeleteOoooh! I love this! I've always wanted to go to Santorini, and I study archaeology and the Akrotiri Excavation Site looks amazing! *geeks out* also your hijab is so pretty, i love that pattern! x
ReplyDeleteAnne // www.basifpa-and-did.co.uk
I feel like I always see a photo of Santorini on Instagram/Twitter and it did not disappoint! I really think the Akrotiri Excavation Site would be every archeologists dream to maneuver around in. I loved seeing the different structures, I just wished the tour was a bit slower paced so I could have fully appreciated a bit more! Since it was fast paced, I feel like that was one of the main reasons why I didn't enjoy it as much.
DeleteAHH thank you!! I always love wearing scarves with different colorful patterns, always puts me in a happy mood!
Such a great post as always. I really enjoy reading your write ups and seeing your photos! I definitely should have taken your 'wear sunglasses' advice when I went to Turkey because I have a serious squinting face in the sun, without them hahaha. Santorini has been on my list for such a long time and your tips have definitely encouraged me even more! Thanks for sharing xx
ReplyDeleteRumaanah
https://rumsthereader.wordpress.com/
Aw thank you - this just made so so happy, I'm loving writing them! HAHA after a few photos without glasses, I already knew it wasn't going to work out - at one point I have one photo where I'm just smiling with my eyes closed because of how strong the sun was hahaha!
DeleteThis is on my bucket list! Even more so after reading your post!
ReplyDeleteYAY! So happy to hear, you'll love it there when you go!
DeleteI love this post as Santorini is somewhere I've always wanted to visit! It looks like you had so much fun and it sounds like you got a bargain too. I love that you show different parts of Santorini- it's lovely to see something other than all of the blue and white buildings that are plastered all over Instagram! Grilled Feta sounds amazing, at least you have an excuse for another trip back seeing as you didn't get chance to try it this time!
ReplyDeleteSoph - https://sophhearts.com/ x
I was so happy when I saw the price of the day tour considering we saw more than the excursion that EF Tours had planned + for less! All I ever see about Santorini is the blue tops & white buildings so it was interesting to see with my own eyes that there's more to Santorini than what we see hyped up on instagram/twitter!
DeleteI really wish I tried the grilled feta, if I ever find myself back there I already know it's the first thing I'm going to try!
I'm loving your Greece tips and travel series. I really want to visit Santorini!
ReplyDeleteI just followed your lovely blog. Hope you follow back and let's keep in touch.
www.fashionradi.com
Thanks! It's the perfect vacation spot! And thank for you for following my blog, I'll head over to yours now :)
DeleteYAY so glad you love it Bexa!! I saw so many people on quad bikes & vespas and I wanted to hop on one so badly - if I stayed more than the day and a half I would have considered going on one, it must have been so much fun when you went on the quad bike, maybe even a little bumpy too haha!
ReplyDeleteI miss the food from there so much, everything is so fresh - really wish I had the time to taste Grilled Feta, something is telling me if I attempted to try that at home it would not go well! And it was a tough decision between swimming & lunch because we really wanted to swim but also, since it was the afternoon we were a bit hungry - thankfully we grabbed some snacks from a little store before we started the tour or we would not have eaten until night time!
I'm so happy to hear you're loving my Travel Guides, thank you so much for reading and commenting Bexa! ❤️❤️❤️
Yes finally getting around to reading about your time in Santorini! The red beach looks really amazing, I have a thing about different kinds of beaches I just love them! I would love to swim there too. Wearing sunglasses for photos is always the best idea haha! LOVE the pic of you jumping hahahaha!! I always make my boyfriend take all these different photographs of me from diference places, he hates it! Akrotiri Excavation Site looks pretty good too! Yas another beach. I wanted to go to a Black Sand beach when I was in Tenerife but it was too far away:( We did have the problem of leaving our stuff on the beach now. Me and my boyfriend got too paranoid and didn't want to both go in the sea at the same time so we had to go back to the hotel leave our stuff there and just bring our towels so we could both go in together! Better then having our stuff stolen though!! xx
ReplyDeletehttps://lifeofshar.co.uk/
Super late in seeing this!! The red beach was really interesting to see from the cliff - there were even people canoeing not too far from the cliff I was on! And same!! I love going to different beaches and swimming - there's always something a little different about each - in this case Perivolos Beach was really different, about 10-15 steps in and then suddenly a huge drop and you're already in the deep!
DeleteWithout sunglasses I would have been taking photos with my eyes permanently closed hahaha! YAS GET ALL THOSE ANGLES! I usually am the one taking photos of my sister and then when it comes to my turn to have a photo taken it takes like 10x times longer because of how many different angles I want ahaha
The Akrotiri Excavation Site was really interesting but since it was with a Tour Guide I felt like I was super rushed and didn't have time to appreciate it fully if that makes sense! Oh I've been meaning to tell you since I saw your post on Tenerife - I was listening to Ed Sheeran's Tenerife Sea the other day and just realized the link between the song Tenerife Sea and Tenerife hahahaha probably super late in realizing that!
I really wish there was a safer way to leave our things as we were swimming - left my sister and I really paranoid and had to keep hopping out to check on our things!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting Sharnah ❤️❤️