-Europe.Greece.Santorini-
Santorini is no doubt famous: already during breakfast on board the Virgin Voyages, I heard snatches of conversations excitedly discussing about when to go ashore to finally explore the island known for its breathtaking views. This was my first visit and armed with some knowledge I gathered , the same thought was on my mind.
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Table of Contents
Planning when to go ashore to Santorini
The announcement on board was to register for our spots on the tender boats if we are independently visiting Santorini. Apparently after 12:00 noon there was no need to register but just to show up at the disembarkation spot.
First off I checked the itinerary for the Shore Thing offered by Virgin, and they were mainly geared for the morning. The people booked on Shore Thing will be taken to Athinios port where there is road access and not the old port which the tender boats will go.
Next I checked for other ship schedules and there were to be 3 other ships in port at the same time. You can check this from cruise mapper. So you can just imagine how many people there will be swarming Santorini.
In the end I decided to go ashore at 13:00 – a time I was hoping the early visitors already are tired out and wanted to lunch aboard the boat and a time when it was quite hot to be too comfortable up on stony Santorini. In the meantime we could enjoy a relatively empty cruise ship, making use of the wellness spa facilities and having a nice lunch without prior reservations for a change.
*A note: When you are on a cruise ship – you are docked out at sea and a tender boat will bring you ashore to the Old Port. This is what this post is about. If you are coming in from ferry from other islands, then you will arrive at the Athinios port.
If you don’t want to do it on your own and also not go with the ship’s packaged excursions – you should look into a private shore excursion where you can plan your own timing.
Actually going ashore to Santorini
We made our way to the gangway to board the tender boat at 13:00 and already saw very little people boarding the boat. We sat on the inside and it was virtually empty!
So why all the planning, you may wonder. Well because there are 3 options to get to the top and none of them are buses or taxis or cars as there is no road access at the Old port.
Option 1 - Cable Car
Virgin gave us complimentary round trip tickets for the cable car and for sure this is the most popular option and my own personal preference because it runs every 20 mins and the trip up itself is a fast 4 minute ride. The only thing is there are only 6 cabins that can carry 6 people maximum per cabin. So very often this results in a long queue for the cars. I have read of 1.5 – 2 hour waits. Cost of the tickets are 6 Euros/way/adult
On this official site you can check the most current prices and timetable of the Santorini Cable Car
When we arrived at the top, we saw the long queue of people waiting to go down!
Option 2 - Boat Transfers to Oia
This would have been my backup option if the cable car line was too long and honestly Oia was more a priority for me to spend more time in than Fira.
The boat transfer includes a high speed 20-minute boat trip from where the tender boat drops passengers off (old port) to Ammoudi bay below Oia. A private bus will then shuttle passengers up the hill to Oia where you can explore Oia on your own and at every hour another private bus is available to shuttle you to Fira. Another option if you decide not to wait for the hourly private bus is to take the public bus to Fira.
You have to make your own way back down to the Old port below Fira to catch the tender boat back to the cruise ship.
*Be aware the service is not always available: it is open according to when there are cruise ships. Also there might be a wait for the boat to be filled before the trip starts.
Option 3 - Steps
Well 588 of them to be precise make up the famous Karavolades Stairs. I think this should be the last option for going up because there is still so much more walking and more stairs when visiting the villages at the top. The other thing is you have to share the stairs with the donkeys bringing people up the top as well, avoiding donkeys and their poo is not the greatest way to start exploring Santorini. Be careful that you are wearing the right walking shoes and not flip-flops as the stairs are slippery too. You might end up having to walk down if the cable car queue is too long and you have to catch that tender boat back on board.
So I mentioned the donkeys that for a fee would bring people up and down. This option is not for me and I would not advocate it. My friend who did this years ago also told me that it was a scary experience for her as the donkeys were racing each other and she could only hold on for dear life.
Summary
In the end we were very lucky, I had planned on the timing for going there but left the timing open for going down. When we took the cable car down , again with absolutely zero queue – we shared it with another couple who related how they waited in line for more than an hour when coming up. They asked us how long we waited ; without appearing to be too smug I said no queue at all 😀
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Santorini is a great cruise port stop. But it was a good decision to take the morning off first and enjoy the ship when others are off on tours! It was good that your trip included tickets for the cable car. But when we visited, the line to come down was so long we decided to walk. Your afternoon timing was perfect to miss the queues. We passed on the donkeys as they seemed a very cruel thing to us.
Wow! I hadn’t really thought how difficult it would be to get up to Fira from a cruise ship. We flew into Santorini when we visited and took a cab to Oia, which was scary enough! We did walk all those stairs down and up in Oia once and my legs were definitely sore afterwards. Talk about a major leg workout!! We saw the donkeys too and opted not to ride. When we visited Fira, I was shocked how crowded the streets were from cruise passengers in town. And you’re right — the tram doesn’t move people fast enough. Personally I would avoid Fira altogether!
I have not been to Santorini yet, so this was a great read and information for me. Taking the early morning ship and also using the afternoon when people are off for lunch were both clever of you to avoid the crowds. This should work in most visitor attractions. It is interesting that donkeys are available to cart people up and down. I remember that even the Grand Canyon has options to travel on mules to climb down and up and view the great chasm. It can be quite a scary experience! I am adding Santorini to my bucket list now. 🙂
I have not been to Santorini or Fira and so this blog post has good information for me. Taking the early morning ship and also using the afternoon time when people are off for lunch were both clever ideas to skip the queues and have a crowd free outing. It is interesting that there are donkeys to cart people up and down the stairs. I remember there were mule rides in the Grand Canyon to climb down and up to get great views of the chasm! But this can be a very scary experience. I am saving your blog post for my future reference. 🙂
Although the cable car is only 6 Euros, that’s really nice that Virgin gave you complimentary passes! I’m sure the views are so gorgeous. I was in Santorini on a cruise stop, and we visited a volcano and then rented an ATV to explore the island for the day. Now I want to go back and do a boat trip to Oia. So fun!
I liked the boat you were on to reach Old Port. The ride seemed amazing. It was good you got complimentary passes. I would also miss the 588 stairs and the donkeys. Even in India, in some places they use donkeys for climbing up, but it doesn’t suit me. I would love to see Santorini, as it seems very exotic in the virtual world. And now, your post has given all the info as well.
I guess you picked the right time to go to the old port. You got. to enjoy the cruise without too many people around, and you didn’t have to wait to take a cable car to Fira. Jackpot! I read about the donkey before. I think I will avoid that, too. I don’t mind going down the stairs if the cable car queue line is long. But I am not going up, though. lol.
I have been to Santorini last year, but I’ve stayed on the island. I did notice the massive queues at the cable car, in Fira, when I visited the city. There were three cruisers anchored in the bay, and so many people were trying to get up. I saw some people climbing the stairs, but not many. It was August and very hot. The old port seemed more accessible. I have taken a boat tour around the island, and noticed that was the easier option.
I haven’t been to the renowned island of Santorini yet, but I plan to do so soon. It’s great that there are three ways to get ashore. The cable car seems like a lot of fun, so if I had to pick, I’d select it.
Santorini is a beautiful place and I think you chose the right time to board the cruise and also got complimentary passes from Virgin to ride the cable car. Climbing the stairs on a donkey is scary so definitely cable car is a good riding decoy. Boat transfer and bus ride is also fair enough to avoid the large queues but it’s great that you chose the off hours to ride the cable car to Oia.