Islands
Santorini and Naxos
Two nights on the caldera for the sunsets, then the ferry to Naxos, which is bigger, cheaper, and has the beaches Santorini lacks. The ferry is part of the trip: sit outside.
- Length
- 6 days
- Budget
- €€€ (Over €300 a day for two. What you spend there, not the flights.)
- Best months
- May–Jun, Sept–Oct
- Kind
- Islands
The route
Where you'll go
- 1
Oia
2 nightsStay on the caldera side, and watch the sunset from your own terrace instead of the castle wall.
Date spots here - 2
Naxos Town
3 nightsAbout two hours by ferry. Stay near the old castle quarter, above the harbour.
Date spots here - 3
Apeiranthos
On the wayA marble village high in the middle of the island; go by hire car or scooter.
Date spots here
Day by day
The plan
Day 1
The caldera
- Land, take the transfer to Oia, and do nothing on the terrace for an hour.
- Walk the lanes before sunset, then down the steps to Ammoudi Bay.
- A swim off the rocks at Ammoudi, where a ladder goes straight into deep blue water.
- Evening: grilled fish at a taverna on Ammoudi's quay as the sun goes down behind the rocks.
Day 2
Fira to Oia on foot
- The bus to Fira in the morning, and the caldera path back to Oia: about three hours, through Imerovigli.
- Skaros Rock at Imerovigli, where the old castle stood, for the views both ways.
- A winery near Pyrgos in the afternoon, for Assyrtiko from vines woven into baskets on the ground.
- Evening: a sunset sail round the caldera, with dinner on board.
Day 3
Ferry to Naxos
- The morning ferry from Athinios; sit on the top deck and watch the caldera shrink behind you.
- Check in near the Kastro and wander its marble lanes.
- Lunch at a harbour taverna: Naxos potatoes, graviera cheese and island lamb.
- Evening: sunset at the Portara, the huge marble doorway of a temple that was never finished.
Day 4
Beaches
- Hire a car or a scooter and head south down the west coast.
- Plaka beach in the morning: long, quiet, with dunes behind.
- Lunch at a beach taverna in Mikri Vigla, watching the kitesurfers.
- Evening: a golden-hour swim at Agios Prokopios, then dinner in the old lanes of the Chora.
Day 5
The mountain villages
- Up to Halki for kitron, the island's citron liqueur, at its old distillery.
- Apeiranthos: marble streets, a square under a plane tree, men playing backgammon.
- The giant unfinished statue of a kouros, lying in a field at Apollonas.
- Evening: dinner at a village taverna in the hills, where the menu is whatever was cooked today.
Day 6
Home
- A last swim at Agios Georgios, the town beach, before breakfast.
- Fly out of Naxos's small airport via Athens, or take the ferry back to Santorini for your flight.
- A jar of thyme honey in the suitcase, for the kitchen at home.
Book ahead
Tickets for this trip
The things on this plan worth booking ahead: a time slot, a seat on a boat, a pass. Book before you go and skip the ticket desk.
Tickets through Tiqets. We may earn a commission if you book through some of these links. It costs you nothing extra.
Getting there
Flights to Santorini
Where this trip starts. Add where you're flying from, change the dates if you like, then pick a site.
Pick both airports and the searches appear here.
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Make it a surprise
Don't tell them where.
Turn this trip into a gift: a ticket they open on their phone, with Santorini already on it and the packing list as clues. You choose when they find out.
Opens the gift editor. Free to start.