Activities

Things to do in Santorini

From cruising the caldera at the foot of Nea Kameni to swimming the hot springs of Palea Kameni and crossing to the villages of the interior, Santorini packs an unusual range of experiences into a small stretch of the Cyclades.

Signature experiences

The categories that define a first trip to Santorini — the caldera cruise, the hot springs, and the sunset at Oia.

Photoshoots

This group covers photographers who work the caldera rim in Oia, Imerovigli and around the Skaros rock, along with sessions staged on black volcanic beaches or aboard catamarans anchored below the cliffs. Sessions are usually timed around sunrise or the hour before sunset at Oia, since its viewpoints fill with spectators once the light peaks.

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Helicopter Flights

This category lists aerial flights over the caldera and the volcanic islets of Nea Kameni and Palea Kameni, tracing the crescent coastline from Akrotiri to Oia and across the water to Thirassia. Flights depend on wind and visibility over the caldera, so operators reschedule or cancel departures when conditions turn unfavorable.

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Wine Tasting

This is the largest food-and-drink group on the site, covering tastings at the Assyrtiko wineries scattered through Pyrgos, Megalochori, Exo Gonia, Vothonas and Messaria, often paired with the sweet Vinsanto made from sun-dried grapes. Most cellars sit inland on volcanic soil rather than along the caldera, so tastings are usually combined with a village visit rather than a sunset view.

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Volcano & Hot Springs

This group covers boat trips to Nea Kameni, the active crater where cruise passengers disembark to walk among the fumaroles, followed by a stop at the rust-colored hot springs off Palea Kameni. The springs are reached by swimming from the boat rather than from a jetty, and the sulfur in the water can stain light-colored swimwear.

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Diving & Snorkelling

This category groups scuba and snorkeling outings along the volcanic coastline near the Red Beach and Vlychada's eroded ash cliffs, as well as dives around the submerged slopes of Nea Kameni. Visibility and access depend on wind direction, since the south coast is more exposed than the sheltered waters inside the caldera.

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Water Sports

This group covers jet-skiing, parasailing, wakeboarding and similar powered activities based along the flatter east-coast beaches of Kamari, Perissa and Perivolos, rather than the steep caldera side where there is no beach access. Conditions depend on the wind, which tends to pick up on this exposed coast in the afternoon.

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Boat Rentals

This category lists self-skippered boats and small motorboats launched from the old port of Fira and the bay of Ammoudi below Oia, used to explore the caldera and coastline at each renter's own pace. The caldera can turn choppy once the afternoon wind picks up, which is why most rentals cluster around the calmer morning hours.

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ATV & Buggy

This group covers quad and buggy rentals used to reach the inland villages of Pyrgos, Megalochori, Emporio and Exo Gonia, as well as the south-coast roads toward Akrotiri and the Red Beach. Many of these roads narrow to single-lane volcanic gravel near the villages, which slows traffic during the busiest midday hours.

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Cycling

This category groups guided and self-guided cycling routes through the inland villages of Megalochori, Vothonas and Messaria, past the Assyrtiko wineries on the plateau below Profitis Ilias. The ground rises steadily toward the island's high point, and the exposed volcanic surface offers little shade over the stretches between villages.

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Archaeological Sites

This group covers visits to the excavated Minoan settlement at Akrotiri, kept under a protective roof, the hilltop ruins of Ancient Thira near Kamari and Perissa, and the sanctuary island of Delos reached from the central Cyclades. Akrotiri's site is covered, while both Ancient Thira and Delos involve a climb or a walk across open, largely unshaded ground.

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Spa & Wellness

This category lists spa and wellness treatments offered at properties along the caldera rim in Fira, Imerovigli and Oia, typically booked as an add-on to a stay rather than a stand-alone excursion. Availability follows each property's own opening hours rather than a single shared schedule across the island.

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Food & Drink

This group covers tastings, cooking sessions and taverna-based meals across the caldera villages of Fira and Oia, the inland villages of Pyrgos and Megalochori, and the coastal towns of Kamari and Perissa. It sits alongside the separate wine-tasting category, so it leans toward food pairings and shared meals rather than winery visits alone.

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Shore Excursions

This category is built for cruise-ship passengers landing at the old port of Fira or the port of Athinios, covering short tours timed to a ship's call rather than a full-day itinerary. Getting up to Fira from the old port means the cable car or the mule path, both of which back up when several ships call at once.

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Sunset Experiences

This group covers sunset viewing from the caldera villages, chiefly the cliffside paths around Oia and the Skaros rock above Imerovigli, plus catamaran cruises timed to be on the water for the same hour. The Oia viewpoints draw the island's largest crowds at that hour, which is why several tours position guests along the quieter Imerovigli side instead.

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Island Hopping

This category covers multi-island itineraries that combine two or more stops among Ios, Folegandros, Naxos, Paros and Mykonos, rather than a single-destination day trip. Connections depend on ferry schedules between islands, so routes are built around what a single day of sailing can actually link together.

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Caldera Cruises

This is the largest category on the site, covering catamaran and traditional-boat cruises inside the caldera that typically link Nea Kameni's crater, the hot springs off Palea Kameni and a stop at Thirassia, departing from the old port of Fira or Ammoudi. Most itineraries are timed to end on the water at sunset, and afternoon wind on the caldera can shorten or reroute the crossing to Thirassia.

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Day Trips

This group covers single-destination day trips to one nearby island, most often Ios, Folegandros or Naxos, reached and left within the same day, as distinct from the multi-stop itineraries under island hopping. The length of each trip is set by the return ferry from that island, which fixes how many hours visitors actually spend ashore.

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Hiking

This group covers walking routes along the caldera path between Fira and Oia, past Imerovigli and the Skaros rock, as well as the ascent to the monastery of Profitis Ilias, the island's highest point at 567 metres. The caldera path runs along an exposed cliff edge with little shade, which matters most to anyone walking it around midday.

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Walking Tours

This category covers guided walking tours through the historic cores of Fira, Oia, Pyrgos and its kastro, and the fortified citadel quarter of Emporio, rather than the open cliffside hiking path. These routes follow narrow stepped lanes between houses, so groups move at a pace set by the tightest passage in each village.

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Villages & Culture

This group covers visits centered on the villages themselves, among them Megalochori, Emporio, Vothonas, Messaria, Karterados and Firostefani, looking at local life, architecture and small producers rather than a single monument. Many of these villages sit away from the caldera view, so visits here move at a slower, more local pace than the cliffside itineraries.

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Beaches

This category covers the volcanic beaches on the south and east coasts: the Red Beach near Akrotiri, the eroded ash cliffs above Vlychada, and the black-sand stretches of Kamari and Perissa on either side of Mesa Vouno, with Perivolos further along. None of these beaches lie on the caldera side, where the cliffs drop straight into the sea without a shoreline.

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Private Tours

This group covers private, driver-guided versions of itineraries otherwise offered as shared tours, from caldera villages and inland wineries to archaeological sites and south-coast beaches, booked by a single party instead of joining a set group. The route on a given day depends on what that party wants to see, so it draws on the same places as several other categories rather than a fixed circuit of its own.

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Combo Tours

This is the second-largest category on the site, bundling two or more separate experiences into a single booking, commonly a Nea Kameni and Palea Kameni boat trip paired with a winery stop, or a caldera cruise combined with a sunset viewing. Because each combination draws on activities that also exist as stand-alone bookings, the pacing of a given day depends on which pieces are bundled together.

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More ways to experience the region

Specialist interests and practical planning — wine tasting, diving, the crossing to the neighbouring Cyclades, and the comparisons every first-time visitor searches for.

Transport

This category groups transfers and shared or private rides between the port of Athinios, the caldera villages and inland settlements such as Pyrgos and Messaria, plus the cable car and mule path connecting the old port of Fira up to town. Because Athinios sits well below the caldera villages, arrival by ferry usually means a road transfer rather than a direct walk up.

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Family

With only a handful of bookable activities behind it, this category works as an editorial guide rather than a catalogue of excursions: it helps visitors traveling with children weigh a family-friendly pace, such as the flatter beaches of Kamari and Perissa against the stepped lanes and cliff edges of Oia and Fira. It points readers toward suitable options elsewhere on the site more than it lists its own.

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Seasonal Guide

This category carries no bookable activities of its own; it is a set of editorial guides on how the season changes what Santorini offers, from the wind that affects caldera crossings and boat trips to which villages and beaches feel busiest at a given time of year. It exists to help readers choose when to plan a trip rather than what to book once they arrive.

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Trip Planning

This category carries no bookable activities of its own; it groups practical guides on organizing a stay, such as how to move between the port of Athinios, the caldera villages and the inland settlements, and what a caldera cruise or a day trip to a nearby island actually involves. It is meant to be read before booking rather than in place of it.

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Comparisons

This category carries no bookable activities of its own; it sets categories and specific options against each other, such as a caldera cruise versus a combo tour, or staying in Oia against Fira or Imerovigli, to help readers choose between similar options rather than presenting a new excursion. Its content points back to the activity categories it compares rather than adding one of its own.

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Good to know about things to do in Santorini

Santorini's things-to-do hub is organised into a wide range of categories, because the right day here depends heavily on what brought you. Caldera cruises get some of the most detailed treatment, since a boat trip along the cliff, timed to the sunset over Oia, is the single reason many visitors book this island. Sunset catamaran cruises are grouped separately from ordinary caldera boat trips because they solve a different problem — an afternoon sail with dinner on board versus a shorter crossing built around the volcano stop. Nea Kameni & hot springs covers the walk up the black crater and the swim in the warm water off Palea Kameni that follows it.

Wine tastings covers the Assyrtiko and Vinsanto estates scattered across the inland villages around Pyrgos and Megalochori. Archaeological sites groups the covered Minoan settlement at Akrotiri, the hilltop ruins of Ancient Thira, and the day trip out to Delos, reached by a longer crossing through the central Cyclades. Diving and water sports both make use of the caldera's sheltered water and the clearer bays further south, while quad and ATV routes cross the inland villages and vineyard tracks toward viewpoints a bus can't reach. Photo shoots is anchored on the blue-domed churches and the Oia sunset, timed around the light rather than the clock.

Beaches covers the volcanic sand at Kamari and Perissa either side of Mesa Vouno, the eroded ash cliffs above Vlychada, and the Red Beach near Akrotiri. Villages rounds out the caldera side of the island — Fira, Oia, Imerovigli and Pyrgos — from cliffside walks to the quieter kastro at Emporio. Day trips exists because the near, central and western Cyclades all sit a ferry ride away and deserve their own planning, while transfers, transport, seasons and comparisons work through the questions travellers actually ask — bus or booked transfer, when the ferry timetable thins out over winter, and how a private catamaran sunset compares with the free view from the caldera path.

Frequently asked questions about things to do in Santorini

What are the main categories of things to do in Santorini?

This hub groups activities into twenty-seven categories: canyoning, rafting/tubing/float safari, zip-lining, hanging bridges, caves, ATV, horseback riding, kayak & boat, volcano hike, hot springs, waterfalls, cloud forest, birdwatching, night walks, wildlife, coffee & chocolate, dining, spa & wellness, town & culture, family, combos, day trips, transport, seasons, planning and comparisons. Most visitors lean heavily on four or five of them.

Why is Cerro Chato closed to hikers?

Nea Kameni, the black islet at the centre of the caldera, is reached only by the cruise boats that dock there, not by a hike from the shore. Palea Kameni's hot springs are visited the same way, by swimming out from the boat rather than approaching on foot.

What's the difference between the free Río Chollín hot springs and the resort hot springs?

The Río Chollín's pools are free, public and unsupervised, and bag theft is a recurring problem there. The resort complexes charge roughly 40 to 115 US dollars per person for landscaped pools, restaurants and, at some properties, swim-up bars and spa treatments.

Which category covers quetzal spotting?

Nea Kameni & hot springs, focused mainly on the crater walk on Nea Kameni and the swim in the warm water off Palea Kameni.

Is canyoning here suitable for beginners?

Most operators run beginner-friendly routes with rappels adjusted to ability and a guide on each drop, though a reasonable level of fitness and comfort with heights is still expected.