Santorini’s Epic Sunsets And Fascinating Culture

'Santorini sunsets are magical': This is what we were told before travelling to this tiny island in the southern Aegean.

Sure, every sunset has something. 

But Santorini's sunsets have this little 'je-ne-sais-quoi', this glow that really captivates you!

The only thing is: if you want to watch it from the most famous spot in Oía, be prepared to fight the crowds to see anything at all!

Santorini is so much more than this, though!

Think a fascinating ancient culture, strongly shaped by the Minoan eruption of the volcano in 1600 BC or Santorini's unique black beaches consisting of volcanic sand.

Here's our full guide and itinerary for 2 to 3 days in Santorini!

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A short history

The circular archipelago of Santorini is actually formed around a volcanic caldera, meaning the crater, or rather sinkhole, that's left when a volcano erupts and causes the ground to collapse. 

What is today known as a crescent used to be a round shaped island. It has then known several volcanic eruptions, forming the caldera in its center. 

The most famous eruption is what they call the 'Minoan eruption', which is said to have led to the collapse of the Minoan civilisation in Crete in 1600 BC by causing a tsunami. 

Although my former professor, who is currently conducting excavations of a Minoan court-building in Sissi, Crete, told us that he found evidence of the Minoan culture dating from AFTER the volcanic eruption. So this is a theory that might have to be reconsidered.  

Another theory is that this eruption caused de sinking of mystical Atlantis...

Santorini in a nutshell

Where to stay

Affordable place

Santorini sunset views: different price categories

If you want to admire the Santorini sunset from the comfort of your own room/villa/pool, you have to book something in Oía. 

That way, you get to experience the magic without the crowds.

But it comes at a price, if you look at the map below...

A better option to admire the Santorini sunset without the crowds would be to stay in Akrotiri, on the southern part of the crescent island of Thira.

The colours of the famous Santorini sunsets are the same but you won't have to spend a fortune to enjoy them.

Things to do in Santorini

Akrotiri: the buried city 

Preserved by volcanic ashes

Akrotiri is a settlement from the Bronze Age that showcases buildings, frescoes, artworks and every-day objects of the Minoan civilisation. 

The reason these vestiges are so well preserved is the fact that during the Minoan eruption in 1600 BC I mentioned earlier, the whole city has been buried in a thick layer of volcanic ash.

Modern excavations started in 1967 and are still ongoing as it is very strenuous to get through that hard volcanic layer. 

So far, only a few buildings of that rather big site have been excavated.

The vestiges show that Akrotiri used to be one of the most important Minoan urban centres and ports in the Aegean Sea. 

The Greek 'Pompei'

Although the conditions are similar to Pompeii in Italy, the main difference here is that no remains of people were found. 

Meaning that the inhabitants somehow got warned (probably by a series of earthquakes) prior to the eruption and were able to evacuate the area in time.

Multi-storey buildings with incredible wall-paintings, an elaborate drainage system, ceramic and furniture of high quality and lots of imported objects: Akrotiri was rather rich and well-known outside of the Aegean Sea.

The archaeological site of Ancient Thera

Mountain city

Ancient Thera is a city that has been inhabited from the 9th century BC until the 8th century AD. 

It has been excavated at the end of the 19th century and lies on top of the Messavouno mountain at an altitude of 360 m.

Several imposing buildings have been found along a wide street with residential areas, an Agora (the main square of ancient Greek cities) and theatre amongst others. 

As with all cities of that era, there is a sacred area with temples and public buildings.

Most of the houses had a central courtyard and a cistern to collect the rain as the primary water source. 

The city was ultimately abandoned in the 8th century after it had already known a decrease of importance. 

Therefore, there are only a few archaeological remains and not many grand objects like in Akrotiri.

Climbing up the hill

Even if you are not that fond of archaeology (archaeologist talking here :-)), I'd still recommend a visit for the site alone: perched on that mountain top, the views of almost 360˚ are incredible!

The Museum of Prehistoric Thera

Museum's might not be your thing but when taking the combined ticket for 15 € (see above), this museum is included.

What's interesting is that all the artefacts displayed here are originally either either Akrotiri or Ancient Thera.

Visiting the sites first and then come to the Museum to see the objects they talk about gives a complete image of life on Santorini in ancient times. 

The frescoes are especially beautiful! 

Cities worth visiting

Oía

THE hotspot for everyone.

And we must admit, it is indeed very beautiful! Just stroll around in the city, get all the way to the windmills and you'll see what the fuss is about that town.

Be sure to do it early in the morning, though! Around 10am, the first busses arrive with people only here for the day.

Meaning: lots of crowds of quite impatient tourists...

Firá

The modern capital of Santorini doesn't have the picturesque windmills on one side but that doesn't make it any less beautiful.

This is the first city you reach when arriving with the ferry.

You can either drive up by car (or bus, taxi, whatever), climb the winding road on foot, take the cable car or pay for a donkey to bring you to the city.

We don't want to recommend that last one, though. While Santorini is famous for its donkeys getting people up the steep paths, we are no fans of this kind of tourist-attraction.

You never know in what condition those poor animals are kept... - sure, it might be that they have loving owners and are happy. But sadly, this is not the case in general.

It was interesting to see, though. This was one of Sebi's childhood-memories when he visited Santorini with his dad. Back then, people weren't so aware of what lies behind these transportations...

Imerovigli

Another picture-perfect town in Santorini, overlooking the sea.

White-washed buildings, blue domes - so pretty!

Far less popular than Oía or Firá, this is also the perfect place to watch the famous Santorini sunset without the crowds (see below for pictures).

Emporio Village

A small town right next to where we were staying!

It has about 3000 inhabitants and even though we went in the middle of the day, we were totally alone!

The peculiar thing here were the very narrow little alleys where cars can't access, houses painted in different light colours and cute little doorways accessible by stairs.

It was actually pretty cool to see something else than white-washed houses and blue domes for a change 🙂

Where to watch the famous Santorini sunset

Imerovigli - the perfect one

Check out our very own Santorini sunset pictures! Ain't that beautiful??

To find this precise spot (in my opinion: one of the best photo spots on Santorini!), look for the Anastasi church down the stairs.

We were almost alone and the sunset was just as beautiful as it was in Oía!

Akrotiri - the less famous one

We didn't make it here for sunset but it's supposed to be awesome as well with even fewer people than in Imerovigli!

The views on the caldera are said to be even more impressive from down here than from the northern part of the island.

And this is it! This was our guide for about 2 days in Santorini, including the best sunset spots!

Sure, you could drag it out and just enjoy Santorini's impressive black beaches (which we also did, so cool!) or relax by the pool (if you pay accordingly), but 2 days should be enough to visit the main highlights.

That being said, despite the crowds and being a totally over-Instagrammed island, we loved it and plan on going back someday!

Maybe once we're making money again and don't have to be that tight on a budget, haha!

As ever

xx

Cyn

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