Santorini (Greece)

Streets that glide through the stone structures, lemon trees, redbuds, tiled courtyards… Santorini is the coolest of the Greek islands with its entertainment until the morning, unique sunsets, delicious cuisine and stylish terraces overlooking the Aegean.

If you have a hard time choosing between dozens of Greek islands, how about going to an Aegean island and a Mediterranean island?  The flamboyant daughter of the Cycladic Family, Santorini, admires even the most difficult travelers as a symbol of tourism with its lime-painted blue roofed houses, bougainvillea, sunsets and cuisine.  There are plenty of buses and noisy boats that hastily take tourists to their next trip.  However, if you don't worry about tourist armies;  This small island, which hosts approximately 1 million tourists every year, from honeymoon couples to solo travelers, from luxury holiday lovers to backpackers;  it will satisfy you with its nightlife, food and elegance.

Wherever you go to the Greek islands, you will find everything the same when you stop by.  Each of them is determined to preserve its texture with its coasts and small settlements despite all the influx of tourists and bliss.  You won't encounter anything tiring.  Aesthetic integrity makes you so comfortable, "Europe after all!"  You can't stop saying yourself.

In Santorini, you are unlikely to encounter stereotypes, such as to hang out with an aunt wrapped in olive oil, or to meet people who came from our shores, who came to understand Turkish from your carpet when you were surprised, and come across people from our shores.  Indigenous peoples do not interfere with the crowd.  The word "same like us", which is always said for the Greek islands, is not valid for Santorini.  This is first of all European.

 The Cyclades, where Santorini is located, takes its name from the word "cyclos", meaning circle in Greek.  These 12 islands, which are arranged circularly around the island of Delos, carry the aesthetic-knitted cultural heritage of the Cycladic Civilization, which lived between 3000 and 1000 BC.

SANTORINI GUIDE

 How to go?

 There are flights to the island from Athens and Thessaloniki.  Olympic Airlines and Aegean Airlines fly from Istanbul to Santorini with transfer from Athens.

accommodation

 Santorini (Thira) is the most popular among the Greek islands.  Therefore, it is necessary to make a reservation before going.  If you want to visit the island by bus without renting a car, staying in central Fira will make your trip easier.  Because all buses leave from the central bus stop in Fira.  The slope west of Fira is full of blue white houses and hotels to the old port.  However, since this place is a slope full of slopes and stairs, it is worth paying attention to where your hotel is located on the slope.  It may be more pleasant to stay in the villages for those who have intermediaries.  Undoubtedly the most beautiful in the villages is Oia.

 Food

 Traditional food is served in taverns throughout Greece.  In the taverns opened after 20:00 at night, hot meals are also served with the appetizer.  Ouzeria are places that look more like our taverns and serve as an appetizer with ouzo.

 Souvlaki, which is also called as "fast food" of Greece, is both cheap and very delicious.  Served with meat, chicken or fish between tomatoes, onions and greens and bread.  Thanks to the island's own soil structure, tomatoes grown without watering are also very delicious.

 Myzithra, a sharp-flavored soft, hardened cheese variety, is recommended to visitors looking for different tastes.  The cake made with this cheese, which sweetens macaroni and soups, is called myzithropita.  Do not return without trying.

 Raki, which the Greeks call raki, but unlike Turkish rakı, made from grape seeds, stalks and peels;  Tsipouro is one of the flavors of the island.  The wines produced in Santorini are also very famous.  Vinsanto wine made from sun-dried grapes is the most famous.

 Places to visit

 Santorini, also known as Thira, has a different place in the Aegean islands with its magnificent geography and architecture.  The island, which hosts many visitors every year, is actually a volcano that was formed thousands of years ago in the middle of the sea and its activity is still continuing.  There are 14 proven activities to date;  the last of these dates back to 1950.  The two big settlements of Santorini, Fira and Oia, and small villages make the island more beautiful with its old white houses.  According to some, the origin of the legend of Atlantis is an event on this island.  The eruption of the volcano in the ancient period creates a tremendous shock and tsunami, and the Minoan civilization in Crete disappeared due to this disaster in its brightest period.  According to the theory, this event creates the legend of Atlantis over time.  This disaster affected the inhabitants of Santorini in the following periods.  People stayed away from the sea and settled in the caves they opened in the steep areas of the island.  These caves have been transformed into settlements with their unique architecture and roads in time, taking the photogenic image of today.  Archaeological excavations in Akrotiri and ancient Thera brought many treasures from the ancient times of Santorini to light.  Thera's history goes back to the 9th century BC.  The Temple of Artemidoros is one of the most important remains of the ancient city today.  The best place to watch the famous sunset of Santorini is the city of Oia.  The most famous beaches are lined to the east and south of the island.  You can go to Kamari beach and Mavri Paralia Beach by getting on the city buses that go to Kamari from Fira.  Another famous beach of the island is Kokini Paralia (Red Beach).  You can reach the Fira from the center by taking the Akrotiri buses, either by a short walk or by boat.  Aspri Paralia, Perissa, Perivolos are also other famous beaches of the island.