Destination Santorini

Sunny interlude with this blue flight in the Cyclades. A destination dear to my heart, the Greece has won us over. Ideal for a honeymoon, elopement or a destination wedding, Santorini is one of those trips that leaves a lasting impression. A break where everything is beauty and freedom.

Despite its mass tourism, it is possible to escape the crowds and get drunk on this island with its incredible charm.

Discovery in words and images…

Traveling to Greece: Administrative procedures before leaving

• To be in possession of a valid ID (passport or ID)
• For travelers aged 5 years and older, regardless of their vaccination status: the negative result of a PCR test less than 72 hours old. This requirement is in addition to the mandatory use of health documents (vaccination certificate, proof of recovery or PCR) to move around the country and access the majority of services and closed places.
• All persons travelling to Greece from a foreign country are required to complete a Passenger Locator Form (PLF) (Passenger Locator Form) available online. It is recommended to complete it at the latest the day before arrival in Greece.
• Bring your European Health Insurance Card to ask your social security center, a few weeks before your departure. In the event of a problem, your medical expenses would be covered, as well as your repatriation.

When to go to Santorini?

The best time to go to Santorini is between April and October where you will enjoy the mild temperatures. Avoid the rainy seasons and the chillier temperatures from November to March.

Time difference with Greece

Summer and winter, there is 1 hour time difference between Greece and France.

The airline to go to Corfu

After several simulations, our choice was made on Volotea, one of the few companies to offer direct flights from Marseille.

And I don't regret it. Our trip went very well. We left at the end of the day on the way there and at night on the way back. I had reserved a long-term parking space for the duration of the trip which cost us around a hundred euros.

The only downside was that arriving home at 4am stung a bit. We also had a mosquito attack at Marseille airport, and the less pleasant welcome committee at 2:30am.

Vino Houses, B&B on the outskirts of Oia

I wanted a place to live where we could also spend time. This year has been trying, I dreamed of resting with my family without time constraints or precise planning. I started by creatinga list of favorites on air bnb.

It was on booking that I came across Vino Houses, a nugget located on the outskirts of OIA. Surrounded by vineyards, the house is made up of 3 comfortable guest houses. We rented for 8 nights/9 days Nykteri Villa : a surface area of ​​70 m2, a private “swimming pool”, 2 bedrooms, a kitchenette, very neat decor, frugal breakfasts, wifi and air conditioning in all rooms.

For a honeymoon, the villa Vinsanto on a rooftop overlooking the vineyards is ideal. You can also opt for a luxury house or hotel on La Caldeira.

When we arrived I was a little disturbed by the proximity of the road, but in the end we quickly ignored this detail. The road is busy because it is the path that leads to Oia but it is one-way so it limits the nuisance. It was quite funny to see the processions of mules with bells parading in front of our villa. And between you and me, when we discovered the promiscuity of the dwellings in Oia et Imerovigli, not to mention all the tourists who have views of your "home", I finally congratulated myself 🙂

Yota, the owner of Vino Houses, is just a sweetheart of a woman. From the moment we arrived, we were pampered. She took care of renting us a car, booking a restaurant for the first night of our arrival and giving us the best advice on how to discover the island. Thank you Yota <3

Discovering Santorini

The island has an area of ​​76 km2 and has 15 year-round inhabitants. In summer, Santorini welcomes an average of 70.000 tourists per day.The marvelous is a victim of its success. In order to regulate this flow, the state has chosen to limit the arrival of cruise passengers to 7.000 per day.

Before leaving I received a lot of negative feedback about this overcrowding of the island. It cooled me down a bit and then I remembered that we were used to living against the flow of tourists. And we perfectly succeeded in our mission 🙂

By choice, we stayed on Santorini for the entire trip. We really wanted to enjoy the island at our own pace. We didn't feel like visiting Thira, the busy capital of the island. Our wish was to stay in our bubble and not confront the human tide of tourists. We have no regrets, we had a dream trip!

Oia

The must-see Oia attracted us like magnets as soon as we arrived. I was so excited to see this gem in real life. I was not disappointed, the place is magical. At lunchtime, it was very hot and the promenade was not yet crowded with tourists.

Afterwards, it was not the same story! We preferred to leave. The “sticky caterpillar” style walk was not for us!

We went back in the evening, then the day before our departure in the early morning. Magical! We had the city all to ourselves.

Pyrgos Kallistis

The unanimous favorite. Of all the places we visited on the island, this village is the one where we felt the most in tune. More authentic than OIA, we loved getting lost in its alleys and climbing to the top to admire an incredible view.

Imerovigli

We named it " the village of lovers ". Imerovigli is a very beautiful place, very preserved from tourists. It is the ideal place to admire the sunset. The clientele of the hotels and restaurants is high-end, and the reception is essentially designed for couples. The walk was very beautiful.

Kamari

Kamari is a family resort. Close to the airport, don't be surprised if you see planes flying overhead.

I was quite doubtful before our arrival. As we walked around I was surprised by the quality of the infrastructure and the pretty decoration of the establishments along the black sand beach. For the first time since our arrival, we saw other families like us. We had ended up thinking that Santorini was only an island of lovers.

If you are not afraid of watching a film in English with Greek subtitles, I definitely recommend attending a screening in Kamari open air cinema. Attention, big line for Mama Mia!

The island lighthouse

In Santorini there is only one lighthouse and a magnificent viewpoint of the island.

Vlychada Beach

The essential relaxing break.

Vlychada, the black sand beach with cliffs sculpted for thousands of years by the wind and the sea, is magical. Every swim was an open-air spectacle.

Favorite for THEROS wave Bar. We loved this private beach so much that we went back there on the last day before jumping on our plane to France. We also had lunch there, the service is impeccable and the plates are well-prepared. Good and the decor is great, which doesn't hurt 🙂

Be careful, if you are told that you have an "umbrella for €20", this is just a starting price. We had booked a parasol and two mattresses in the front row, all charged at €60 per day. For this price, you are lent bath towels that a beach attendant sets up for you, you are offered Prosecco and a large bottle of water, as well as sun cream. You can even recharge your phone thanks to a parasol equipped with a solar panel. It was our little extra.

Restaurants in Santorini

A delight for the taste buds. I loved tasting the mezzes: tzatziki, eggplant caviar, tarama, squid fritters…

Armenian Restaurant

The girls' favorite! Armenians is a typical restaurant that is only accessible by boat. We only ate mezzes, we didn't expect such delicious portions!!

The place was great and the welcome super friendly, we had dinner facing the sea. Bliss!

Katharos Lounge

Big crush on a vegetarian Mezzé Bar facing the sea, the Katharos Lounge. We dined there twice and we loved everything we tasted. The setting is magical, the team adorable, the music perfect and its sunsets breathtaking. Unfortunately the restaurant has since closed.

Here is a list of places we liked:

• Feredini Restaurant in Oia
• Melitini in Oia
• The Maison in Imerovigli
• Elia Restaurant in Kamari
• THEROS wave Bar at Vlychada Beach
• And the little gourmet break at Lolita's Ice Cream in Oia

Destination Wedding: Getting married in Greece?

For lovers of seaside atmospheres, the Cyclades offer a fabulous panorama. Bohemian souls, you will be conquered. Some inspirations to be found on our pinterest board.

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Namely

• The language spoken is contemporary Greek but everyone there speaks English.
• “Hello” in Greek translates to “Kaliméra”, “Good evening” for Kalispéra.
• The donkey is the emblematic animal of Santorini.
• Once round, the island of Santorini is now a crescent. Due to volcanic eruptions, the island has split into 3. This is why it is called a "Caldera". In geology, this word refers to the destruction of a volcano by its own activity, creating an immense vertical and circular cliff.
• The last eruption was in 1950. An earthquake in 1956 killed 50 people and injured 200. Since then, many locals have preferred to leave the Caldera and settle on the other side of the island.
• Santorini is a crime-free island. Locals don't lock their homes or cars. We didn't see any police cars or security guards during our stay. When traveling with young children, this feeling of security is invaluable.
• In summer, the flora is arid. Few birds, no mosquitoes or cicadas, few trees. It's quite surprising!
• VAT is indexed at 24%
• To discover the island, I strongly advise you to rent a car on site. Through Vino Houses, we called on the agency Vazeos. Many couples rented buggies or scooters.
• Since the island is not equipped with a sewer system, be careful not to throw anything in the toilet bowl. Not even toilet paper.

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Photo credits – @clementine.marchal

Find all my addresses on the mapstr application: go.mapstr.com/clementine.Marshal

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TO BE CONTINUED…

Our addresses on The Address Book
Our favorites on the shop
Our inspirations on our Pinterest

Follow our news on instagram et facebook

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A WORD FROM THE EDITOR

If you enjoyed reading this article, you might also like:
Destination Corfu
Destination Puglia
Destination Formentera
Destination Marrakech

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