Santorini is an ideal destination for island lovers, as it is a very special island with its crescent moon shape, large bay and small islands. It is very easy to travel around the island. It has beautiful beaches, archaeological sites, museums and beautiful cities with beautiful white houses with blue roofs. Bathed in the Aegean Sea, it is part of the Cyclades group.
It suffered a real geological transformation in antiquity following a large volcanic explosion. Originally, its name was Stongili or La Redonda because of its circular shape with a crater in the center. The terrible cataclysm occurred some two thousand years before Christ, which caused the collapse of the centre of the island and gave rise to a well that was covered by the sea.
An island full of surprises
The western part of the island is composed of steep cliffs while the eastern part is low. From the port of Calderas, which hosts various boats such as those of cruise lines such as Celestyal Cruises and MSC on croisierenet.com. From there, you can reach the capital Fira, which welcomes you with its narrow streets and medieval district: Francomacalá. Its eastern coast, on the other hand, offers a totally different aspect. With a softer and more tranquil landscape. Its unfertile soil still allows the cultivation of vines that produce good wine.
The small villages and their white houses with their blue doors and windows gather around the Profiti Ilias Mount, with a little more than 500 meters of altitude near the sea. In the monastery at the top, Saint's Day is celebrated with traditional dances with local culinary specialities. By boat we can visit Kamenes, a group of islands formed by the accumulation of lava and Thirassía which was separated from Santorini by an earthquake. Thera was first inhabited by the Phoenicians and then came the Dorians. Later it would house the Romans and a little later the Byzantines where each of them left their mark on the island.
An ideal holiday
Everything is prepared to receive tourists and therefore with arms wide open with its quiet beaches where the sand changes color according to the time of day and in the evening with its parties in disco until dawn. Visitors arrive by cruise or on-board yachts. Many come here to rest and others to shop because the biggest brands in the world have a small store on the island.
It is also the ideal place to dive because even without equipment we can dive and swim in the shallow coastal waters like in a swimming pool. For the most romantic, there is nothing better than seeing the sunset from the village of Oia with the port of Armeni at its feet. All Greece is beautiful, but Santorini is something extra that makes it worth a visit.