How to Get to Santorini

There are three ways onto Santorini: a plane, a ferry or a cruise tender. Each lands you somewhere different, and each has its own small problem to solve once you're there.

By air

Santorini airport (JTR) sits on the flat eastern side of the island, about 6 km from Fira. There are short flights from Athens all year and plenty of direct flights from European cities in summer. Expect crowded halls on summer afternoons. The KTEL bus to Fira stops outside the terminal and you pay the conductor on board. Taxis are limited, so book a transfer in advance if you're arriving late or with a family.

By ferry

Ferries from Piraeus take roughly five hours on the high-speed boats and longer on conventional ones. Some sailings leave from Rafina, closer to Athens airport. Santorini is also well connected to the other Cyclades and to Crete. All of these dock at Athinios, the main port, a strip of quay at the bottom of the cliffs with a switchback road climbing out of it. When a big ferry arrives it is chaos, with cars, coaches and crowds squeezed onto a small quay. The 2026 safety measures added traffic controls there, and parking in the emergency zone is banned.

Buses to Fira meet most ferries. For anywhere else, pre-book a transfer through your hotel. Queuing for a taxi at Athinios in August is a bad start.

By cruise ship

Big ships anchor in the caldera and send passengers ashore by tender to the Old Port below Fira. From there you have three options up the cliff: the cable car, the 588 steps on foot, or a donkey. Greek rules bar riders over 100 kg, and animal welfare groups have campaigned against the rides for years. We'd take the cable car and walk down. Queues for the cable car back to the ship can be very long in the afternoon, so allow plenty of time.

Since July 2025, Greece charges a per-passenger cruise fee at its ports, highest at Santorini and Mykonos in peak season. It's usually added by the cruise line. Part of the Old Port is currently a restricted zone, though the cable car and the path stay open.

Getting around the island

The KTEL buses run from the main bus station in Fira to Oia, Kamari, Perissa, Akrotiri, the airport and Athinios. Nearly every trip goes through Fira, so a journey from Oia to Perissa means changing there and paying twice. There are ticket machines at Fira and Oia. Elsewhere you pay the conductor in cash. In July and August the Oia buses after sunset are packed, and some pass full.

Driving

A small hire car makes the wine villages, Akrotiri and the southern beaches much easier. Roads are narrow and busy, and parking near Oia and central Fira is scarce. Quad bikes are everywhere. We'd skip them: accidents with inexperienced riders are common.

Leaving

Ferries and flights both get held up by the meltemi, the strong summer north wind. Don't book an onward international flight from Athens on the same day as a ferry off the island.