How to: Enjoy a Slice of Heaven in Santorini

After three uber-relaxing days in Mykonos, we proceeded to the last leg of our trip and took the first ferry of the day to Santorini. Make your ferry reservations before your trip and try to print at home! 

THE LITTLE SCOOP: [THE BULLET POINTS]
EAT:

Feta and capers continue! Our resort as in Mykonos, offered a robust breakfast that we enjoyed each day and we stayed in one evening for dinner to savor sunset on our deck.

We also had a very memorable dinner at Dimitri’s in the Amoudi Bay.

Dimitri's Ammoudi Bay
Dimitri’s Amoudi Bay

It’s one of the most popular spots in Santorini so absolutely make a reservation (and remember to ask about their sunset when booking!)

We had a lovely lunch on the deck at Kyprida

We also heard wonderful things about The Athenian House and Ambrosia for fine diners!

Also, I recognize that in my alcohol celibacy, I have started to leave out the best alcoholic beverages at our destinations! If you know my husband, please tell him how much you admire this “very artsy” photo he took of his favorite Greek beer, Mythos.

Artistic Photo of Mythos
Artistic Photo of Mythos
STAY:

Our cousins M&B (Hi guys!) visited Santorini on their honeymoon last summer and highly recommended the Ikies resort – the perfect 10 minute walk from town but a spot with lots of privacy. it was a wonderful spot! Remember: consider avoiding high season for the best rates. 

PLAY: 

After laying low in Mykonos, we decided to book at least one excursion, a sunset cruise and strongly recommend one. You will be able to see the famous black and red sand beaches, enjoy a surprisingly good dinner for a small kitchen on a boat, and be able to swim in the bay. We ran out of time, but heard wonderful things about hiking from Oia to Fira as well!

Sunset in Santorini
Get ready for lots of sunset pics
THE BIG SCOOP: [THE WHOLE STORY]

It begs to be said that Santorini was the destination I might have been building up most in my mind. For years (undeniably from the first time I saw Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants), I had been dying to visit this honeymooner’s paradise with epic sunsets, and of course, beautiful white buildings and bluestone tops. So it could have gone horribly wrong. But…. it delivered. We couldn’t stop pinching ourselves.

We arrived just after lunchtime and flat out refused to leave our deck at Ikies until the next day. I think you’ll understand why.

 

Off our cousin’s recommendation we picked Ikies but had targeted Oia even beforehand, as it’s known to have the best sunsets and also be a little less crowded because the cruise ships come into the next town over, Fira. However, Oia’s teeny tiny streets were still slammed with tourists. Pack your patience! The next day we finally explored more of the town – which was just gorgeous. Charming shops and shopkeepers selling wonderful local product and just views around every corner.

That evening we had dinner reservations at Dimitri’s in the Amoudi Bay, which you can access down a serious flight of stairs, or by donkey.

Donkeys down to Ammoudi Bay
Donkeys down to Amoudi Bay

We chose the former, which was a great calorie burn after dinner but wow – don’t underestimate how many stairs we are talking about. But the view of the Bay when you make it down is worth it!

Dimitri’s specialty is the popular lobster linguine. I am a New England girl and I would say I enjoyed the dish, but it was very different than East Coast lobster. Just adjust your expectations for something slightly different! We also loved the spicy feta and tzatziki appetizers.

Lobster Linguine
Lobster Linguine

And this place has the very best view we could have dreamed of. You might have seen this picture if you follow me on Instagram, but it’s worth seeing again!

Sunset in Ammoudi Bay
Sunset in Amoudi Bay

Finally, we headed home via a direct flight from Santorini to Geneva, just three hours! Another amazing reminder of how many wonderful places are at our fingertips living here.

So far one of the number one question I’m asked is what our favorite trip has been so far. It’s honestly impossible to answer because in visiting 12 countries and countless regions the past nine months, they have all been so different and breathtaking in their own ways.

Athens was incredible to see, but we’ll always remember the Greek islands because they had the highest expectation going in, and met it admirably. Santorini and Mykonos were both two of the most uniquely gorgeous places we’ve ever laid eyes on. We truly feel so lucky to have visited and highly encourage friends and family to consider tacking on a few days in Greece while visiting us in Geneva! Faster than a flight from New England to Florida. 😉

Bobby & Nicole at Ikies
Last sunset in Santorini!

Next up is my trip to Grindelwald with my mom! We ditch relaxation for an active hiking trip, but the beautiful views continue!

6 Comments Add yours

  1. Rob Barbeau says:

    Great post Colie, Lobster looked great with pasta!!!!!!! Gotta try that beer Bobby 🙂

    Like

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.