I recently went to Santorini for six days. It is more than just beautiful – it is full of history and things to do. Check out my recommendations regarding where to stay, where to eat, and what to do while you are there.

What to Do in Santorini

Go to Perissa Beach, a black sand beach on the southeastern tip of the island. Our hotel had a sister property at this beach so we had a private area just for guests, access to their restaurant, and the waiters on the beach. It was very relaxing! A great first day on the island.

Go shopping on the main street in Oia. It is filled with open air restaurants, shops, and of course picture-perfect views.

Stop at Atlantis Books. With sections for different languages, there is a book for everyone!

Go to Amoudi Bay! Walk along Main Street and then walk down 250+ steps to Amoudi Bay. Here you will find restaurants nestled at the bottom of the cliff. Our table was two inches from the ledge and the water crashed below us throughout our meal. It was unbelievably beautiful and serene. We ate at Dimitri’s Fish Tavern. I recommend making a reservation since the restaurants fill up fast!

Do a wine tasting at Sigalas Winery. About a 10 minute drive away from downtown Oia, this winery was very peaceful. They had many different flights to choose from and we heard by many locals that this was the best vineyard on the island.

Do a cave wine tasting at the Vedema Resort. This 400-year old Canava Wine Bar was a very unique experience. Along with the 6 different wines we tasted, they had a delicious spread of bread and olive oil, a variety of cheeses, and fruits.

Take a sunset boat tour. Most of the tours followed the same schedule – including a visit to the Red Beach, White Beach, the Hot Springs, and then dinner on the water before watching the sunset.

Take a tour of Akrotiri. This is the remains of a Minoan settlement that was covered by a volcanic eruption in 1627 BC. We hired a private guide to take us around the site and she was so worth it! We saw ancient frescoes, pottery, furniture, drain systems, houses, and more.

Visit Megalochori, an traditional village. We stayed in this village during our time at the Vedema Resort. It was quaint and very quiet.

Where to Eat in Santorini

Known for their fava beans, tomatoes, salad, and capers, each meal we made sure to order something with these ingredients. Each restaurant had fresh, delicious food. In fact, it was some of the best food I’ve ever eaten while traveling.

Tip! For dinner you should make a reservation since the restaurants fill up fast. We found the best time to eat was 7:30 so you could watch the sun set throughout dinner.

Feggera – a quaint restaurant in Megalohori. We ordered fava bean hummus, pasta salad, tomato fritters, shrimp, mussels, and orzo.

Black Rock – award-winning restaurant overlooking the Caldera and part of the Santorini Secret resort. We had a Greek salad, fava bean hummus, olives, Ribeye, Duck, and a chocolate cake. We drank Assyrtiko (the island’s famous wine).

Dimitris Tavern – located in Amoudi Bay we ate eggplant dip, bread, Greek salad, zucchini fritters, and calamari.

Mezzo – sitting on the cliffs in Imerovigli, this restaurant has some of the best sunset views on the island. We ate fava dip, spaghetti, squid stuffed-crab, Greek couscous, and chocolate cake with mango ice cream.

Marmita – a nice patio restaurant in Megalohori filled with locals. My husband thought the lamb was delicious! I had pasta primavera.

Fanari Restaurant – we had our last dinner in Santorini here. This is a great sunset spot!! We had salmon, bread, olive oil, pasta, and a chocolate cake for dessert.

218 Degrees – Sitting high up on a cliff you get amazing views of the island in front of you.

Where to Stay in Santorini

We stayed in two different parts of the island – Oia and Megalohori (a traditional village).

Santorini Secrets

Sitting on the cliff in Oia, this resort was beautiful. The staff was incredible. They made sure you were always comfortable. They knew every guest by name and helped us get taxis and reservations and some of the best restaurants on the island. Breakfast was brought to our balcony every morning.

Views:

The rooms:

Atrina Canava

Also in Oia, this hotel was a traditional “canava” (cave) dating back to 1894. They also brought breakfast to our balcony, welcomed us with snacks and a local bottle of wine (which we drank on our balcony), and they provided a cell phone so we could call and get anything we may have needed directly from reception.

Vedema Resort

An SPG resort, this hotel sat in the traditional village of Megalohori. It was built to blend into the surrounding town and from the street we couldn’t even see that there was a resort. It was hidden in plain sight – which I loved!