Commonly mistaken as a place only meant for couples, in my humble opinion, Santorini is a gorgeous island for …
- school friends who are courageous enough to travel for the first time with their respective spouses š
- itās a place for cousins who choose to bond over funny familyĀ fiascos &
- itās also a place for a girls trip (or boys trip) where memories are stitched in the (linen) shirt of the soul!
Much like my previous blog post on Mykonos (read here), this one entails some facts, tips, tricks, hacks & noteworthy holiday pointers for Santorini as well as Athens.
Letās crack on with-
1>Things to do in Santorini
AREAS TO STAYĀ
Oia & Fira are the best areas to hang out in so Iād very strongly recommend you to stay there. Donāt think too much about the cost because youād anyway end up paying a bomb for the commute as the local cab companies charge a very high fare for to & fro on the island of Santorini.Ā
Sunset in Santorini from both Oia & Fira is very very famous. People gather in large groups everyday just to witness the sunsetā¦the vibe of the city is breathtaking around sunset so make sure you donāt miss it for a thing!Ā
Iāve never seen the Sun set in such a prettier way than what I saw in SantoriniĀ
SANTO WINES, WINERYĀ
You need to be here to know why a simple winery is so bloody awesome. Their wine tasting will leave you in holy jolly mood & donāt forget to order garlic spaghetti & panna cotta. It boggles my mind as to how such commonly available dishes can be prepared with such insane perfection⦠the kind of perfection that can tear you up! I very strongly recommend you to go here.
WHAT TO IGNORE
The Monastry, Red Beach, Black Beach, etc. are very very avoidable. Please don’t waste your valuable money in booking any tour around the island, you wonāt enjoy it at all! Santorini is all about Oia, Fira & the cruise I have mentioned below. I suggest you stay as close as possible or at Fira/ Oia and spend 2-3 days just basking in the glory of the breathtaking view youād miss for life!

CRUISE WITH SANTORINI YACHTING CLUB
This was the best decision we (as a group) made. We celebrated our friendsā birthday on a catamaran boat. This was a 6 hour experience where we got a chance to jump into the sea, gorge into barbecued meals freshly prepared by the sailor & his crew right there on the boat.Ā

This was a sunset cruise with an all inclusive food & drinks plan with unlimited & uncontrollablely gorgeous views. This was clearly one of the best experiences of my life as I had no flying clue that Iād be cool enough to jump into the sea (as I cannot swim).Ā
Indulging in the gratitude of witnessing a jaw dropping sunset from a catamaran with a bunch of sweethearts was a dream come true and I urge you to experience the same when in Santorini!


GASTRONOMY
Oia & Fira are hotspots for lovely restaurants. Be brave enough to explore the ones you fancy- you wouldnāt be disappointed! We tried way too many and I wouldnāt name names because almost all the restaurants were lovely.Ā
2>Things to do in Athens
Quite frankly, we had no plans to explore Athens as there isnāt much to do in there. Itās known to be a pitstop for folks wanting to visit islands of Santorini, Ios & Mykonos. We did spend one day at the beginning and one day at the end of our trip. If you plan your journey to Greece, youād probably have to do that too. So hereās what you do, when in Athens->
STAY WALKING DISTANCE FROM SYNTAGMA SQUARE
When in Europe, where you stay is of āparamountā importance. I strongly believe that the closer you are to the city centre, the more you end up exploring as you donāt have to wrack your brains in constantly planning the commute. Syntagma Square is the city centre of Athens and if you stay here, all you gotta do is walk around, dine & shop!
SHOP ON ERMOU STREET
For all my brand enthusiasts, this street will offer you a plethora of brands and myriad of cafes to shop till you drop & dine till your tummy hurts. Ermou Street is a very chirpy area you wouldn’t want to miss out on.
Visit Cafe Tazza
You need to visit this exquisite cafe to know why it’s made it on to this list. Allow the pictures below to take you on a journey…

You are awesome!š„°
Thank you for sharing!š
It’s a pleasure & thank you my love
-(hug)-
U have so beautifully n precisely explained everything šš»šš»Gr8 work
Thank you my dear Rakhi. I know in my heart that you will go to Greece very very soon. Cannot wait for you to fly to Santorini & Mykonos and share lots of pictures. God Bless you & your Rahul.
-(hug)-
Beautiful article ..just like U. Great job!!
Thanks my dear Sumi! Hugs!
Di, This is amazing!
What if I say I am in love with each and every picture??
Love and power to you š«
Keep inspiring!
Thank you my gorgeous star!
The writing absolutely make justice to the pictures! It was a beautiful journey to read through along with the pictures as you mentioned! I am sitting here and drooling seeing the food and wine pictures! I will keep in mind the doās and dontās when I visit the place! I totally adore your writing! ā¤ļøKeep sharing more!š
You’re such a doll! Thanks a ton my love!
Hugsss!
My dear Akansha
Your blog has been one of the best . šI love your articles so so much ..
This is such a beautiful and informative post by you, the pictures
look dreamy ,you look lovely as ever ..
thank you for sharing the details after observing them so perfectly and putting it all here in this great post⤠looking forward to more such posts from you.. xoxo
Your comment always lights up my day š
I adore you so so muchchch!
This article is as helpful like you’re, It will definitely help me for my next tour plan ..
Thank you so muchš¤š
Thanks Shivam, so happy that you found this useful. God Bless you my dear!
Dear Aakansha,
I feel very lucky I found your inspiring and well written blog but I totaly disagree with your comment about Athens.It is not true that there are a few things to do.Athens apart from shopping, food and drinking has also a lot of archaeological sites and museums which are very interesting and famous world wide,
I only mention the Acropolis, the Acropolis museum and the archaeological one very close to the city center, so it is apity to underestimate Athens.Be blessed you and your family
Ourania
Perhaps I didn’t explore Athens well enough. Thanks for your comment. Hopefully, I will travel to Athens soon and explore it thoroughly.
Love & Light,
A