We flew from London, straight into Santorini. It was a spectacular flight, tracing the Adriatic coast, over hundreds of gorgeous Croatian Islands, and spectacular coastline (note to self: buy guidebook on sailing trips in Croatia). Flying over, and into, Santorini gave us a good appreciation of the layout and geology of this special island. The island of Santorini was formed following the explosion and subsequent flooding of a huge volcano, thousands of years ago. The photo above is taken of the town of Oia, which sits perched high on the rim of the volcano. The island bends around in a horseshoe shape, and the other side of the island is partially sunken and flooded, letting the Agean sea into it's centre, creating the 'caldera'. The result is one of the most gorgeous views I've ever seen, and the whole place has a very calming and serene feel to it. I could sit on a balcony and just stare out at the caldera view for days. But that was yet to come, as straight after flying into Santorini we boarded a ferry to the island of Naxos. We did, however, have time to squeeze in our first plate of calamari at the port, washed down with a cold Mythos beer.The port of Athinios, with some pretty rugged island geology in the background, and some delicious calamari waiting for us in the taverna....
Delicious! The simple things in life are often the best...
Sitting in the taverna at the port, in the hot dry air, with a plate of calamari and local Greek beer in hand, and looking out over the caldera to the cliff top towns of Imiglioviri and Oia in the background, it was hard to believe we had left home in London only a few hours beforehand. It wasn't hard to get into holiday mode though.
Delicious! The simple things in life are often the best... 
Sitting in the taverna at the port, in the hot dry air, with a plate of calamari and local Greek beer in hand, and looking out over the caldera to the cliff top towns of Imiglioviri and Oia in the background, it was hard to believe we had left home in London only a few hours beforehand. It wasn't hard to get into holiday mode though. We soon jumped aboard the Blue Star ferry to Naxos, a 2 hour trip away. We met a lovely American family on board, and the shared beers and friendly banter helped to pass the time quite nicely.
We had pre-booked seats inside, but on such a beautiful day, we decided to make the most of it and sat outside on the deck. We had a gorgeous view of the island as we sailed out through the caldera.
Agean Blue - no photoshop here, it really was that colour....
On arrival at the port in Naxos we immediately had a view of the Portara, which is a huge 2,500 year old marble gateway to the unfinished temple of Apollo. That's pretty old!
View from the port over towards Naxos town, with the Venetian Castle taking pride of place at the top of the hill.
A quick taxi ride over to Agia Prokopis, and our accommodation at the Kavos resort
We had pre-booked seats inside, but on such a beautiful day, we decided to make the most of it and sat outside on the deck. We had a gorgeous view of the island as we sailed out through the caldera. 
Agean Blue - no photoshop here, it really was that colour....
On arrival at the port in Naxos we immediately had a view of the Portara, which is a huge 2,500 year old marble gateway to the unfinished temple of Apollo. That's pretty old!
View from the port over towards Naxos town, with the Venetian Castle taking pride of place at the top of the hill.
A quick taxi ride over to Agia Prokopis, and our accommodation at the Kavos resortA room with a view, lovely and peaceful....
Gorgeous pool, gorgeous view....
Great spot for cocktails at sunset...
What to have for breakfast (by the pool)? Greek yoghurt with walnuts and honey? Frappaccino? I'm suddenly a morning person
It didn't take long for us to hit the beach, which was just a short stroll from the resort.
Back to the pool in the afternoon for a refreshing dip before happy hour...
Beautiful sunsets....
And warm clear nights....
It's hard to comprehend just how old these statues really are. I think it's the oldest thing I've ever seen with my own eyes.
The church of Panagia Drossiani near the village of Moni, dating back to the 7th century...
Ancient olive tree...
The lovely quiet village of Apiranthos, in the centre of Naxos, up in the hills...
Note the tiny white church sitting on top of the mountain in the centre of the photo...
Demeter's temple, 530BC...
Sunset at Plaka beach...
Walking through the maze of street in Naxos town, on our way back to the port...
Sadly, we had to say goodbye to Naxos, and caught a ferry back to Santorini. Our sadness didn't last for long though, when we got out of the taxi at our hotel in Oia, and were greeted with this view...
Our cavehouse at Rimida Villas...
Very quaint! If I had a Greek grandmother, I image this is what her bedroom may look like...
Glorious view...
Oia kitty...
Enjoying a nice glass of chilled local white wine on the terrace...
Enjoying the warm weather and the famous Oia sunset...
Lovely soft dusk colours...
Dinner under the stars at Ambrosia - beautiful modern Greek food
Breakfast on the terrace. I discovered I'm actually quite a morning person in Greece. Pity it's not quite the same on a Monday morning in London.
Out and about in Oia...
Back to our terrace for an aperitif, some meze gathered from the local supermarket and another gorgeous sunset...
Moonrise...
Is there such a thing as 'moonset'? If so, this is what it looks like...
On our second last day in Santorini, we took a sailing trip around the island on the 'Blue Lagoon II'. It was a top day, on a beautiful catermaran, gorgeous weather (but unfortunately not enough wind to put the sails up), an entertaining Greek-American captain, a deck hand from Camberwell in Melbourne, a sensational BBQ lunch, cold drinks in the esky and gentle seas to sail across. Here we are at a pit stop off shore from the 'red beach'...
Heading over towards the hotsprings, near the volcanic part of the island... 
Absolutely delicious BBQ lunch, freshly cooked on deck...
Very happy after a great day at sea...
One last dip in the pool to wash off the seawater...
More Oia kittys, so cute!
Our last night in Oia. I'm not sure if the funny look on my face has more to do with the delayed 'sealegs' sensation I was experiencing in this rooftop restaurant, or my excitement at yet more squid for dinner.
Gorgeous pool, gorgeous view....
Great spot for cocktails at sunset...
What to have for breakfast (by the pool)? Greek yoghurt with walnuts and honey? Frappaccino? I'm suddenly a morning person
It didn't take long for us to hit the beach, which was just a short stroll from the resort.
Back to the pool in the afternoon for a refreshing dip before happy hour... 
Beautiful sunsets.... 
The restaurant at Kavos, outdoors by the pool, had the most delicious (and well priced) Greek food. Best tzatziki and best moussaka ever. So we ate in-house every night under the stars, and then it was just a short trip back to our room. Bliss!
We hired a dune buggy on our second last day, and set off to explore more of the Island. Below, are pictures of the 'Kouros' we visited, which are huge marble statues that were discovered by archeologists lying in these locations. They are from the 7th century BC. Naxos is known for its high quality marble, and these Kouros were cut into rough shapes from the marble on the mountain and would have been destined for one of the fancy temples being built in Athens, or somewhere similar. They would have been finished, and had the finer details added, at their destination. As they were being transported down the mountain, an accident happened and the statues broke, so they were abandoned where they lay.
It's hard to comprehend just how old these statues really are. I think it's the oldest thing I've ever seen with my own eyes.
The church of Panagia Drossiani near the village of Moni, dating back to the 7th century...
Ancient olive tree... 
The lovely quiet village of Apiranthos, in the centre of Naxos, up in the hills...
Note the tiny white church sitting on top of the mountain in the centre of the photo...
Demeter's temple, 530BC...Sunset at Plaka beach...
Walking through the maze of street in Naxos town, on our way back to the port...
Sadly, we had to say goodbye to Naxos, and caught a ferry back to Santorini. Our sadness didn't last for long though, when we got out of the taxi at our hotel in Oia, and were greeted with this view...
Our cavehouse at Rimida Villas...
Very quaint! If I had a Greek grandmother, I image this is what her bedroom may look like...
Glorious view...
View from the pool...
Oia kitty...
Enjoying a nice glass of chilled local white wine on the terrace...
Enjoying the warm weather and the famous Oia sunset...
Lovely soft dusk colours...
Dinner under the stars at Ambrosia - beautiful modern Greek food
Breakfast on the terrace. I discovered I'm actually quite a morning person in Greece. Pity it's not quite the same on a Monday morning in London.
Out and about in Oia...
Back to our terrace for an aperitif, some meze gathered from the local supermarket and another gorgeous sunset...
Moonrise... 
Is there such a thing as 'moonset'? If so, this is what it looks like...
Pre-dawn pastel colours, between moonset and sunrise. This was an incredibly peaceful time to be sitting and looking out over the caldera
On our second last day in Santorini, we took a sailing trip around the island on the 'Blue Lagoon II'. It was a top day, on a beautiful catermaran, gorgeous weather (but unfortunately not enough wind to put the sails up), an entertaining Greek-American captain, a deck hand from Camberwell in Melbourne, a sensational BBQ lunch, cold drinks in the esky and gentle seas to sail across. Here we are at a pit stop off shore from the 'red beach'...
Heading over towards the hotsprings, near the volcanic part of the island...Absolutely delicious BBQ lunch, freshly cooked on deck...
Very happy after a great day at sea...
One last dip in the pool to wash off the seawater...
More Oia kittys, so cute!
Our last night in Oia. I'm not sure if the funny look on my face has more to do with the delayed 'sealegs' sensation I was experiencing in this rooftop restaurant, or my excitement at yet more squid for dinner.
2 comments:
Thank you for sharing your beautiful trip. We are trying to decide on Naxos and/or Santorini with our kids, great travellers, at 13 and 15 years old. I'm not sure your post helped us though because they both look spectacular.
I travelled round these islands about 15 years ago, staying for a few weeks on both Naxos and Santorini. They are both great places. I'm sure there have been quite a few changes since I went, but as far a holiday with kids is concerned, perhaps Naxos is better. Naxos has really fantastic beaches: beautiful sand and clear water. It is also a lot larger, with more variation in what you can do there.
Santorini is not really a beach island. There is a nice beach, at Perissa (which was also a nice, quiet little place) but the sand is black volcanic. Santorini is more about the views: scenery, sunsets and picturesque towns - more honeymoon than kids. It can get very touristy in the main town. You could easily do a day-trip to the island from Naxos I think - or perhaps stay for a couple of days.
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