Fira, sometimes spelled Thera is the capital of Thira, the main island of
Santorini and sits on the rim of the extinct volcano on the island’s west coast. It’s a short 10 minute drive from the airport so transfer times are good.
Fira is a beautiful town that looks like it’s grown out of the hillside with whitewashed and pastel coloured houses, hotels and restaurants offering stunning views out across the caldera.
There’s no shortage of accommodation options in Fira. There’s tons of hotels with volcano views but they are the most expensive, particularly if you want a room with a private hot tub where it can easily be over £200 a night. Cheaper hotels are available in Fira but they wont have the views and that’s the main reason for coming to Santorini. If you can’t stretch to a room with a view then try to book yourself into a restaurant with a view at least once on your stay so you can enjoy the sunset with a glass of local wine.
In general, Fira is a slow paced town, there are large sections of the town that has no cars so you have to travel by cable car, donkey or on foot. It does get very busy in the peak season though, especially when the cruise ships are in town so you definitely wont be enjoying the views on your own.
If you'd like to stay in the area then have a look at the Fira page of booking.com
here. Alternatively find a great package holiday through Tui
here.
Sunset, sunset sunset, did we mention the sunsets? Yep, that’s what a large portion of the evening entertainment is based around, all the most popular bars, restaurants and hotels have balconies facing out over the volcano side of the island and therefore great views of the sunsets.
Most people simply want to set up a camera or position themselves close to the edge and get a great view as the sun goes down and then simply enjoy a glass or two of wine or beer to finish the evening.
If you prefer to party then there are a number of clubs, late night bars and cocktail bars to keep you entertained well into the small hours. There’s a variety of styles with some playing just Greek music and others offering more mainstream British/American style club music.
Fira has plenty to offer including the
Museum of Prehistoric Thera as well as the
cable car down to the harbour where you can then get on a
Caldera Cruise boat excursion or get on a trip to one of the other local islands.
With Fira being relatively central on the main island it’s a great base location for exploring, you can easily head north to Oia or south to Akrotiri. If you want to get to the beach then you can also head out towards Perissa or Kamari on the east coast. All are within 20 minutes drive.
