Tom On day 6 of our travels in Greece, we continued to explore the attractions in Fira, on the island of Santorini. We even found a town with the best sunset in all of Santorini…bet you haven’t heard of Imerovigli have you? In this post, we’ll discover the attractions of Fira and this little unknown sunset destination known as Imerovigli in Santorini!
Santorini Ferry Cancellation Due to Strike?!
This morning started with a leisurely breakfast in bed at Kafieris Apartment on the Cliffs…
We arranged the breakfast timing with our receptionist (Pavlos). Though it was slightly later than the intended time of 8am, the breakfast was nonetheless a really good spread. Toast on honey? Yes please!
After our leisurely breakfast, we headed to the rooftop to do our quiet time (QT – spending time reading the bible and communing with God), before heading to the reception to confirm our bus transfer to the ferry terminal from the hotel. To our horror, we were informed by Pavlos that our ferry could possibly be cancelled due to a scheduled strike the next day! We quickly called Blue Star Ferries (always have some credit stored on Skype for such instances) and found out that our ferry at 3:30pm the next day was indeed cancelled. Thankfully, the first ferry out next morning at 6:45am was still available as the strike would be commencing at 7:30am. We confirmed our change via the phone call and paid a 2 euros fee (credit card over the phone) and changed our bus transfer from the hotel to the port to 5:30am in the morning. As the bus transfer was early in the morning, the transfer was 30 euros instead of the usual 25 euros.
After all the confirmation done over the phone, we had to walk to the appointed Blue Star Ferries agency in Fira Central to print out the tickets. It cost 3 euros to print the tickets – which you must do. Even in this day and age, the attendant on the ferries ONLY ACCEPT HARD COPY TICKETS and not soft copy. So do take note if you’re island hopping on the ferries to the Greek islands.
Fira Attractions in Santorini
After the little hiccup with regard to the ferry tickets, we were all ready to check out the attractions in Fira! One of the attractions that we wanted to visit was the old port of Fira. This leads us all the way down the cliffs of Fira. There are actually 2 ways to do so. Either by walking or by taking the cable car. The cable car costs 6 euros one way per person. We decided that we’d take the leisurely walk down slope and then take the cable car back up…
The walk down to Fira Old Port started well. Though the slopes were a little steep and the steps cobbled – overall it was pretty much enjoyable…until…
Donkey shit literally lines the whole slope from Fira Old Port to Fira Center. This leads us to inform that there is a 3rd option up/down Fira Old Port – via Donkeys (6 euros). As we were walking down the slopes, the smell was quite “in-your-face” and the walk was actually quite “trecherous”. The reasons were because the shit piles can be quite huge sometimes, you may find yourself finding it difficult to avoid them and may soil your shoes; or worse, if you slip and fall… The other reason is because, as we passed by the donkeys, they actually don’t give way to you. So try to avoid them by walking at a distance from them. Almost got slammed against the cobble stone walls by them -_-”
After a 25 minutes walk…we finally saw the donkey station at the bottom of the slopes at Fira Old Port…
The Fira Old Port is actually where cruise ship passengers land. They would transfer from the cruise ships via smaller tenders and embark here. This was why we were also subjected to security checks as we entered the port vicinity. There was a church at Fira Old Port, where we rested from the heat of the sun…
There were also several restaurants and souvenir shops at Fira Old Port. We wanted to grab a drink at the tavern there. However, some of the best seats had already been taken. Hence, we headed back up to Fira Center – nope, not via donkeys but via the cable car (6 euro per person per way). While waiting for the cable car, there were also travel agents that offered at 15 euros boat ride to Oia and bus transfer back to Fira (every hour on the hour) – a great option for cruise passengers who want to visit both Fira and Oia on the same day. As there were many cruise ship passengers, the wait took a while (10 minutes) but was still pretty much ok…
Cable Car up from Fira Old Town to Fira Center (6 euros per person per direction)
For lunch, we headed to Taverna Simos…
Although the “back entrance” of Taverna Simos didn’t seem to passers-by that it was open, we decided to venture in and found that they were indeed open for lunch. After browsing through the menu, we decided upon the eggplant salad (4.5 euros) and grilled squid (13 euros); washed down with 2 large draft beers (4 euros each)…
Though the restaurant didn’t seem like much, we were blown away by the taste and quality of both these dishes here! Nostimo! (Greek for “Delicious”). The eggplant salad was so well marinated with tastes of fresh olive oil and secret spices. Soooo appetizing! Then there’s the grilled squid that was fresh, succulent with chargrilled tastes. Well executed!
In order not to tire ourselves out, we found ourselves instituting afternoon siestas during this trip. We got back for a little bit of jacuzzi time at Kafieris on the Cliff before having a little nap till 6pm.
After waking up, we were still a little undecided on where to head to. This was when Kate suggested Imerovigli after reading about the amazing sunsets there. Tom did a quick google and found a popular gyros joint – Let’s Eat. Plus, it allowed to enjoy a leisurely walk from Fira to Imerovigli. This walk can be easily done! *Verified*
Very soon, we found out that Imerovigli is a very “atas” (high end) precinct in Santorini. The cave houses were newly painted, white-washed and many had their own private infinity pools. As Tom checked out the restaurants, he also found that starters started at 15 euros! :O Hence, we stuck to our original plan to have our gyros from Let’s Eat and also check out the expensive cave houses at Imerovigli. It was then we laid our eyes on Skaros Rock – a lone volcanic plateau, synonymous with Imerovigli…
Our takeaway dinner from Let’s Eat (Chicken Gyros – 4.4 euros and Kebab Stick – 2.2 euros) was fantastic. Especially when mains at the restaurants of Imerovigli starts at 30 euros. However, all is not lost. This was when Tom went exploring and found a perfect location for sunset at Imerovigli…Ampelonas Cafe!
The cool thing about Ampelonas Cafe is that you can use the comfortable cushion sofa seats and enjoy the amazing sunset from Imerovigli. It was so cool to sip on our Freddo while witnessing the amazing sunset of God’s design. As the cafe platform is slightly elevated, the views are comparable to that in the expensive high end restaurants…
Having confirmed that there’s a walking path from Fira to Imerovigli as well as great cheap food (Let’s Eat) and sunset venue (Ampelonas Cafe) at Imerovigli, we highly recommend this itinerary. The other great plus is that you’d be able to do this view without the crowds from Oia. This is why we think that the best sunsets in Santorini has got to be at Imerovigli!
If you enjoyed our content, “Like” us on Facebook Today!
We’ll now leave you with a time lapse video taken at Imerovigli during sunset; complete with a few couples kissing as the sun set in Santorini! 😛 You’d also be able to see sunset cruises on the waters – views here were probably better (higher elevation), without the possibility of being seasick!
Stay tuned on day 7 of our Greece travels as we check out another island of Greece – the island of Naxos!
Related Posts
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 1: Arriving at Syntagma Square and Exploring the Ancient Ruins of Athens
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 3: Visiting the ruins of Athens and relaxing at the Mall Athens!
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 5: Relaxing Day at Fira’s Kafieris Apartments on the Cliff Santorini
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 6: Fira Attractions and the Best Sunset in Santorini @ Imerovigli!
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 8: Day Trip Driving Around the Island of Naxos
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 9: Exploring Naxos Old Town and Arriving at Paros Island
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 11: Chilling in Paros and Listening to Zorba the Greek LIVE!
Greece Travel Itinerary Day 12: Spending our last day back in Athens!
Taste of Okinawa Review: Cooking Experience by Airkitchen.me
Athens Attractions: The Top 6 Things to do and Attractions in Athens!
Santorini Attractions: The Top 13 Things to do and Attractions in Santorini!
Naxos Attractions: The Top 12 Things to and Attractions in Naxos
Paros Attractions: Top 8 Things to Do and Attractions in Paros
What to eat in Greece: Traditional Greek Food not to be missed in Greece!
Click here for the recommended tours and trips in Greece!
