Santorini, Greece

Santorini (officially Thira) is a volcanic island in the southern Cyclades, formed around a flooded caldera left by the Bronze Age Minoan eruption. More about Santorini →

Cruise ships anchored in the Santorini caldera seen from the cliffs at Fira, with Nea Kameni behind
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Ship schedule by month

October 2026 · from today · all times local (Eastern European Time)

ShipDateArrivalDeparture
Silver Nova
Silversea
Fri 23 Oct
Arrival08:00
Departure21:30
Norwegian Pearl
Norwegian Cruise Line
Sat 24 Oct
Arrival07:00
Departure21:00
Artania
Phoenix Reisen
Sat 24 Oct
Arrival08:00
Departure18:00
Star Legend
Windstar
Sat 24 Oct
Arrival08:00
Departure20:00
Viking Neptune
Viking Ocean
Sat 24 Oct
ArrivalNot yet published
DepartureNot yet published
Celestyal Discovery
Celestyal Cruises
Sun 25 Oct
Arrival07:00
Departure20:00
Azamara Quest
Azamara Cruises
Sun 25 Oct
Arrival08:00
Departure20:30
Celebrity Ascent
Celebrity Cruises
Mon 26 Oct
Arrival07:00
Departure22:00
Norwegian Pearl
Norwegian Cruise Line
Mon 26 Oct
Arrival07:00
Departure18:00
Celebrity Eclipse
Celebrity Cruises
Tue 27 Oct
Arrival07:00
Departure22:00

Showing 10 of 19 calls in October

Cruise Ships in Santorini

Today and the next 7 days · all times local (Eastern European Time)

Today · Fri 23 OctQuiet
1,284 people in port
1 ship · ships alongside 08:00 – 21:30

79% quieter than a typical day in Santorini. Busiest 08:00 – 21:00, when 1 ship is alongside.

Next 7 days

Quietest: Fri 23 Oct · busiest: Mon 26 Oct
  1. Fri
    23 Oct
    1.3kQuiet
    1 ship
  2. Sat
    24 Oct
    7.1kBusy
    4 ships
  3. Sun
    25 Oct
    2.9kQuiet
    2 ships
  4. Mon
    26 Oct
    8.1kBusy
    2 ships
  5. Tue
    27 Oct
    7.9kBusy
    3 ships
  6. Wed
    28 Oct
    5.0kLight
    2 ships
  7. Thu
    29 Oct
    4.9kLight
    2 ships

Thousands of people in port, guests plus crew. Crowd level compared with a typical Santorini day.

Planning a day in Santorini?

The crowd calendar shows every ship and how busy the port is, hour by hour, plus the quietest and busiest days for the next 90 days.

See the Santorini cruise crowd calendar

Where is the Santorini cruise port?

There is no cruise berth: ships anchor or hold position in the caldera below Fira, and passengers tender ashore on local boats.

Most independent passengers land at Fira Old Port (Skala), a small quay at the foot of the cliff with no road access. Fira town is about 220 m above, reached by cable car (3–5 minutes), by about 600 steps on foot or by donkey.

Up to 30% of passengers may land at Athinios, the ferry port about 8 km by road south of Fira, mainly for coach excursions.

Terminal

Getting to the Santorini cruise port

Fira town centre (cable car upper station / KTEL bus station) → Fira Old Port (Skala)

5–45 min by car

No road connects the Old Port with Fira, so most passengers take the cable car; the alternative is a stepped path of about 600 steps shared with donkeys. The KTEL bus station is a 7-minute walk from the upper cable car station.

Typical prices, approximate. Fares change with demand, traffic and time of day.

TransportTypical priceJourneyGood to know
Santorini Cable Car
EUR 10per person
3–5 min
One-way only; EUR 5 for children 6–12 and per large bag. Queues can exceed an hour on busy days.
Walk (Karavolades steps / donkey path)
Freeper person
20–45 min
Steep, unshaded and slippery in places; hard in summer heat.

Typical prices, approximate. Fares change with demand, traffic and time of day.

Driving to the port

Passengers landing at Athinios, about 8 km by road below Fira (15–20 minutes by car), are normally on coach excursions or cruise-line shuttles; KTEL buses also run Athinios–Fira (EUR 2.70). Greece charges a cruise passenger fee of EUR 20 per disembarking passenger from June to September (EUR 12 in April, May and October, EUR 4 from November to March), normally included in cruise taxes.

Santorini Cruise Terminals

2 terminals

Boats at the Fira Skala old port quay
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Fira Old Port (Skala / Ormos Fira)

Small tender quay below Fira and the main landing for independent cruise passengers, with tenders run by the Union Boatmen of Santorini. It has no road access and connects to Fira by cable car and the stepped path.

Athinios port at the foot of the crater rim
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Athinios Port (New Port)

Santorini's ferry port south of Fira, used as a secondary tender landing mainly for coach excursions and some cruise-line shuttles, with road access to Fira (about 8 km).

Eating in Santorini

Coffee per item
EUR 3–7
per item
Casual lunch per person
EUR 7–25
per person
Restaurant dinner per person
EUR 20–50
per person
Soft drink per item
EUR 2.50–4
per item
Bottled water per item
EUR 0.50–2
per item

Dinner range derived from Numbeo's mid-range meal for two (EUR 40-100); caldera-view venues are typically above these ranges. Numbeo data updated 2 Oct 2026.

Where to eat

Fira caldera edge (Ypapantis / Gold Street area)

Clifftop cafes and restaurants a short walk from the upper cable car station, with caldera views and higher prices.

Fira town centre (around Theotokopoulou Square)

Cheaper gyros, bakeries and tavernas near the KTEL bus station.

Oia main lane

Caldera-view cafes and restaurants along the marble pedestrian lane; busiest near sunset.

Ammoudi Bay

Seafood tavernas on the water below Oia, reached by steps or the Old Port speedboat line.

Destination

About Santorini

Santorini (officially Thira) is a volcanic island in the southern Cyclades, formed around a flooded caldera left by the Bronze Age Minoan eruption.

White and pastel villages such as Fira, Imerovigli and Oia line the rim of 200–300 m cliffs above the caldera, which holds the volcanic islets of Nea and Palea Kameni. The island is known for blue-domed churches, Oia sunsets, the Bronze Age town of Akrotiri, black and red sand beaches and Assyrtiko wines.

It is one of the busiest cruise calls in the Mediterranean, with about 1.3 million cruise passengers in 2024, and daily cruise numbers are now capped.

Climate
Mediterranean, with hot, dry and often windy summers (strong meltemi winds in July and August) and mild winters with most rain from November to February. There is very little shade on the caldera paths.
Time zone
Eastern European Time
Currency
Euro (EUR)

Things to Do in Santorini

Blue-domed churches in Oia above the Santorini caldera
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Oia village

Clifftop village at the island's northern tip, known for blue-domed churches, whitewashed cave houses and caldera views. Reach it by KTEL bus or taxi from Fira, or by speedboat from the Old Port to Ammoudi Bay.

Fira town spread along the crater rim above the caldera
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Fira town and caldera-rim walk

Santorini's main town sits on the cliff edge above the Old Port. A paved path runs north along the rim to Firostefani and Imerovigli, with continuous caldera views.

Covered excavations at the Akrotiri archaeological site
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Akrotiri archaeological site

Bronze Age town buried by the Minoan eruption, with multi-storey buildings preserved under a protective roof; about 20 minutes by road from Fira (EUR 20 admission, EUR 10 reduced).

Crater on the volcanic island of Nea Kameni in the Santorini caldera
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Nea Kameni volcano boat trip

Short boat trips from the Old Port cross the caldera to Nea Kameni for a walk to the crater, often combined with the Palea Kameni hot springs. They start where tenders land.