Santorini - need help

[karenbeanpole]

I have been reading other threads about Santorini and would like more information if anyone out there can help please.

I think we would like to take a mule/donkey up to Fira. Would like to go to Oia. Reading about ATV, can anyone tell me if I need to prebook this or can we just turn up on the morning and get one?

Are there taxis/local tours that we can get in Fira instead of hiring an ATV or taking a local bus?

Are local buses quite frequent?

Is it a mistake to just stay in Fira and not go to Oia?

Thanks for anyone's help in advance.

We are really looking forward to Santorini - seen so many pictures and have never been! :rolleyes:

[kuldalai]

Q. I think we would like to take a mule/donkey up to Fira.

A. When you alight from the tenders ask to be directed to the donkey bording point . Great experience and views, and you will be up the top whilst others are still standing in the queue for the cable car .

Q.Would like to go to Oia. Reading about ATV, can anyone tell me if I need to prebook this or can we just turn up on the morning and get one?

Yes they are just there to hire, but first in best dressed . Best way to get to Oia and back is to hire a car and driver to meet you at the top. we used Ocean Wave Tours, excellent and showed us around magical Oia.

Q.Are there taxis/local tours that we can get in Fira instead of hiring an ATV or taking a local bus? See above book via their website.

Q.Are local buses quite frequent? Yes and no. Often a bunfight with everyone trying to get back to Fira

Q.Is it a mistake to just stay in Fira and not go to Oia? Definitely santorini is much more that Fira and Oia. You can hire a car from Ocean Wave tours and they will take you on a circuit that includes Oia, the volcanic black sand beach, the ruins at Akatori and back to Fira with time to explore before going down to the tender .

[I-Cruiser]

We used the transfer from Santorini Planet. We booked our tickets online to make it as hassle free as possible.

Santorini Planet offers a comfortable boat to Oia. Bus from port of Oia to Oia and bus from Oia to Fira.

All included in the price.

http://www.santoriniplanet.com/

[ellie1145]

We were off the ship early, walked straight onto the cable car, had a magical ride up the mountain, hired a car (pre-booked) and drove to Oia before the crowds. By the time the crowds arrived we had walked through the main Street, sat with a cool drink whilst looking at the magnificent view of the caldera, and we then drove across the island to a beach before Oia was heaving with people.

 

One thing to remember if you do a donkey ride, the smell is overpowering! As we docked from the tender you could smell it powerfully! Couldn't cope with that, personally, but many people do.

 

If your ship is not the only one anchored then don't underestimate how long it will take to get back DOWN the cliff. We stood in blazing heat with no shade for an hour and a half, despite being back early - we Brits and Americans waited in orderly fashion whilst the Italians simply walked past the queue and pushed in at the front - quite an experience! :D

 

Whichever way you do it don't miss seeing Oia as its unbelievable!

 

Hope you have a great day!

[karenbeanpole]

Thank you all so much for your response. Would you say a car was better than an ATV? Did you see many ATVs around?

[CintiPam]

IMO an ATV is very dangerous and also very hot on Santorini. Much better off renting a car.

[Lawhouse]

Oia is stunning, in my opinion much better than FERA. It is a ten minute bus ride, lots of buses. Suggest avoid do key trip it is cruel and barbaric. Just look at the way those poor animals are treated for the gratification of tourists, please don't.

 

 

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[lovestx]

IMO an ATV is very dangerous and also very hot on Santorini. Much better off renting a car.

 

We have close friends whose teenaged daughter got hurt riding either an ATV or a scooter in Santorini. Didn't get great medical care (not sure whether on ship or in town) and eventually got a bad infection when she was back in the states.

 

We've decided that although ATVs and scooters look like fun in several of our port stops, we're just not going to risk the injury.

[petal13]

Oia is stunning, in my opinion much better than FERA. It is a ten minute bus ride, lots of buses. Suggest avoid do key trip it is cruel and barbaric. Just look at the way those poor animals are treated for the gratification of tourists, please don't.

 

 

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Have to agree those poor donkey's are treated terribly it nothing but cruelty, if you love animals don't do it!

[gosport11]

A lot of travel insurances will not cover you if you have an accident on a scooter etc, A person on our last cruise rented a quad bike and 1 person had to walk up the steeper hills :o:)

[knowehead]

We will be in this port in may with Celebrity. Couple of questions.

 

We will not be doing the donkey for the reasons stated above cruelty.

 

What is in the the port where the tenders drop u off shops,restaurants?

 

Also I cannot do the cable car height thing and I don't fancy the 550 steps is it possible to take a journey from the port where the tender drops us and board another ferry/boat to somewhere else on the island and return the same way?

[Langley Cruisers]

One thing to remember if you do a donkey ride, the smell is overpowering! As we docked from the tender you could smell it powerfully!

 

Agreed. OP, if you feel you want to use the donkeys, I advise you take them down the steps at the end of your day, rather than first thing to get up. The smell is awful and will stay with your clothes all day. I would not want that. :p

[HuskerTigerFan]

Hi. I am not seeing anything on the Santorini Planet website regarding boats or buses and prices.

Did you have to contact them personally?

I am trying to figure out the best way, once tendered to dock, to get to Oia and back to Fira.

Thanks

[Lawhouse]

Last year I think the bus fare was €2 euros. There are no timetables the busses just go when they are full. Every 15-20 minutes.

Likewise for boats, they are all privately owned, no timetables just when they are full or if they feel like going. It is Greece very laid back and runs on its own timetable.

 

 

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[kuldalai]

The tenders at Santorini are provided by the local longshore men and operate from the cruise ships to two points .

 

1. For Independent travellers to the quay below Fira where you have access to the cable car or donkeys to get up the hill to Fira . This quayside has some souvenir shops and several excellent restaurants with dreamy views . Local tours by boat depart from this quayside to the Caldera and also to Oia. (You will have a climb up on arrival at Oia.)

 

2. Ships tour pax are usually first off and are tendered to a different shoreside point where tour road coaches can get down to water level .

 

So if you have issues and cannot use the cable car or donkeys then best take a Ships Shore Excursion and you will be bussed up onto the island from the quayside .

[Ewoodspark]

Last year I think the bus fare was €2 euros. There are no timetables the busses just go when they are full. Every 15-20 minutes.

Likewise for boats, they are all privately owned, no timetables just when they are full or if they feel like going. It is Greece very laid back and runs on its own timetable.

 

 

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Latest Summer bus timetable here:

http://ktel-santorini.gr/ktel/index.php/en/

[Ssislandgirl]

Thank you all so much for your response. Would you say a car was better than an ATV? Did you see many ATVs around?

 

Hi there,

We visited Santorini last October and did rent an ATV and had a fantastic time. Having said that I need to emphasize that we are experienced motorcyclists and my husband commented that the handling of the ATV is very poor. It might also be fairly nerve racking if huge tour buses tailgate you on a winding road.

I wrote about our experience in Santorini in my travel blog

 

http://www.pandbtraveladventures.blogspot.com

 

Lots of pictures! Click on the tab labeled as Oct. 4 on left side of the blog.

Have fun on this wonderful island

Regards

Petra

[DreaAST]

We rented an ATV and love it. This island is perfect for an ATV. We did prebook it however they didn't even seem to have our reservation on record so I think you can rent on the spot just as easy.

[wassup4565]

Don't be too quick to reject the cable car because of your fear of heights. I also have this problem, and I did fine on both the trip up and the one down. The trip doesn't take long, and if you don't like the sensation of height, just turn your back on the view and look at the mountainside. Or at the back of the passenger who is wedged in front of you.

 

Almost all the good stuff on Santorini starts at the top. This island is actually quite extensive, and there are many parts to see. You don't just have to stand at the top of the cliff and look over - that's not all there is. I took a bus in the opposite direction from Oia, and ended up at a very nice beach area, where I rented a chair and had a beach lunch. Along the way, I got to see the countryside and ride with local people.

 

The pier area is very limited. The cable car is not that bad even for someone with a fear of heights (and I have trouble going more than two steps up a ladder). If I did it, you can. It wasn't even that bad.

[wassup4565]

I don't want to get into a PETA type discussion here, please. But those donkeys on Santorini have a life because they do their jobs - the people who own the donkeys will not feed and keep them if they can't get anything back. And please don't climb my frame, but animals with jobs like this are pretty good at knowing how to work the system. Including how to sigh and whinge and look sad.

 

Remember, Mary rode a donkey when they had to go to Bethlehem. These animals survive because they work for us. Very few people will keep donkeys as pets. So, if you want to ride a donkey up the hill, do it and don't feel bad. Don't be mean to the donkey and don't ride it if you weigh 300 pounds - that's probably too big a burden. But otherwise, sure, give the donkey a job - it's his life.

[karenbeanpole]

Can you tell me which ATV company you used when you rebooked please?

 

 

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[DreaAST]

Can you tell me which ATV company you used when you rebooked please?

 

 

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This is the site of the company we used. We rented a larger atv so both of us could ride on it and it had enough power. In my opinion it was a good price for the full day. http://www.markos-bikes.gr/index_en.html

[karenbeanpole]

Thank you

 

 

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[WarumistdieBananekrumm]

found this on TripAdvisor .....

 

“terrifying”

2 of 5 starsReviewed December 16, 2013

 

Many of my family had ridden the Donkey up. As we had taken a boat to Oia and then bused back to Fira there was no opportunity to go up only down. A BIG mistake. First the only living beings ruder and more ignorant than the donkeys are the men that manage them. Going up the donkey plods along keeping to the inside track and ones attention is dominated by the cliff above. Whereas, proceeding down hill the donkey prefers the outside track, the steps are broader and this permits him to trot, each step accompanied by a slight slip on the dung covered cobble stones, polished by years of hoof action. Every now and again there is a small pothole, where a cobblestone or two have been removed, causing a donkey stumble. This is most disconcerting as ones attention is definitely on the drop over the edge of the retaining wall, the top is level with ones knee, to the water below. It seems that donkeys have no concept of the width added to their bellies by the addition of human legs. Every twenty yards or so there are telegraph poles inside the edge of the wall that prevents one falling over the cliff. After several hard bumps on the knee cap I found the only solution was to raise my leg backwards so that it was inside the circumference of the donkeys belly. A most unstable position. All is made worse when one encounters the up bound donkey herd weaving its way all over the path. As they prefer the inside track down bound donkeys are pushed to the very outside edge. Again donkeys do not understand that human legs require space, so to avoid having ones knees crushed the only alternative is to lean forwards and raise ones legs above the donkey belly. One is then lying horizontal balanced on the back of the donkey, above the height of the retaining wall, clinging on to the neck of the donkey. I think my grip was so tight that if I fell over the edge the donkey was coming with me. All in all it was a terrifying experience that I shall not repeat nor recommend. What’s more I paid 5 euro for the privilege!

 

Visited November 2013

 

“Worst thing I have ever done ”

 

1 of 5 starsReviewed October 23, 2013

 

 

We have just come back from Msc cruise which visited Santorini.

The ship had to tender and we looked at the options to get to Fira at the top. The donkeys were 5 euro one way and really I should of known the reason why he never offered round trip at that point !!

Getting on the donkey was rough going the guys literally grab you and throw you on and opla away you go.

I did think mine thought he was in the donkey derby and had to race all of the other donkeys in his path. These donkeys are just expected to make their own way up to the top and I had many a near death experience (or so I thought ) my legs were rubbed against walls .rubbed against donkeys bums as my little donkey was trying to win his own race and I had no control if my donkeys actions.

The steps up are cobbled and maybe 6 foot wide and can be slippy.

Just as I was getting used to the zigzagging from wall to small wall that stopped us falling over .a large group of donkeys were on their way down on their own and more chaos occurred. My little donkey still on his mission to win just kept in going barging through with his hysterical passenger eyes shut and willing the journey to end lol maybe that's why he was racing.

I was never as relieved as I was when I got to the top but there was no one to help you get off once there my poor husband had that delight

I never saw any mistreatment however my husbands donkey was beat and sent down .

My advice... Don't do it it's cruel to the donkeys which we didn't realise how much until we were on them and we were on them at 10am and they must be goose door things.

Take the cable car it's 4 euro and a lot quicker

Edited April 30, 2014 by WarumistdieBananekrumm
adding ....

[DreaAST]

We rode the donkeys up and back down. Yes, you may brush up against the wall so be prepared. My leg did brush up on it and I was not mad at all. The donkeys do trot faster I think on the way down and I was more worried about my husband because he is 6 ft 4. So he is very tall and his whole body was kind of above the wall so I was worried he was going to be bucked off. But when we travel it is all about the experience for us. We enjoyed riding the donkeys because it is something we don't get to do where we live. We enjoyed it.