Santorini Donkey Trail

[nextcruiseonmymind]

Is the donkey path down from Fira to the cruise dock lite at night?

 

Thanks

[MarkieMalarky]

It is lit but not very well. I would recommend a torch (or phone light) and go carefully

[zdcatc12]

1 hour ago, MarkieMalarky said:

I would recommend a torch (or phone light) and go carefully

A torch? That has got to mean something different in Queen's English than US English!!!! Is it safe to say that is what we call a flashlight across the Pond?

[Host Bonjour]

On 7/18/2023 at 8:49 AM, zdcatc12 said:

Is it safe to say that is what we call a flashlight across the Pond?

 

Torch = flashlight 🙂

[amypintx]

We walked down it before it was dark so I don't know how it looks on the actual steps, but here's a picture I took from the ship. Looks like there are lights at each turning point but not in between.  

[adonisr]

1 hour ago, amypintx said:

We walked down it before it was dark so I don't know how it looks on the actual steps, but here's a picture I took from the ship. Looks like there are lights at each turning point but not in between.  

What did you think of the walk down?

[amypintx]

7 minutes ago, adonisr said:

What did you think of the walk down?

@adonisr  They honestly weren’t that bad (going down... I'd never attempt it going up!) My 17 year old son did them in 20 min. My husband and I walked with my 76 year old mother and it took us about 40 minutes with breaks. We just took it slow. There are plenty of places you can move over out of the way if you need a break. She walked on the sides to hold on to the wall as needed (there aren’t hand rails). The steps are very wide. You just have to watch your feet the whole time because some of the rocks are so smooth they’re slippery (we saw several kids who were racing down them fall but we were careful and didn’t have a problem) and also you have to watch for donkey 💩. But even that wasn’t too bad. All in all, I’d definitely walk down it again vs waiting in that cable car line. My mom agrees.

[adonisr]

Just now, amypintx said:

@adonisr  They honestly weren’t that bad (going down... I'd never attempt it going up!) My 17 year old son did them in 20 min. My husband and I walked with my 76 year old mother and it took us about 40 minutes with breaks. We just took it slow. There are plenty of places you can move over out of the way if you need a break. She walked on the sides to hold on to the wall as needed (there aren’t hand rails). The steps are very wide. You just have to watch your feet the whole time because some of the rocks are so smooth they’re slippery (we saw several kids who were racing down them fall but we were careful and didn’t have a problem) and also you have to watch for donkey 💩. But even that wasn’t too bad. All in all, I’d definitely walk down it again vs waiting in that cable car line. My mom agrees.

Thank you for the info.  I was hoping that was the case.  We do a good bit of hiking, so I think walking down will be the way to go for us.

[little britain]

On 7/18/2023 at 1:49 PM, zdcatc12 said:

A torch? That has got to mean something different in Queen's English than US English!!!! Is it safe to say that is what we call a flashlight across the Pond?

What is a torch in the USA?? 😳 Scared to google it! 🫣
 

asking for a friend…

Edited July 30, 2023 by little britain

[cruisemom42]

24 minutes ago, little britain said:

What is a torch in the USA?? 😳 Scared to google it! 🫣
 

asking for a friend…

 

Y'know -- as in the Olympics. Or Indiana Jones movies:

 

[little britain]

41 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Y'know -- as in the Olympics. Or Indiana Jones movies:

 

Oh that’s a torch too!!! 

[ninjacat123]

On 7/28/2023 at 9:48 PM, amypintx said:

@adonisr  They honestly weren’t that bad (going down... I'd never attempt it going up!) My 17 year old son did them in 20 min. My husband and I walked with my 76 year old mother and it took us about 40 minutes with breaks. We just took it slow. There are plenty of places you can move over out of the way if you need a break. She walked on the sides to hold on to the wall as needed (there aren’t hand rails). The steps are very wide. You just have to watch your feet the whole time because some of the rocks are so smooth they’re slippery (we saw several kids who were racing down them fall but we were careful and didn’t have a problem) and also you have to watch for donkey 💩. But even that wasn’t too bad. All in all, I’d definitely walk down it again vs waiting in that cable car line. My mom agrees.

Re donkey poo, were you able to keep your footwear free of donkey poo?  Thanks!

[amypintx]

17 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

Re donkey poo, were you able to keep your footwear free of donkey poo?  Thanks

@ninjacat123 Yes. As long as you’re watching your feet as you go, you can step around it no problem. 

[MeHeartCruising]

17 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

Re donkey poo, were you able to keep your footwear free of donkey poo?  Thanks!

 

No worries.  Donkey poo can be washed off easily in the ship's swimming pool!

[Random Cruizer]

This has nothing to do with the trail after dark, but I thought I'd post this info in this thread thanks to the title:

 

My experience a couple weeks ago was this:  walked up the stairs about 9 am, not bad at all because it was completely in the shade and the donkey rides had barely begun.  Walked down at about noon, and it was much, much worse.  Full sun, almost no shade, saw a woman who looked fit enough in her late teens or early 20s being tended for heat stroke about 3/4 of the way up.  Biggest donkey problem was station at the bottom--just so many donkeys heading both ways and almost no way to get through them at the bottom, seemed unsafe.  I think they are actually mules--some wore muzzles (must have been biters), but never saw one kick.  The problem at the bottom was just the sheer number of them.  If I ever go back, I'd never climb that hill in the summer at noon or later--it really requires shade if it's hot.

[zdcatc12]

On 7/30/2023 at 10:14 AM, little britain said:

What is a torch in the USA?? 😳 Scared to google it! 🫣
 

asking for a friend…

And definitely don't look it up in Urban Dictionary!!!

[tobyt]

19 hours ago, Random Cruizer said:

This has nothing to do with the trail after dark, but I thought I'd post this info in this thread thanks to the title:

 

My experience a couple weeks ago was this:  walked up the stairs about 9 am, not bad at all because it was completely in the shade and the donkey rides had barely begun.  Walked down at about noon, and it was much, much worse.  Full sun, almost no shade, saw a woman who looked fit enough in her late teens or early 20s being tended for heat stroke about 3/4 of the way up.  Biggest donkey problem was station at the bottom--just so many donkeys heading both ways and almost no way to get through them at the bottom, seemed unsafe.  I think they are actually mules--some wore muzzles (must have been biters), but never saw one kick.  The problem at the bottom was just the sheer number of them.  If I ever go back, I'd never climb that hill in the summer at noon or later--it really requires shade if it's hot.

Thank you for this detail regarding the shade! I am so worried about the whole tender, cable car massive crowds so good to know that the walk up would be shaded if we need to do it!

[Random Cruizer]

19 minutes ago, tobyt said:

Thank you for this detail regarding the shade! I am so worried about the whole tender, cable car massive crowds so good to know that the walk up would be shaded if we need to do it!

 

No guarantee on how long it lasts--my screenshot of my workout at the top as 9:32 am, not sure when sun clears the top and starts to shine down on the trail.

[djfunk]

if your going to walk down later in the day, keep in mind, the poo dries up and becomes airborne like ash.  It was quite disgusting at times as it gets in your mouth and eyes!  If you plan on walking down think about bringing a mask (everyone surely has these from the pandemic) or the old western scarf thingies.  also bring sunglasses or protect your eyes from it.

This is coming from someone who walked both up and down (1pm walk up and 7pm walk down back on July 17th)

[rocklinmom]

Wow so are the cable cars or this "trail" down the only way back to the ship tenders to return to the ship? If you get off the ship and just stay in the immediate area I assume you don't have to come back down this way or on the cable cars? First time visiting Santorini. 

[Vineyard View]

From what I have researched, there is absolutely nothing to do if you don’t take the cable car up, and subsequently back down….or Donkey trail down….or an excursion that gets you out of this conundrum - We are taking a boat excursion to avoid this even though we are not excursion people. 
Only other option is water taxi to base of Oia, then shuttle bus up…..then public bus back…then cable car down..or a private excursion and I don’t have the details on how all that works in this place

[PurpleTraveller]

On 8/18/2023 at 8:48 AM, rocklinmom said:

Wow so are the cable cars or this "trail" down the only way back to the ship tenders to return to the ship? If you get off the ship and just stay in the immediate area I assume you don't have to come back down this way or on the cable cars? First time visiting Santorini. 

 

The cable car or path is the only way down from Fira to the old port to get the ship tenders. If you get a tender to the old port and do not wish to go up to Fira or get a boat to Oia there is very little to see or do in the immediate area of the old port.

 

This is a link to the website for the old port of Santorini

https://www.santoriniport.com/

which has information about the old port.

 

[rocklinmom]

Thank you for all the info! Much appreciated.