July 2023

A magical one week trip to Santorini in July with my best friend was a highlight of 2023. Despite spending most of the year on the other side of the world, during this week I realised that maybe I don’t actually need to travel so far away from England to find paradise.

We stayed in a beautiful Cycladic villa in the hills above the famous black sand beach Perivolos. Each morning we strolled down to the beach and grabbed a coffee en route. The days were spent on the same front row sun bed, eating the same greek salad because it was so good that we couldn’t get enough of it. Based on the usual images you see of Greece depicting white sand beaches with light blue water I was a little bit concerned that Perivolos beach wouldn’t live up to the Mediterranean dream. I was totally wrong and I was surprised at how beautiful the water is with black sand beneath it. I might even go as far as to say I preferred it!

Don’t forget to wear your flip flops on the sand between the sun bed and the ocean because you will immediately regret it!

Taking a local bus back up to the villa or down to Perissa beach is easy from the bus stop on Perivolos. In the evenings we went into the popular village Oia on the North West edge of the island. Walking around the narrow white and blue streets towards the windmill on the edge of the town is a must. We ate dinner at a beautiful rooftop restaurant called Strogili. Oia is best known for its perfectly aligned sunset view.

Santorini island is created by a volcano (Neatened Kameni) which is still active. The active volcano creates hot springs which you can swim in if you take a tour from the fishing village Vlychada.

Santorini also has incredible opportunities for Scuba Divers as you can dive in the Caldera and in the underwater volcanic formations created by lava flows.