From the moment we checked into our hotel, everyone started telling us to see Santorini from the sea. You’ll never see anything else like it. There’s no better view of Santorini than from the sea. After hearing all these great things, how could you not book a Santorini sunset cruise and see for yourself? It’s the best place to watch a sunset is what sold us on it. We weren’t really sure what to expect, it ended up being better than we could imagine.
Peter From Spiridakos
My girlfriend and I set out to search for a rental car place. That’s when we met Peter. Peter was on the street in front of this business. I ignored him at first when he said hi, I just assumed he was another salesman trying to sell me something I didn’t need. He asked what I was looking for and I told him I was looking for a rental car place and if he tell me where to go. “I’ve got cars,” he said. “Come into my office.”
Peter asked where we were from and I told him Canada, hoping that our Canadian reputation for being nice would get us somewhere. Turns out he was from Canada too. From Toronto in fact and he moved back to Greece when he was 12. Another Canadian, we were going to get along just fine. He showed us rental cars and then he showed us boat tours too. He told us he would throw in a deal if we got both. The deal was pretty good but we told him we would think about it and come back. It was the luxury boat tour with the upgraded seafood menu and the rental car with insurance all in.
We were already sold on the deal but I didn’t have my credit card, that’s why we told him we would come back. The day got busy and we ended up coming back the next day to book everything. Can you believe what this guy did next? He sweetened the deal even more by lowering the price even more. I gave him my word I wouldn’t disclose how much I paid so I’m going to honor that. All I can say is that if you want a deal, go see Peter at the Oia Spiridakos location.
Santorini Sunset Cruise
Hopefully you’ve read my post about watching a Santorini sunet and learned that a Santorini sunset cruise is the best place to watch the sunset. There’s so much more to this cruise than just watching the sunset. It’s a 5 hour cruise after all. You’ll stop at white beach then head to red beach where you can see the doors. After sailing there, the boat will head to the caldera and right up to Volcano. Bring dark colored swimming gear because you’ll want to swim here. It’s a natural thermal hotspring which offer a natural spa. The mud in this area will stain light colored clothing though. You’ll also see Fira, and Indian Rock among other great stops along your cruise before the sun sets.
The staff on our boat was very friendly and accommodating. They’re very knowledgeable of the history of Santorini. The captain even let me sit in his chair while I smoked my Cohiba cuban cigar I brought all the way from Canada. If that’s not a great host, I don’t know what is. One of the crew mates saw I had a drone and we got into a great conversation about drones and he even taught me a few things. I’ve only been on one Santorini sunet cruise, but I can say this was money well spent.
Food and Drinks
Our cruise was semi private, we were sharing it with 9 other people. I like the policy that Spiridakos has which states they keep the tours as small as possible and always under 15 people. We had unlimited drinks as long as it was either wine or beer. I’m not sure if you could get a dirty dry gin martini on board though, I didn’t ask.
The food was great and grilled to perfection. We had greek salad, spaghetti, BBQ shrimp, grilled fish and grilled chicken. The best part though was sharing a meal with everyone on board. Hearing their stories and learning more about them. It made the experience more personable, connecting with great people over a meal. We met an older Australian couple who had some amazing stories of their travels to Africa. A family from Germany who spoke french because they lived close to the French border. A young Australian couple who was ending their vacation in Greece after being in Italy for 3 weeks. It was these connections and friendships built that made the cruise great.
Enjoying Your Cruise
I hope you have your sea legs. A catamaran is very stable on the water but there will still be some rocking. To enjoy your Santorini sunset cruise I highly recommend taking some garlic pills or non drowsy Gravol. This poor girl on our cruise got sea sick and she did not look like she was having a good time. To make it worse, she was trapped on the boat for 5 hours.
Also bring a change of clothes that includes a sweater and long pants. After the sun goes down you still have to sail back to the port and it gets chilly. You’re also going to need a change of clothes anyways if you plan to go swimming at any of the stops.
Hopefully this helped sway your decision to take a Santorini sunset cruise. It’s the best excursion you can do on Santorini. If you want more info about the company we used you can visit them at Spiridakos Sailing Cruises or if you’re in Oia go visit Peter at their Oia location. It’s right by Canaves Oia Hotel.
Let me know about your own experiences with this or any of the other Santorini sunset cruise companies by leaving a comment below.
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