Where To Stay In Santorini: Our Santorini Accommodation Guide

Santorini is one of those places that lure you towards them. Chances are, if you like to travel, then you’ve dreamed about visiting Santorini, or already had the pleasure of visiting this amazing Greek Island. Of all the unique and beautiful things Santorini has to offer, nothing compares those caldera views, or better yet, staying in a cave house or hotel perched on the side of the caldera. Depending what it is you want from your holiday, there are a few different areas to stay in Santorini. So where to stay in Santorini? Here are our recommendations and Santorini Accommodation Guide…

Contents
Where To Stay In Santorini?
Booking Accommodation In Santorini
Accommodation Guides

Absolute Splurge
Splurge
Luxe For Less
Hotels In Santorini Under $200/night

Where To Stay In Santorini?

Choosing the best area to stay in Santorini usually comes down to choosing between the main villages of Oia, Fira, Firostefani, Imerovigli, Kamari and Perissa. There are also a few other villages/areas but to keep it simple, I’ll just focus on the main ones in this article.

Oia Santorini

Oia is the prettiest of them all. It’s a beautiful little village of white stone buildings and cave houses sprawling down the caldera. It’s probably what you imagine when you think of Santorini, as so many pictures of Santorini are of Oia. Known for a great place to take in the sunset, it’s also super busy at this time. There are also lot’s of restaurants and shops. Stay here if you want picture-perfect Santorini, or to stay in an amazing cave house with stunning views. Although there is no immediate beach access, you can walk down to Amoudi Bay or some surrounding beaches for a swim. See our Santorini accommodation guide below for where to stay in Oia Santorini and hotels in Oia Santorini.

Fira Santorini

Fira is the island capital, where you will find lots of options for accommodation, shops, bars and restaurants, although it does lack a little bit of the charm of Oia. Also no immediate beach access here, but you can have caldera views. See our Santorini accommodation guide below for our picks of hotels in Fira Santorini.

Firostefani Santorini

Firostefani neighbours Fira, so you can walk into Fira from here also. Stay here if you like the sound of Fira but want a quieter place with fewer people. Again, no immediate beach access, but you have caldera views.

Imerovigli Santorini

Imerovigli neighbours Firostefani and has some of the best sunset and caldera views in Santorini. It is much quieter as the area is mostly private homes and accommodation. This also means less access to restaurants and shops. Here there is no beach access. You may be trying to decide between Oia or Imerovigli. I think they are both great picks for where to stay in Santorini for couples. Here is how I would compare the two. Oia has more shops and restaurants and is obviously busier with a beautiful village. However, Oia can feel a little removed from the rest of the island. Imerovigli is quieter but from here you can also walk to Firostefani and Fira (it takes about 30 minutes to walk from Imerovigli to Fira). Both have caldera views.

Kamari Santorini

If you haven’t realised by now, Santorini is unique for the Greek islands. It’s a place where people come for the stunning caldera views over the beaches. That being said, there are still some nice beaches on Santorini, and if the beach is your reason for coming, staying at Kamari might be more for you. Generally speaking, it will be less expensive than other areas, but you won’t get those amazing views.

Perissa Santorini

Perissa is known for its black beach and beach bars. It’s generally less expensive than other areas, with beach access but no caldera views.

Where To Stay In Santorini On A Budget

Perissa, Kamari and Fira are the best areas for budget accommodation in Santorini. Perissa and Kamari are both beach areas without the caldera views, whilst in Fira, you can still get Caldera views but without the beach.

Where To Stay In Santorini For Couples

Oia, Imerovigli and Firostefani are our favourite areas for where to stay in Santorini for couples. All of these can have caldera views but there is no immediate beach access.

Our Pick For Where To Stay In Santorini

I would pick one of the villages with Caldera views as that’s what makes Santorini so special. Oia would be my pick of those, but I could also see benefits of the other villages. Of course, it all depends on what you want out of your holiday.

Booking Accommodation In Santorini

When booking accommodation in Santorini, there are two main websites that I use.

Booking.com

Booking.com has some of the best prices and a large number of accommodation options available. We love using it for our travels.

Airbnb

I love seeing what’s available from Airbnb in Santorini, from getting to stay with a local host or having your own place to yourself, there’s something for everyone.

Santorini Accommodation Guides

We have put together a guide of our favourite accommodation picks in Santorini. We haven’t stayed at all of these places (we wish we had been to Santorini that many times), but we’ve looked at photos, reviews, location, facilities, Instagram, magazines, websites, recommendations from friends and anything else I stumbled on and put all this together based on our own experience in Santorini, to find our favourite accommodation picks.

Please note: Prices below were based on peak season, per night and are in Australian Dollars. Prices were correct at the time of publishing this article.