Arrival and Departure
Ferries dock at the somewhat grim port of Ormos Athinios; Skala Firas and Ia in the north are reserved for local ferries, excursion kaikia and cruise ships. Buses , astonishingly crammed, connect Athinios with the island capital Fira, and, less frequently, with Ia and the main beaches at Kamari and Perissa. Disembark quickly and take whatever bus is going, if you want to avoid a long wait or a tedious hike up. You'll be accosted at Athinios by people offering rooms all over the island; in the summer it might be a good idea to pay attention to them, given the scramble for beds, in Fira especially. From Skala Firas, you have the traditional route of 580 steps (about 45 minutes) up to Fira - not too difficult a walk, if you don't mind mule manure - or you can go by mule (?3, negotiable in off-season) or cable car (summer only 6.40am-10pm, every 20min; ?3), so exhilarating a ride that you may want to take it for fun. The airport is on the east side of the island, near Monolithos; there is a regular shuttle-bus service to the Fira bus station, which runs until 10pm. When it comes to leaving - especially for summer/evening ferry departures - it's best to buy your ticket in advance. Note, too, that although the bus service stops around midnight, a shared taxi isn't outrageously expensive (about ?6 from Fira to Athinios). Incidentally, ferry information from any source is notoriously unreliable on Thira and rival agencies don't inform you of alternatives - Nomikos Travel (tel 02860/23 660), with seven branches, is the largest and most reliable - so you should enquire about the possibilities at several agencies and triple-check departure times. If you do get stranded in Athinios, there's no place to stay, and the tavernas are pretty awful. With time on your hands, it's probably worth calling for a taxi (tel 02860/22 555) or zigzagging the 3.5km up to the closest village, MEGALOHORI . Between Megalohori and Pyrgos village, near the junction of the main and Athinios road, is Hotel Zorbas (tel 02860/31 433; ?43-58), and at the centre of Megalohori, the Yeromanolis is a surprisingly reasonable and tasty grill which offers the increasingly rare home-made Santorini wine.
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