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Blue domed churches and a bell tower in Oia on the caldera rim above red cliffs, with boats anchored in the bay below and a woman in a blue dress on a terrace

Where to stay in Santorini

Photo: Giles Laurent, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Places to stay in Santorini

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About Santorini

Santorini covers 76 km2, and the airport is about 8 km by road from Fira and about 16 km from Oia. The choice is between the caldera villages on the cliff, the black-sand beaches and the inland villages, and in Fira and Oia parking weighs more than distance.

Greece. Guide last checked .

Facts and rules

Last checked . Each fact links to its source.

Airport
Santorini (JTR), about 8 km by road from Fira, 6 km from Kamari and 16 km from Oia; limited free parking opposite the terminal. Source
Climate resilience fee
Same national rates, no island rate. Per night, April to October: short-term rentals EUR 8, or EUR 15 for a detached house over 80 m2; tourist residences EUR 8, or EUR 15 from 80 m2; tourist villas EUR 15; rented rooms EUR 2; hotels EUR 2 to 15 by stars. November to March: EUR 0.50 to 4. Unchanged for 2026: Code of indirect taxes (Law 5177/2025), article 44. Source
Municipal visitor fee
0.5% of the rent on stays under six months under national law, borne by the guest; private hosts with one or two properties do not charge it. Councils may raise it to 0.75%; no Thira council decision doing so was found as of September 2026. Source
Cruise passenger fee
Each cruise passenger landing at Santorini pays EUR 20 from June to September, EUR 12 in April, May and October and EUR 4 from November to March (Law 5162/2024, article 27). Hotel and rental guests do not pay it. Source
Cruise visitor cap
At most 8,000 cruise passengers a day in 2025 and 2026, under decision 182/2024 of the Municipal Port Fund of Thira. Source
Short-term rental rules
Every short-term rental must be in the AADE registry and show its 11-digit AMA number on every platform and advert; licensed properties show a 16-digit ΕΣΛ or a 7-digit ΜΑΓ number instead. Source
Rental safety rules
Since 1 October 2025 each short-term rental needs smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, a first aid kit, a guide to emergency numbers and civil liability insurance (Law 5170/2025). Source
Parking in Fira
Since 1 March 2026 no traffic or parking in Fira's central square, now pedestrian, or on the road up to the Metropolis; supply vehicles until 11:00. Source
Monthly stays
Under 60 days per contract is a short-term rental in Greece, with the per-night fee; 60 days or more without extra services is an ordinary lease. Airbnb calls 28 nights or more a monthly stay. Source
Emergency number
112 Source

Areas of Santorini

Aerial view of Fira spread along the top of the caldera cliffs, with the zigzag path down to the old port, the sea on the right and a mountain in the distance
Photo: Matej Vranicar, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Fira

The capital and largest town, on the caldera cliffs, with the cathedrals, the Archaeological Museum and the Museum of Prehistoric Thera, and the hub of the KTEL buses. It suits a first visit, evenings out and a stay that leans on the bus.

Santorini airport
about 8 km
Kamari beach
about 8 km

Car and parking

Since 1 March 2026 the municipality has closed Fira's central square and the road up to the Metropolis to traffic and parking, supply vehicles excepted until 11:00. The tourism site warns that parking in Fira fills up; the municipality runs a car park opposite the primary school. Ask the host where to leave the car.

White houses of Imerovigli stepped down the hillside below a blue domed church and a white bell tower, under a clear blue sky
Photographed in 2011. Photo: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Firostefani and Imerovigli

The caldera villages north of Fira. Firostefani continues Fira on its highest part, with caldera views and fine dining; Imerovigli sits at the highest point of the caldera, facing the Skaros Rock. They suit couples and caldera-view hotels a short way from Fira.

Fira, from Firostefani
about 1 km
Fira, from Imerovigli
about 2 km
Santorini airport, from Imerovigli
about 8 km

Car and parking

No official parking source for Firostefani or Imerovigli was found as of September 2026. Fira is about 1 km away by road from Firostefani and about 2 km from Imerovigli; ask the hotel where the car can stop.

The white and pastel houses of Oia spread across the hillside with windmills on the ridge, a stepped path running down the slope and the sea behind
Photographed in 2017. Photo: Radek Kucharski from Warsaw, Poland, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Oia

The village at the northern tip, a preserved settlement since 1976, known for sunsets from its castle, cave houses and captains' mansions, with the old ports of Ammoudi and Armeni below. It suits couples and a short stay built around the evening.

Santorini airport
about 16 km
Fira
about 14 km
Baxedes beach
about 4 km

Car and parking

The tourism site warns that parking in Oia fills up. The municipality's last published list, from 2018, counted 21 car parks around Oia and Finikia, 14 municipal and 7 private; no newer list was found. Ask the host where the car goes.

Kamari seen from the mountainside above, with the town, the long dark beach lined with umbrellas and the airport runway in the distance
Photographed in 2013. Photo: Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Kamari

The black-sand beach resort on the east coast, near Ancient Thera and about 6 km by road from the airport, with beach life by day and by night. It suits families and beach holidays with a short transfer.

Santorini airport
about 6 km
Fira
about 8 km
Kamari beach
under 1 km

Car and parking

Since 2025 the municipality has marked pedestrian routes with lines and bollards on Kamari's central streets, under a traffic study approved in 2024. No official parking source was found as of September 2026.

Perissa seen from the mountain above, with its blue domed church, the long dark beach lined with umbrellas and the flat plain along the coast
Photographed in 2013. Photo: Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Perissa and Perivolos

The long black-sand beaches of the south-east. Perissa is a large organised beach with facilities for families and water sports; Perivolos, about 2 km on, adds restaurants, bars and more water sports. They suit a beach holiday away from the caldera.

Santorini airport, from Perissa
about 14 km
Fira, from Perissa
about 15 km
Perissa beach
under 1 km

Car and parking

No official parking source for Perissa or Perivolos was found as of September 2026. Fira is about 15 km away by road and the airport about 13 to 14 km.

Old stone and whitewashed houses of Pyrgos climbing the hill to a church with a white bell tower and a blue dome
Photographed in 2019. Photo: C messier, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Pyrgos and Megalochori

The inland villages. Pyrgos, a protected settlement since 1995, climbs a hill to the ruins of its Kasteli, with neo-classical mansions and 56 churches; Megalochori is a rural village of cobbled paths, vineyards and wineries. They suit quiet stays, wine and a car every day.

Santorini airport, from Pyrgos
about 7 km
Fira, from Pyrgos
about 7 km
Megalochori, from Pyrgos
about 3 km

Car and parking

No official parking source for Pyrgos or Megalochori was found as of September 2026. Both are about 7 km by road from the airport, and the nearest beaches are about 6 km away: Kamari from Pyrgos, Perissa from Megalochori.

Guides

Questions

Is it better to stay in Fira or Oia?

Fira, the capital and the hub of the KTEL buses, for museums, restaurants and connections. Oia, at the northern tip about 14 km by road from Fira, for its preserved village and its sunsets. The island's tourism site warns that parking in both fills up.

Is there a tourist tax in Santorini?

The national climate crisis resilience fee applies, with no island rate: from April to October a short-term rental pays EUR 8 a night, or EUR 15 for a detached house over 80 m2, and hotels EUR 2 to EUR 15 by stars; from November to March EUR 0.50 to EUR 4. Hotels and professional hosts also add the municipal visitor fee of 0.5% of the rent. The EUR 20 Santorini charge is for cruise passengers, not for guests.

Can a car drive into central Fira?

Not into the central square or up to the Metropolis: since 1 March 2026 the municipality has banned traffic and parking there, with supply vehicles allowed until 11:00. The municipality runs a car park opposite the Fira primary school.

How can a guest check a rental is registered?

Every short-term rental in Greece must show its 11-digit property registry number, the AMA, on every platform and advert. Licensed properties show a 16-digit ΕΣΛ or a 7-digit ΜΑΓ number instead.