Santorini: Quintessential Greece

Anny Studios is a rustic and charming hotel/hostel with a sweet staff that picked us up from Santorini’s port and drove us cross-island to Perissa Beach. Which is a terrifying drive, even if you don't look to your left and even if you aren't in a questionable van. But they were very accommodating and helpful, and the transport was free of charge.

Anny Studios is a little rustic in all of the good ways, and also in that Greek isle plumbing way, but overall we really enjoyed the room, which had its own bath and mini-kitchen. We also loved staying in the beach town and zoning out on the black sand beaches between trips to Santorini’s two principal cities, Oia and Fira.

Anny's location in Perissa Beach is perfect... short walks to the beach, to restaurants, and to the bus stop for excursions. The studios share a Mediterranean white-washed and blue look with the rest of Santorini. Adding to the resort feel was the pool outside our room, but we were too busy with the towns and the beach to try it out.

My favorite experience in Santorini was a boat excursion to climb the nearby volcano, swim in warm springs, and hike the island of Therissa. The staff at Anny Studios reserved our spots on the tour and drove us to Fira, where we caught our tour boat.

The volcano climb was truly unique; the post-Apocalyptic landscape led us to a sulfur-tinged top, with amazing views of the Aegean all around. At the summit, a guide explained the geology and past eruptions of the volcano. With that in mind, everyone hurried back down to the boat. In total, the volcano stop lasted about two hours.

After hiking the volcano, we stopped to swim in hot springs. The swim between the boat and the springs is long; it's possible the springs feel extra-hot because you're approaching hypothermia by the time you get there. But it was another unique experience, and the boat itself was great. There was a jovial atmosphere and Greek pop music that I fell in love with.

After swimming, we had barely-populated Therissa to ourselves for the afternoon. We ate my favorite lunch of our entire Greece trip there: lobster kebobs cooked on a charcoal grill on top of a cliff by the sole cook at Restaurant Panorama.

Therissa is beautiful. Every building, whether a home, church, or business, is painted with stunning colors on white-washed backgrounds. Exploring the private, cobbled streets was incredible, and a completely different view of island life than staying in Fira or Oia.