The journey to Santorini and Day 1

After 5 schedule changes since booking, it turns out the route was pretty convenient. We flew to JFK and then ATH, finally switching to sky express airline to Santorini. If you are able, delta one is the way to go to Europe. You can actually get some sleep on the 180 bed, have better ambience, and only one cat meowing from someone's storage area. Plus, you won't feel like a dirty rag on arrival which is huge when you don’t have much time at your disposal. We were able to do so with miles since 2020 proved to be a big bomb for mileage use yet still a lot accrued.

Volcano View Hotel

The Volcano View is a 5* luxury hotel on the outskirts of Fira, the island capitol, which is reachable by a 5-10 minute car ride or a 30-40 minute walk up the hill into town. Average taxi is at least 10Euro for anything, so arranging hotel shuttle saves a buck. Volcano View does offer shuttle service, but it is not very frequent, so a little planning is often needed.

On arrival, we were escorted down a series of white stone stairs (note: this is not handicap friendly) to our lovely suite that had a breathtaking balcony. We are not special in this case, however, because EVERY room in the place has a small terrace that directly overlooks the caldera, perfectly facing for amazing sunsets, watching cruises and sailboats, and generally just chilling out with some local Assyritiko wine.

The staff was very accommodating and friendly, the restaurant lovely, and just about everything is quaint and beautiful. There are two convenient stores with wine and beer nearby if you don't want to hang out at the restaurant as well.

Note: bring your European adapters. Most places in Greece do not have US plugs nor USB slots

Following a brief sojourn at the hotel, we walked to Fira, passing pistachio and pomegranate trees that lined the main road. The town itself is like a postcard, with cobblestone hilly streets, quaint boutiques and restaurants, establishments that overlook the caldera and afford great people and sunset watching. Because we had been traveling for 19 hours, we chose a terraced restaurant off the caldera called Kipos in the Pelican Hotel property.

Kipos: Tucked in between the main square and the lower road, Kipos is like entering a French villa with vine

covered trellises and flowers and a cafe feel. Their wine and beer selection is extensive and my tired self relied on the waitstaff to recommend wine pairings. Tim, of course, went with the local Santorini Brewing Company, which features the Crazy Donkey logo. These beers are truly all fabulous and deserve some props for being the first microbrewery on the island.

We ordered a charcuterie for 2 with local cheeses, olives and tomatoes, meats, and oils to accompany and while it was an enormous platter, everything was excellent down to the last olive pit.