Santorini has a reputation for being expensive and it earns most of it, but the reputation obscures something true: the best things on this island are free. The walk along the caldera rim, the ruined castle on Skaros, the medieval lanes of Pyrgos and Emporio, the sunrise, the sunset, the sea and three hundred churches all cost nothing at all. What costs money here is sitting down. We drive this island every day and the honest list of free things to do in Santorini is longer and better than the paid one, so our Santorini Tours are built around getting people to the free parts.
The framing that matters. Almost every famous experience on Santorini is free and the expensive version is optional. The sunset is free; the table with a view of it is not. The beach is free; the sunbed is not. Knowing which is which is most of what this page is for.
The Short Answer
Walk the caldera rim path from Fira to Oia. Three hours, no ticket, and the single best of the free things to do in Santorini.
Climb down to Skaros Rock below Imerovigli. Twenty minutes, free, and almost nobody does it.
Get lost in the Kasteli at Pyrgos or Emporio. Medieval villages with no gate and no ticket.
Swim anywhere. Every beach on this island has free sand beyond the last sunbed.
Watch the sunrise instead of the sunset, or watch the sunset from somewhere other than Oia.
Check the free-admission days at the archaeological sites before you book anything.
The Island You Can See for Nothing
Free Things to Do in Santorini at a Glance
| What | Where | What it is | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| The rim path | Fira to Oia, about three hours | The best walk in the Cyclades | Free, unfenced, unshaded |
| Skaros Rock | Twenty minutes down from Imerovigli | A ruined Venetian castle on a headland | Free and always open |
| The Kasteli at Pyrgos | A medieval walled village | Concentric lanes to a ruined castle | No gate, no ticket, no closing time |
| Emporio | The largest and least visited village | A darker, more intact Kasteli | Completely free |
| Beaches | Kamari, Perissa, Vlychada, Monolithos | The sand is free; the sunbeds are not | Walk past the last row and sit down |
| Amoudi Bay | 300 steps below Oia | Swimming off the rocks and the jump at Agios Nikolaos | Free, though the fish is not |
| The sunset | Oia, Pyrgos, Imerovigli, the lighthouse | Costs nothing anywhere | Only the table costs money |
| The sunrise | The whole east side of the island | No crowd at any hour of any month | The most underrated free thing here |
| Churches | More than three hundred on the island | Panagia Episkopi is 11th century | Free, and dress modestly |
| Free admission days | State archaeological sites | Several fixed dates each year | Akrotiri and Ancient Thira included |
Every row in that table is genuinely free at the point of use. The rest of this page goes through them properly and adds the ones that do not fit in a table.
Free Walks
Walking is where the free things to do in Santorini are at their strongest, because the island’s best scenery is all on public paths.
Fira to Oia on the rim. Ten kilometres along the top of the caldera through Firostefani and Imerovigli, past Skaros, over the headlands and down into Oia. Around three hours, paved for the first half and rough for the second, with three hundred metres of air below you the whole way. Start at seven in the morning. Our hiking guide has the route.
Skaros Rock. Twenty minutes down from Imerovigli, thirty back up, onto a headland that carried the island’s medieval capital. Keep going past the saddle to the chapel of Theoskepasti on the far side, which is the view worth the walk. Free, unfenced and always open. See our Imerovigli guide.
Perissa to Kamari over Mesa Vouno. Ninety minutes over the mountain that separates the two beaches, with an enormous view from the saddle. The path is free; only the archaeological site on the ridge charges.
The Amoudi steps. Three hundred steps from Oia down to the old port, ten minutes down and twenty five back up. See our Amoudi Bay guide.
Amoudi to Agios Nikolaos. Ten minutes along the rocks past the tavernas to the islet with the chapel and the jumping ledge.
Up to Profitis Ilias. An old footpath from Pyrgos to the summit, an hour, steep and unshaded, with both coasts below you at the top.
Vlychada to the white cliffs. A short walk along the south coast under wind-carved rock that looks like nowhere else in Greece.
The Akrotiri lighthouse road. The walk out to the southern tip, with the caldera on one side and the open sea on the other. Our lighthouse guide covers it.
Firostefani to Fira at night. Ten minutes on a lit paved path above the caldera, and the most pleasant free thing you can do after dinner.
Any vineyard track inland. The basket-trained vines around Pyrgos, Megalochori and Exo Gonia are unlike anything else in Europe and the dirt roads between them are public.
Free Villages
Pyrgos. The old capital, a medieval Kasteli of concentric lanes climbing to a ruined Venetian castle, with more than thirty churches and the only viewpoint on the island that sees both coasts at once. No gate, no ticket, open at any hour. It is the best of all the free things to do in Santorini and our Pyrgos guide covers it in full.
Emporio. The largest village on the island and the least visited, with a Kasteli that is darker and more intact than Pyrgos and almost no tourism at all.
Megalochori. A shaded square entered under a free-standing bell tower arch, wine merchants’ mansions, vaulted cellars cut into the rock. Forty minutes and nothing to pay. See our Megalochori guide.
Exo Gonia and Vothonas. Small inland villages with cave houses built into a ravine, ten minutes from Fira and entirely off the coach route.
Oia. The famous one. Walking its lanes, the castle ruin and the windmills costs nothing; only the tables and the shops do. Our Oia guide has the layout.
Fira. The Catholic quarter, the Orthodox cathedral, the cliff path and the view are all free. See our Fira guide.
Imerovigli and Firostefani. Quieter, higher and no less beautiful than either.
Finikia. Ten minutes inland from Oia, a small restored village that most visitors never notice.
Karterados and Messaria. Ordinary working villages with neoclassical houses and no visitors at all, which is a category of free things to do in Santorini that nobody writes about.
Free Beaches and Free Swimming
Every beach in Greece is public to the waterline. On this island that matters, because the sunbeds are the only part anyone charges for and there is always sand beyond the last row.
Kamari. Organised black sand with a car-free promenade, and free stretches at both ends. Our Kamari guide covers it.
Perissa and Perivolos. Seven kilometres of beach and the southern end past the last taverna is empty. See our Perissa guide.
Monolithos. Shallow, calm, with tamarisk trees for free shade and a playground. The most family-friendly of the free things to do in Santorini.
Vlychada. White wind-carved cliffs behind grey sand, quiet, and the most photogenic beach on the island.
Baxedes and Paradisos. North of Oia, unorganised, and usually near empty.
Katharos. A small rocky cove below Oia with one taverna and no sunbeds at all.
Amoudi and Agios Nikolaos. Swimming off the rocks in the deepest, clearest water on the island, plus the jump if you are confident.
Red Beach. The viewpoint is free and remains the safest way to see it; the beach itself sits under an unstable cliff. Our Red Beach guide explains.
What sunbeds cost and when they are free. Most operators waive the charge if you buy lunch or a few drinks, so ask before sitting rather than after.
What to bring. Water shoes, because black sand burns, and shade, because there is almost none. Our packing list covers it and the beaches guide ranks them all.
Free Viewpoints, Sunsets and Sunrises
The Oia sunset. Standing anywhere in Oia at eight in the evening costs nothing. What costs money is a table facing it, and the free version is the same sun.
The Oia castle ruin. The most crowded free spot in Greece. Arrive two hours early or do not bother.
Imerovigli. The highest point on the rim, the widest caldera view, and no crowd. Our first suggestion to anyone asking for free things to do in Santorini at that hour.
The Akrotiri lighthouse. The southern tip, a genuine alternative sunset with about forty people rather than four thousand.
Pyrgos castle terraces. The sun going down over the caldera from three kilometres back, with the whole island in the frame.
Profitis Ilias. The highest point on Santorini, reachable by road, empty at every hour.
Skaros. Sunset from the rock with Oia lit up along the rim to the north.
The Fira cliff path. Free, lit at night, and the easiest view on the island to reach without a car.
Any sunrise, anywhere east-facing. Kamari, Perissa, Imerovigli, Vlychada, the ridge. No crowd in any month, and our sunrise guide has the times and the spots.
Watching the ferries at Athinios and the aircraft over Kamari are both oddly compelling and completely free.
Free Churches and Free Culture
There are said to be several hundred churches and chapels on this island for a population of about fifteen thousand. Almost all of them are free, and most of them are open.
Panagia Episkopi. An eleventh-century Byzantine church near Mesa Gonia, the oldest on the island and the most significant. Free, and among the least visited free things to do in Santorini.
Panagia Theoskepasti. The blue-domed church on the edge at Imerovigli, at the head of the Skaros path.
Agios Stefanos. The chapel standing on an early Christian basilica up at Ancient Thira, visible from the path.
Theotokaki at Pyrgos. The main church of the old capital, with a Byzantine core under later work.
Anastasi at Imerovigli and the cathedral quarter at Fira, both free to walk into.
The Catholic quarter in Fira. A Dominican convent, a Catholic cathedral and lanes that feel Italian rather than Greek, and hardly anybody goes up there.
The Monastery of Profitis Ilias. Free when open, with a small collection of manuscripts and workshop tools. Opening is irregular.
Family chapels. Dozens of one-room chapels across the villages, opened on their saint’s day and locked the rest of the year. Finding them is half the pleasure.
Dress modestly. Shoulders and knees covered, which costs nothing but a scarf in the day bag. Our packing list mentions it.
Panigiria. Village saint’s-day festivals with free food, wine and dancing, held through the summer. Ask locally which village and which date; our cultural experiences guide explains the calendar.
Greek Easter. On Good Friday the whole of Pyrgos is outlined in thousands of small lamps and the lanes fill with people. It is the most extraordinary night of the year here and it costs nothing.
Free Admission Days at the Paid Sites
Akrotiri, Ancient Thira and the museums in Fira all charge, and on several fixed dates each year Greek state archaeological sites and museums admit visitors free of charge. If your trip falls near one of them, plan around it.
The usual free dates include 6 March, 18 April, 18 May, the last weekend of September, 28 October and the first Sunday of each month from November to March.
They change. The ministry adjusts the list from year to year, so confirm before building a day around it rather than treating this as fixed.
They are busy. A free Sunday at Akrotiri is a different experience from a paid Tuesday, so arrive at opening.
What is worth it anyway. Akrotiri is one of the great archaeological sites of the Mediterranean and worth full price. Our Akrotiri guide covers it.
Ancient Thira charges a few euros and the necropolis on the footpath below it is outside the fence and free. See our Ancient Thira guide.
Combined tickets covering Akrotiri and the Fira museums are usually available and cheaper than buying separately. Our museums guide explains what is where.
What is never free. Nea Kameni charges for landing on the volcano, the cable car charges, and the hot springs are reached only by paid boat. Our volcano tour and cable car guide are clear about that.
What people wrongly assume costs money. The rim path, Skaros, every village, every beach and every viewpoint. That is the whole argument of this list of free things to do in Santorini.
Free, Nearly Free, and Not Free
The useful distinction on this island is not between attractions and activities. It is between looking and sitting.
Free. All walking, all villages, all viewpoints, all beaches to the waterline, all churches, all swimming, both the sunrise and the sunset, and every road on the island.
Nearly free. The bus, at a couple of euros a journey. A bakery breakfast. A gyros. A litre of local wine from a supermarket. Fava and bread in an inland taverna.
Not free. Sunbeds, caldera-view tables, the cable car, the volcano landing, boat trips, wine tastings, the archaeological sites outside their free days, and taxis.
The single biggest saving. Sleeping on the east coast or inland rather than on the rim, and coming up to the caldera in the evening. Our budget guide is built entirely around that trade.
The second biggest. Eating inland. A dinner in Pyrgos, Megalochori or Emporio costs roughly half what the same meal costs on the cliff.
The third. Travelling in May, June, late September or October rather than in August.
Water. Buy the large bottles from a supermarket rather than small ones on the rim; the tap water is not for drinking.
Transport. The bus network covers Fira, Oia, Kamari, Perissa, Akrotiri and the port for a few euros. Our bus guide explains it, and the taxi guide explains why taxis are the expensive alternative.
What we would not skip to save money. Akrotiri, and one boat onto the caldera. Everything else on this island has a free version, which is why the list of free things to do in Santorini is as long as it is.
Three Free Days
Day one: the rim. Start at Fira at seven, walk to Oia along the caldera, look at the castle ruin, walk down the steps to Amoudi, swim off the rocks, and take the bus back. Nothing paid except the bus and lunch.
Day two: the inland villages. Pyrgos in the morning, Megalochori before lunch, Emporio in the afternoon, and the sunset from the Pyrgos castle terraces. All three villages are free, all three are ten minutes apart, and this is the best of the free things to do in Santorini for anybody who has already done the rim.
Day three: the coast. Sunrise at Kamari, a morning on the free sand, the walk over Mesa Vouno to Perissa in the late afternoon, and a swim at the far end. Add the necropolis path below Ancient Thira on the way over.
If you have a fourth. Vlychada and the white cliffs, then the Akrotiri lighthouse for sunset.
If you have a fifth. The Profitis Ilias summit at sunrise, and the Catholic quarter of Fira in the evening.
What that week costs. Accommodation, food, a handful of bus fares and nothing else. It is a perfectly good Santorini holiday and better than many expensive ones. Our three day itinerary and things to do guide cover the paid version.
Free Things to Do in Santorini by Area
Where you are staying decides which of these you can reach on foot, so here is the list arranged by base rather than by type.
Free things to do in Santorini from Fira
The cliff path north through Firostefani, the Orthodox cathedral, the Catholic quarter and its Dominican convent, the old port steps down to Mesa Gialos, the caldera view from any point along the rim, and the walk to Imerovigli after dinner. Fira is the best base of all for free things to do in Santorini without a car, because the bus station is there too. Our Fira guide has the layout.
Free things to do in Santorini from Oia
The castle ruin, the windmills, the whole village on foot, the three hundred steps down to Amoudi, the rock at Agios Nikolaos, Baxedes and Paradisos beaches to the north, and Finikia ten minutes inland. Add the rim path south if you have the morning.
Free things to do in Santorini from Imerovigli
Skaros Rock, the chapel of Theoskepasti, the rim path in both directions, and the widest caldera view on the island from the edge of the village. For a base with no car, this is the strongest concentration of free things to do in Santorini anywhere on the rim.
Free things to do in Santorini from Kamari
The free sand at either end of the beach, the promenade, the walk over Mesa Vouno to Perissa, the necropolis on the path below Ancient Thira, Monolithos ten minutes north, and the sunrise straight out of the sea. Our Kamari guide covers the resort.
Free things to do in Santorini from Perissa
Seven kilometres of beach with an empty southern end, the mountain path to Kamari, the church of the Holy Cross, and Emporio fifteen minutes inland. See our Perissa guide.
Free things to do in Santorini from the inland villages
Pyrgos, Megalochori, Emporio, Exo Gonia and Vothonas are all within ten minutes of one another, all free, and all walkable once you are there. The vineyard tracks between them are public. Our villages guide covers the set.
Free things to do in Santorini from the south
The Akrotiri lighthouse, the Red Beach viewpoint, Vlychada and its wind-carved cliffs, Mesa Pigadia, and the coast road itself, which is one of the better drives on the island.
Free Things to Do in Santorini at Night and in Bad Weather
The lit rim path. Fira to Firostefani to Imerovigli after dark, paved and lit, with the villages glittering along the cliff and the anchored ships below. The best of the free things to do in Santorini after dinner and almost nobody walks it.
The Kasteli at Pyrgos after dark. Lit, silent and completely empty at ten at night.
Oia after the sunset crowd leaves. By half past nine the village empties and the lanes are yours.
Stargazing. The inland villages and the south coast have very little light pollution, and Profitis Ilias has none at all.
A church service. Free, open to anyone, and the most direct contact with ordinary island life available to a visitor.
When it rains. The island largely closes in bad weather, and the honest answer is that the free things to do in Santorini are nearly all outdoors. The exceptions are the churches, the Catholic quarter and window-shopping in Fira.
When the meltemi blows. The east coast beaches become unusable and the sheltered west and south are fine. The villages are unaffected. Our weather guide explains the pattern.
In winter. Most of the paid attractions close and most of the free ones do not. Empty villages, empty paths and free admission to state sites on the first Sunday of the month. Our winter guide covers what runs.
Free Things to Do in Santorini: Common Questions
What are the best free things to do in Santorini?
The Fira to Oia rim path, Skaros Rock, the Kasteli at Pyrgos, the beaches beyond the sunbeds, and either the sunrise or a sunset somewhere other than Oia.
Is the Oia sunset one of the free things to do in Santorini?
Yes. Standing anywhere in Oia costs nothing; only a table facing it costs money. It is also the most crowded free spot in Greece.
Are the beaches among the free things to do in Santorini?
Every Greek beach is public to the waterline. The sand is free, the sunbeds are not, and there is always free sand beyond the last row.
Is Skaros Rock one of the free things to do in Santorini?
Yes, and always open. Twenty minutes down from Imerovigli and thirty back up.
Is the Fira to Oia walk one of the free things to do in Santorini?
Completely. Ten kilometres, about three hours, no ticket and no gate. Start early because there is no shade.
Are the villages free things to do in Santorini?
No. Pyrgos, Emporio, Megalochori, Oia, Fira and every other village are free to walk through at any hour.
Is Ancient Thira one of the free things to do in Santorini?
No, it charges a few euros, though the necropolis on the footpath below it lies outside the fence. There are also several free-admission days each year.
Is Akrotiri one of the free things to do in Santorini?
Not normally. Greek state sites admit visitors free on a handful of fixed dates each year, and it is worth full price on any other day.
When are the free museum days in Greece?
Usually 6 March, 18 April, 18 May, the last weekend of September, 28 October and the first Sunday of each month from November to March. Confirm before planning around them.
Is the cable car one of the free things to do in Santorini?
No. The steps beside it are, at around three hundred of them.
Can you visit the volcano for free?
No. Nea Kameni charges for landing and is reached only by boat. Looking at it from the rim is free.
Are there free things to do in Santorini at night?
Yes: the lit rim path between Fira and Imerovigli, the Kasteli at Pyrgos after dark, Oia once the sunset crowd has gone, and stargazing inland.
Are the churches free things to do in Santorini?
Yes, and there are several hundred of them. Cover shoulders and knees.
What is the cheapest way to get around?
The bus, at a couple of euros a journey, covering Fira, Oia, Kamari, Perissa, Akrotiri and the port.
Can you do Santorini on almost no money?
Accommodation and food will cost what they cost, and everything you actually came to see is free. Base yourself inland or on the east coast and the free things to do in Santorini fill a week easily.
What People Get Wrong
“Santorini is expensive.” Sleeping on the caldera and eating with a view of it is expensive. The island itself is not, and the free things to do in Santorini outnumber the paid ones considerably.
“You have to pay for the sunset.” You have to pay for a chair. The sun is the same from a wall.
“The good beaches charge.” No Greek beach can charge for the sand. Sunbeds are a separate business and many operators waive the fee if you eat there.
“There is nothing to do without a boat trip.” There are three villages, two mountains, a rim path and a hundred kilometres of coast, none of which needs a boat.
“The free stuff is second-rate.” The best experience on this island is a walk, and the second best is a medieval village with no gate. Neither costs anything.
“You need a car.” A car helps inland. The bus reaches Fira, Oia, Kamari, Perissa, Akrotiri and the port for a couple of euros.
“Everything is free in winter.” Much of it is closed rather than free, though the paths and villages remain open and empty.
“Free means crowded.” Oia at sunset, yes. Skaros at seven in the morning, Emporio at any hour and the Pyrgos Kasteli after dark, no. Most free things to do in Santorini are empty precisely because they are free and therefore unadvertised.
Free Things to Do in Santorini for Different Trips
On a cruise stop
You have six hours and a tender. Walk up the steps from the old port rather than paying for the cable car, spend the morning in Fira on the cliff path, take the bus to Oia and walk back down. Every part of that except the bus is one of the free things to do in Santorini. Our cruise port guide has the timings.
With children
Monolithos beach with its shade and playground, the promenade at Kamari, the Pyrgos lanes, and rock-pooling at Amoudi. Steps and cliff edges rule out most of the rim. Our family tours page covers the paid alternatives.
With a baby
The Kamari promenade and the inland village squares are the only genuinely pushchair-friendly free things to do in Santorini. Our baby guide explains why.
For walkers
The rim path, Mesa Vouno, Profitis Ilias and the old donkey tracks between the inland villages, all free and all in our hiking guide.
For photographers
Blue hour on the rim, the bell towers of Megalochori, the Vlychada cliffs, and the sunrise from anywhere east-facing. Our photogenic spots guide and sunrise guide have the rest.
For couples
The Akrotiri lighthouse at sunset, the Pyrgos castle terraces, and the lit path from Firostefani at ten at night. Cheaper than the caldera table and considerably less crowded. See our honeymoon guide.
For solo travellers
Everything on this page works alone, and the walking especially. Our solo travel guide covers the practicalities.
For older travellers
The inland villages and the Kamari promenade are level; the rim path and Skaros are not. Our seniors guide is honest about the terrain, and the accessibility guide more so.
On a real budget
Base yourself at Perissa, use the bus, eat inland, and spend the week on free things to do in Santorini. Our budget guide sets out the numbers.
Our Verdict
We sell tours, so there is an obvious reason for us not to write this page. We write it anyway because the guests who enjoy this island most are the ones who understand what it actually offers, and what it actually offers is a volcano, a cliff, a set of medieval villages and a hundred kilometres of coast, none of which has a ticket booth.
The expensive Santorini is real and it is optional. A caldera suite, a sunset table and a catamaran are all worth the money if you have it. None of them is the island. The island is the path from Fira to Oia at seven in the morning, the lanes of Emporio at any hour, the empty sand past the last sunbed at Perivolos, and the light on the whitewash before anyone else is awake.
Do the free things to do in Santorini first, and then decide what is worth paying for. Most people do it the other way round and run out of money before they find the good part.
Free Things to Do in Santorini Month by Month
January and February. Empty villages, dramatic weather over the caldera, and free admission to state sites on the first Sunday of each month. Most paid attractions are shut, so almost everything available is on this list of free things to do in Santorini.
March. The island turns green, the wildflowers come out on the rim path, and 6 March is usually a free-admission day at the archaeological sites.
April. The best month for free things to do in Santorini. Green hillsides, comfortable walking, Greek Easter more often than not, and 18 April as another free site day. The Good Friday illumination at Pyrgos is the single best free evening of the year.
May. Warm, quiet, everything open, and 18 May usually free at the museums. The rim path at this point is at its most pleasant.
June. Long days, an early sunrise, and the sea warm enough for the free swimming to be the point rather than the endurance test.
July. Hot. Do the free things to do in Santorini before nine and after six, and treat the middle of the day as unusable.
August. Hotter and fuller. The free beaches beyond the sunbeds and the villages after dark are where the space is. Village panigiria run through the month with free food and dancing.
September. The best all-round month here: warm sea, softer light, thinning crowds, and the last weekend usually free at the state sites.
October. Excellent walking, swimmable in the first half, businesses closing steadily, and 28 October a national holiday with free admission.
November and December. Quiet, cheap and largely closed, with the first Sunday of each month free at the sites and the paths open in every week. Our winter guide covers what is running, and the month by month guide has the weather.
A Free Half-Day From Wherever You Are
Staying in Fira. Walk north on the cliff path to Firostefani and Imerovigli, drop to Skaros, come back through the Catholic quarter. Two and a half hours and nothing spent.
Staying in Oia. Down the steps to Amoudi, along the rocks to Agios Nikolaos, swim, back up, and finish in the castle ruin. Three hours of free things to do in Santorini without leaving the village.
Staying in Imerovigli. Skaros first, then the rim path south to Firostefani for lunch and back along the same cliff at dusk.
Staying in Kamari. The promenade at seven, the free sand at the northern end, then the necropolis path below Ancient Thira in the late afternoon.
Staying in Perissa. Walk south past the last beach club until the sand empties, swim, and come back for the church of the Holy Cross.
Staying inland. Pyrgos Kasteli, then the vineyard tracks toward Megalochori, then the Pyrgos castle terraces at sunset. The most concentrated free things to do in Santorini anywhere on the island.
Staying at Akrotiri. The lighthouse road, the Red Beach viewpoint and Mesa Pigadia, all within a few kilometres.
With a car and half a day. Emporio Kasteli, Vlychada cliffs, the lighthouse for sunset. Three of the best free things to do in Santorini and none of them on a coach route.
With no car and half a day. The bus to Oia, the village on foot, the steps to Amoudi, the bus back. Under five euros in fares.
The Complete List
Everything on this page in one place. Thirty free things to do in Santorini, all of them genuinely free at the point of use.
- Walk the caldera rim path from Fira to Oia.
- Climb down to Skaros Rock and round to the chapel of Theoskepasti.
- Get lost in the Kasteli at Pyrgos.
- Get lost again in the Kasteli at Emporio.
- Walk under the bell tower arch into the square at Megalochori.
- Watch the sunset from the Pyrgos castle terraces.
- Watch the sunset from the Akrotiri lighthouse instead of from Oia.
- Watch the sunrise from anywhere east-facing.
- Swim off the rocks at Amoudi Bay.
- Walk out to Agios Nikolaos islet and watch the jumpers.
- Take the three hundred steps down from Oia rather than the cable car.
- Find the free sand beyond the last sunbed at Perivolos.
- Swim at Monolithos in the shade of the tamarisk trees.
- Photograph the white cliffs at Vlychada.
- Walk over Mesa Vouno from Perissa to Kamari.
- Look at the rock-cut tombs of the necropolis below Ancient Thira.
- Drive or walk to the summit of Profitis Ilias.
- Visit Panagia Episkopi, the oldest church on the island.
- Walk the Catholic quarter of Fira.
- Stand at the Red Beach viewpoint.
- Walk the vineyard tracks between Pyrgos and Megalochori.
- Find Vothonas, the cave village in a ravine.
- Walk the lit cliff path from Fira to Imerovigli after dinner.
- Go to a village panigiri in August.
- See the Good Friday illumination at Pyrgos.
- Sit in Oia after the sunset crowd has gone home.
- Watch the ferries come into Athinios.
- Use a free-admission day at Akrotiri or Ancient Thira.
- Stargaze from the inland villages.
- Do nothing at all on a wall above the caldera, which is what half of the free things to do in Santorini amount to and the best of them.
That is thirty. There are more, and every one of the free things to do in Santorini above will still be free next year, which is not something anybody can say about the rest of the island.
Mistakes That Turn Free Into Expensive
Sitting down too early. The commonest one. The free things to do in Santorini stop being free at the moment you take a chair with a view, and on the caldera that chair carries a minimum spend.
Taking the first sunbed you see. Walk two minutes further and the sand is free. Ask the operator first, because many waive the charge with lunch.
Paying for the cable car both ways. Down the steps and up by cable car costs half as much and is the better order anyway.
Booking a sunset table in Oia. You are buying a chair, not a view. Every other viewpoint on this island is among the free things to do in Santorini and none of them require a reservation.
Taking taxis. Forty taxis serve the whole island at fares that reflect it. The bus does Fira, Oia, Kamari, Perissa, Akrotiri and the port for a couple of euros.
Buying small bottles of water on the rim. Buy the large ones in a supermarket. Over a week the difference is real.
Eating on the cliff every night. One caldera dinner is worth it. Seven is a different budget entirely, and the inland villages cost half.
Missing the free-admission days. If your dates include one, Akrotiri and Ancient Thira join the free things to do in Santorini for that day.
Paying for a guided walk on a marked path. The rim route is signposted and impossible to lose.
Assuming the beach clubs own the beach. They do not. No Greek beach can be closed to the public at the waterline.
Booking a sunset cruise for the view alone. Worth it for the swimming and the volcano; not worth it if you only wanted the sun, which is one of the free things to do in Santorini from any west-facing wall.
Renting an ATV to reach places the bus goes. Fun, and not a saving.
Doing the expensive things first. Guests who spend the first two days on paid attractions and the last three on the free things to do in Santorini almost always say the last three were better.
Not walking. The single biggest waste on this island is renting a vehicle to see things that are twenty minutes apart on foot, when walking between them is the point.
Where to Start
Day one, before anything else: walk. The rim path is the first of the free things to do in Santorini for a reason, and doing it early tells you where everything else on this island is.
Then pick one village a day. Pyrgos, Emporio, Megalochori. Free things to do in Santorini do not get better than an empty medieval lane at seven in the evening.
Swim every day. The sea costs nothing and the free sand is always past the last sunbed.
Set one alarm for the sunrise, which is the cheapest of the free things to do in Santorini and the one guests remember.
Keep one evening for Oia and stand on a wall rather than booking a table.
Check the free-admission dates before you fix anything else, because they turn the two paid sites into free things to do in Santorini for a day.
Spend what you saved on one good thing. A boat onto the caldera, or a dinner inland with a bottle of Assyrtiko.
And write down what you skipped. Almost everybody leaves this island with a list of free things to do in Santorini they ran out of days for, which is a better problem than running out of money.
Free Things to Do in Santorini: Key Points
- The Fira to Oia rim path leads the free things to do in Santorini: three hours, no ticket, the best walk on the island.
- Skaros Rock below Imerovigli is free and always open.
- The Kasteli at Pyrgos and the one at Emporio have no gate and no ticket.
- Every Greek beach is public to the waterline; only the sunbeds are charged.
- Both the sunset and the sunrise are free everywhere on the island.
- Several hundred churches are free to enter, including 11th-century Panagia Episkopi.
- State archaeological sites admit visitors free on a handful of fixed dates each year.
- The cable car, the volcano landing and the boat trips are the things that genuinely cost money.
- The bus reaches Fira, Oia, Kamari, Perissa, Akrotiri and the port for a couple of euros.
- Eating and sleeping inland or on the east coast is the largest saving available here.
- Most free things to do in Santorini are empty because nobody advertises them.
- A week of free things to do in Santorini is a better holiday than three paid days.
When It Is Worth Paying Us
Everything above is free and you do not need us for any of it. There are three cases where a vehicle earns its money on this island, and we would rather name them than pretend the whole list needs a driver.
The inland villages in one afternoon. Pyrgos, Megalochori and Emporio are free to walk but awkward to link by bus, and a car turns three separate half-days into one good one.
Sunrise. No bus and no taxi runs at five in the morning, so a dawn viewpoint is the one free thing on this island that is hard to reach without arranging something.
Arrivals and departures. Getting to a door on the caldera with luggage is not a free problem.
Prices are per vehicle rather than per person, there is no deposit and cancellation is free.
Tours
- full day tour
- half day tour
- north part and Oia tour
- south part and Akrotiri tour
- sightseeing tour
- historical tour
- wine tour
- food experience
- sunset tour
- shore excursion
- small group tour
- black sand beach tour
- horse riding tour
- custom tour
- coach tours
Transfers
- island transfers
- VIP chauffeur service
- transfer to Oia and Finikia
- transfer to Fira and the villages
- choosing a private transfer
Book directly
- Full Day Tour
- Half Day Tour
- North Part and Oia Tour
- South Part and Akrotiri Tour
- Sightseeing Tour
- Small Group Tour
- Wine Tour
- Food Experience
- Historical Tour
- Sunset Tour
- Shore Excursion
- Black Sand Beach Tour
- Horse Riding Tour
- Personalised Tour
Further reading
- Santorini on a budget
- Santorini sunrise
- Santorini with a baby
- Santorini packing list
- Santorini cave hotels
- Where to stay in Santorini
- Villas on the island
- Pyrgos Santorini
- Megalochori Santorini
- Imerovigli Santorini
- Amoudi Bay
- Ancient Thira
- The Akrotiri lighthouse
- Santorini diving
- The hot springs
- Thirassia
- How many days do you need?
- The best time to visit
- Santorini airport
- Ferry tickets and the ports
- Should you hire a car?
- ATV and quad hire
- Day trips from Santorini
- Santorini to Milos
- Santorini to Folegandros
- Santorini to Ios
- Santorini to Naxos
- Santorini to Paros
- Santorini to Mykonos
- Santorini or Rhodes?
- Santorini or Mykonos?
- Crete to Santorini
- Athens to Santorini
- Santorini nightlife
- Shopping on the island
- Travelling with a dog
- Santorini for large families
- Photography tours
- Greek food on the island
- The wine tour
- The full travel guide
- Our ten best tours
- How to choose a tour
- Private sunset tours
- Sunset spots
- Weddings on Santorini
- Over-tourism on the island
- What the mayor says
- The donkey weight limit
- Choosing a private transfer
More from this site
- All tours and prices
- About Santorini Impressive Tours
- Photo gallery
- Pictures from our private tours
- Useful links for travellers
- Full site map
- All our Santorini articles
- Terms of use
- Privacy policy
Tell us your dates and we will tell you which parts of your week do not need us at all.
One Last Thing
Bookmark this before you fly and read it again on the flight. The free things to do in Santorini are not a consolation prize for people who cannot afford the paid ones; they are the reason the paid ones exist at all, because everyone is selling you a view of something that is free to look at.
Walk first, pay second, and the free things to do in Santorini will fill more of your week than you planned for. That is the whole argument, and every guest who has taken it has come back to say so.
