A Santorini road trip is all about driving along the rim of a giant volcano in South Aegean. You cruise along the caldera edge with the sea a thousand feet below your wheels. The white houses of Oia look like fallen snow on top of the bright red cliffs. It is a short drive from end to end but every single inch is a world class postcard. You see the blue domes of churches popping out against the sea. It is worth driving to the lighthouse at the southern tip for the best view of the whole island.
Take a ferry to Naxos for long, open roads through fertile green valleys. You find giant marble statues from the ancient world lying right in the grass. The drive to the mountain village of Apeiranthos is full of marble streets and local grit. The Cyclades light is so bright it makes the white buildings look like they are glowing. It is a land made for explorers who love the sun and wide-open spaces. You can drive from the beach to a mountain peak in thirty minutes.
Milos offers a drive to Sarakiniko where the white volcanic rocks look like the surface of the moon. You park the car and walk into a world of bone white stone and bright blue water. Each island in this group has its own road and its own secret to tell. The ferry system is your bridge between these floating mountain peaks. You will find that island hopping with a car is the best way to see the real Aegean.
South Aegean highlights
- Oia Sunset Drive The road along the rim of the Santorini volcano offers some of the best views in the world. You see the white houses on the red cliffs and the blue sea a thousand feet below you. It is a short drive but one you will never forget for its beauty.
- Apeiranthos Marble Village Drive into the high mountains of Naxos to find a town where even the streets are made of marble. The houses are dark stone and the people have a strong local culture and mountain dialect. The air is cool and fresh compared to the beaches below.
- Sarakiniko Moon Beach Visit the white volcanic rocks of Milos that look like the surface of the moon in the sun. There is no sand here just smooth white stone and bright blue water in the deep coves. It is a very unique place that looks amazing in photos and videos.
- Lindos Acropolis Drive south on the island of Rhodes to see a white village under a grand ancient fortress. The view of the heart shaped Saint Paul bay from the top of the rock is stunning. The streets are very narrow and filled with local shops and white houses.
- Valley of the Butterflies Explore this green canyon on Rhodes where thousands of colorful moths rest on the trees in summer. The walk is shady and cool and the air is fresh with the scent of the local trees. The drive through the green hills is a nice break from the sun.
- Chora of Amorgos Follow the high road to one of the most beautiful hill towns in all of the Cyclades. The old windmills stand on the ridge and the houses are bright white with blue doors. The sea view from the edge of the town is endless and very blue.
- Hozoviotissa Monastery See the bright white monastery on Amorgos that is built into a sheer red cliff face high up. It looks like a white mark on a giant wall when seen from the road or the sea. The drive is high and very windy and offers a thrill for drivers.
- Delos Sacred Island Leave your car in Mykonos and take a boat to the island where the god Apollo was born. The ruins are massive and cover the whole island with stone lions and old merchant houses. It feels holy and quiet and very different from the busy islands nearby.
- Antiparos Sea Caves Take the car ferry for a short trip to find a huge cave full of ancient stone shapes inside. The island is small and easy to drive across in just one day to find quiet beaches. The water is very still and clear for swimming and exploring.
- Kalymnos Rock Cliffs Drive around this island to see the giant orange walls that draw rock climbers from all over. The road follows the coast and offers views of many small islands and deep sea channels. The water here is very deep and famous for the local sponge divers.
The local Four
History of South Aegean
The South Aegean islands are the remains of a volcanic arc shaped by tectonic activity over millions of years. Your Santorini road trip follows the edge of a caldera formed by the Thera eruption in 1613 BC. This event was four times more powerful than the Krakatoa explosion and buried the city of Akrotiri under meters of ash. The discovery of preserved multi-story houses and frescoes at Akrotiri has led many to link the site to the legend of Atlantis.
The island of Rhodes was the headquarters of the Knights of Saint John from 1309 to 1522. They built a medieval walled city that remains one of the best-preserved in Europe, featuring the grand Palace of the Grand Master. The knights defended the island against the Ottoman fleet of Suleiman the Magnificent for six months before surrendering. Further south, the island of Delos was the most sacred site of the ancient world and the birthplace of Apollo.
In the 19th century, the island of Syros became the industrial and commercial heart of Greece. Its port, Ermoupoli, was the largest in the country before the rise of Piraeus and featured the first shipyard in modern Greece. The unique white-and-blue architecture of the Cyclades was actually standardized by a government decree in 1938 to combat cholera and reflect heat. The region is a mix of volcanic drama and crusader fortresses.