Santorini for Cruise Ships: Avoid Cable Car Lines and Crowds!

Minimum walking, maximum...

Minimum walking, maximum island sightseeing. If you dont know what to do or see on Santorini and only have a day, take this tour. It takes you around the whole island, from the towns to the beaches with a Lunch (not included) on a black sand beach.

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Unorganized

The trip had 3 stops. At 2 of the 3 stops, guide provided the exact place at time to meet. At one stop, we were told to meet “at the bottom of the hill” at a certain time. Well, we walked and walked down hill. It became a narrow path without any housing or business. I called the tour. Told bus left and I need to take a taxi, pay out of my pocket, to the next stop. I paid 40 Euros for a taxi. Completely unprofessional. There was literally no directions. Needs to be better organized.

Response from the operator: Dear Nahla, Thank you for sharing your feedback. We are sorry that you became separated from the group and understand how stressful this situation must have been. We have carefully reviewed the incident with our team. Megalochori is a fully guided stop, with no scheduled free time or independent meeting point. According to our records, you left the group to use the restroom without informing the guide. When the guide realised that you were missing, she attempted to contact you by phone and waited for approximately ten minutes before continuing with the remaining guests. Unfortunately, as the guide was not aware that you had left the group or where you had gone, she could not reasonably know where to look for you. We are sorry that you then needed to arrange a taxi to rejoin the tour, but the group could not be kept waiting indefinitely. We nevertheless appreciate your feedback and will continue reminding guests to inform their guide before stepping away from the group, even briefly, to help prevent similar situations. Warm regards, Natalia Vexperio

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Great tour

Excellent tour witha. Brilliant driver - Marino and tour guide Elisa, super knowledgeable, kept us moving but nothing felt rushed. Saw all the great spots and most importantly no need to queue for the cable car. Everything about the tour guide and driver was brilliant and would 100% recommend and do it again:. For me the beach bit at the end was not something we were interested in but was part of the tour and the rest was worth it. If they did one swapping a winery for the beach it would be even better. For information, the recommended bar was quite pretentious, you could use the toilets which was helpful and walk through to get to the beach and it’s important to note that there was no requirement to eat or drink there and they were clear we could go elsewhere. The sun loungers were not included - would have been 100 euros and no discount for being there for just 30 mins, and the restaurant was expensive. We found a fabulous place a few doors down, Terra Nera, great food, Santorini house wine for e6 for a 250ml glass and free sun longer.

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Amazing experience!

Yianni is an amazing tour guide! Your personal photographer full of knowledge. Lots of stops that avoid crowds. Highly recommend.

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Extremely Disorganised and Chaotic

Just don’t do it - the company Vexperio were a complete & utter shambles. We, along with some other couples who had arrived early, were put on a tender to the new port to pick up our minibus, and after checking 3 times that despite being on the 11am trip that we should board the tender for the 10am trip as directed, the tender set off from the old harbour. After bobbing around in the boat for 10 minutes a number of us were then told that we had to get off the tender as some late arrivals had since turned up that were originally booked on the 10am slot. We were told to wait on the harbour side until the new tender arrived which they had called for. After 45 minutes of standing around a tender eventually arrived. The tour of Santorini was OK and the tour guide was very nice but to be honest there was very little he could say about Santorini as there is not much there and the places that we did visit were heaving with crowds. The best bit was a lovely restaurant and bar at the last stop next to the black sand beach. The trip was very expensive for what it was and due to the appalling lack of organisation it was not the day we had hoped for.

Response from the operator: Dear Jackie, Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We are very sorry that the beginning of your tour was so confusing and frustrating. Santorini was exceptionally busy that day, and tender movements were being controlled by the Port Authorities due to strong waves, heavy water traffic and a ferry passing through the port. Unfortunately, these circumstances resulted in last-minute changes to the tender arrangements. However, we fully recognise that this does not excuse the unclear information you received or the length of time you were left waiting at the harbour. Having confirmed the 10:00 tender several times, you understandably expected those arrangements to be followed. Being asked to leave the tender after boarding, followed by a further wait without a clear explanation, created a very poor start to the day. We sincerely apologise for the way this was handled and communicated. We are also sorry that, despite enjoying the final stop by the black-sand beach, the tour as a whole did not feel worthwhile to you. Your feedback has been shared with our local operations team so that responsibilities and communication during unexpected tender changes can be handled much more clearly in the future. Warm regards, Natalia Vexperio

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