A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to spend [the better part of] a day on Greece’s most tantalizing island- Santorini. Still, to my great dismay, Royal Caribbean only awarded us 6 short hours to explore this exotic blue-domed dreamland. Not even close to enough time…
I know, I know. Only 6 hours in Santorini?!? Poor me.
But, seriously. I would have happily spent an entire week sprawled out along Santorini’s cliffs, marinating in the sun and gawking at her dramatic skyline.
Well, that wasn’t the case. We had exactly 6 and a half hours from the time that big ol’ boat docked to the time it pulled away, with or without us. No negotiations. I guess we had to make the most of it.
So then, what on Earth did we do? After some strenuous research on Santorini tours, attractions and must-sees, we finally decided on a private photo tour with Santorini Travel. Now, I’ve never taken a “photo tour” before and to be honest, I wasn’t even really sure what this type of tour entailed, but their description sounded right up my alley.
See the Highlights of Santorini We take you on a tour around some of the best spots of Santorini for leisure photography. You will take the best and the most memorable pictures of your whole trip in Greece. We specialize in Santorini private tours for Cruise ship clients that come to Santorini for one day. Our professional licensed tour guides will bring a friendly Greek smile and lots of humor, while helping you explore the whole Island in five to six hours.”
The whole island in five to six hours, sold. Plus, I was eager to capture some of those lovely landscapes everyone was always rambling on about.
I don’t pretend to be a professional photographer. Actually, I’m pretty far from it. I’m not proud of it, but anything more than the simple point and shoot is a bit over my head. [It’s a work in progress]. Luckily for me, in the wonderful world of Santorini, everyone seems to be a natural professional photographer. Trust me, she makes it easy on you.
Every single direction I turned oozed perfection. It was damn near impossible to capture anything other than elegance.UGH Santorini. I hate to admit my [possibly irrational] jealousy, but we can’t all be that photogenic. It’s just not fair. If pictures of Santorini don’t fuel your deep yearning wanderlust, I can be pretty sure nothing will.
Captured by me: 
Captured by our very own tour guide & personal professional Greek photographer:
Just as I expected. Six hours were simply not enough. If anything, I’ll take this day as a cordial preliminary visit for trips to come.
Sorry Santorini, but I’m not done with you yet. In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger, “I’ll be back.”
Have you ever visited somewhere where you felt you didn’t have enough time? Do you think you’ll revisit?
Linkin’ up with Sara, Christine & Bonnie for Travel Tuesday today! And guess what?! I’ve been nominated!!! Couldn’t be more excited to be a co-host! Thanks for the love ladies! 😀
Such a pretty island! Really beautiful photos!
Thanks Joanna! Like I said, the island did most of the hard work, I just pointed and shot 😀
Oh, yes, I did not have nearly enough time in Santorini – just two nights. We stayed in Oia and ventured down to Fira for part of a day, but honestly, Oia is all you really need to see (ok, and maybe some of those beaches that eluded us are worth it….). Santorini and London are two places I feel that I’ll never get enough of!
I’m so jealous! I wish I got to spend a night on the island just to experience one of it’s famous sunsets! And I agree, I could have spent an entire week in Oia alone!
Every time I see Santorini I practically start drooling because it’s so beautiful! I can definitely see how 6 hours wasn’t enough time to visit the island, but that just means that now you know what you want to go back and see and do!
Exactly! I didn’t mind having a quick preview, but I’ll definitely be back 😀
Santorini is one of my dream destinations, it always looks so gorgeous in photos. Congrats on being nominated!
Thanks Estrella! And Santorini really is just as beautiful as it looks in photos. Honestly, I don’t even know if the photos can capture it!
I never tire of seeing photos of Santorini! These are absolutely stunning, wow 🙂
Thanks Marcella!! 😀
Excellent photos! I will want to stretch my time at port like you. Glad you were able to see “a lot” of the island on a short period of time. I guess you have to return sometime.
I will definitely be back! 😀
If I could only have at least 6 hours I will be happy. You did manage to capture all its beauty though!
I’m not going to lie, 6 hours was pretty great! Thanks Isabel!
I love tours like that! Cause when I have to explore a town in only a few hours time, I end up running around trying to see the most important sights and am absolutely exhausted in the end. But in a tour like that, everything is arranged for you and you don’t have to hurry so much! Would totally do that tour too! And beautiful pictures you got there!
I’m not usually a “tour” person, but in these circumstances, it definitely felt like the right option! It was nice to have an expert showing us the most picturesque parts of the island!Thanks so much 😀
When I posted my Mykonos+Santorini guides over at my blog a lot of people commented that they visited during a cruise and had little time to explore! It’s so nice that you chose to do a photo tour because Santorini is so picturesque!!
Santorini is the most picturesque! So happy that’s how we chose to spend the day! 😀
Whoa dude, 6 hours?! But way better than no hours!! And now you know you MUST return! Were you just in the area or Athens and decided to hop on over, or… ?
We actually did a cruise around the Greek Islands. We started in Istanbul and then went on to Thessaloniki and then after the islands Athens! I’ll definitely go back! Not nearly enough time!
Oh my goodness, that sounds incredible!!! What a vacation! How many people told you (before you went) “are you stilllll going to Greece?!” {because of the economic troubles} Which makes me wonder… do people actually cancel their holidays because of what they watch on the news? :/
Congratulations on being a TT host, by the way! You definitely deserve it!
Come on!!! Your pics look really awesome! I love them! You know what – I didn’t even know that photo tours existed – it’s a great idea 🙂
http://www.travelekspert.com/2015/09/throwback-friday-from-siena-with-love.html
Thanks Pati! 😀