12km Walk - Santorini Style

Have you heard about the 12km walk in Santorini? No?

Well prior to asphalt roads being built, the two main cities (Thira and Oia) of Santorini were travelled to and from along the top of the coast. The path, as you may have guessed, is 12km long.

If you have the time, I suggest you walk it. The view is stunning and so is the environment. Because Santorini is affected by an active volcano, the erosion is quite fantastic with its mix of colours. As you walk along the path, you will see black rocks and then a whole area that is completely red.

So where do you start this walk? Well you have 2 options you can either start in Thira or in Oia. We walked from Oia to Thira, which probably wasn't the best idea. The path is meant to be walked the other way, which we found out  when we got 1/3 of the way out of Oia when we found donkeys that could take us back... but not to Thira. That should of been our first clue that we decided to do this walk the hard way.

What should you expect, and how should you prepare?

You will be mainly walking up and down hills. Wearing the right gear is ideal, as there are many loose rocks you can easily twist your ankle on.

You will also find abandoned buildings along the way such as churches. I wonder how long it took people to go to church back in the day.

Because you are walking for quite a long time, make sure you bring water. There is a breeze but you will get hot! About half way there, you will find a stand you can buy drinks and food from, but don't count on it. You will get thirsty before you get there.

If you start your walk in the afternoon, around 2pm, you will get to watch the sun start to set as you do your walk. This makes for some gorgeous pictures.

As long as you bring water, and are prepared to spend 90% of the day walking, you should have a  great time. Plus, you can reward yourself with gelato at the end of your walk.