Our last island on our Greek island hopping adventure was Magical Santorini! Santorini was the very reason that Greece was on my bucket list from forever ago. Infact I was telling Anush that the very first pin I pinned was of the blue domes in Oia and I always grew up wanting to visit this super magical place. You can also catch my Mykonos, Paros and Santorini travel guides for more details on the specific islands. In this post I will be sharing a few pics from our first evening in town in Oia.

When we planned our trip, I was very sure I wanted to stay in Oia, even though I had heard about the crazy crowds! We stayed in the heart of Oia at a supercute airbnb with incredible views of the ocean and caldera. If you have seen photos from Santorini, they are probably from the famous village of Oia – the blue domes, the Oia castle sunsets, etc everything is right in this dreamy little village.

On the first day that we arrived in Santorini it was pretty late in the afternoon, so we decided to step out during the evening and explore the streets of Oia and make our way down to the Oia Castle to witness the world famous Oia Sunset. I have no words to describe the beauty of this place in just a few words in my blog post. Santorini is truly special, and is certainly one of the most beautiful places Anush and I have ever seen in our lives! We travel so often, but there are very few places that both of us agree that we would visit back in an instant (given that the world is so diverse and we want to see it all haha!). From the very minute we dragged our suitcases onto the glistening marble roads when we were checking in , we both looked at each other in sheer disbelief of the beauty of this place and were certain that we would 1000% return to Santorini real soon. It was just SO. UNREAL. All we kept uttering to each other was “omg so unreal”, we were absolutely speechless that a place like this actually exists!

Perched atop the northern tip of the island of Santorini, the coastal town of Oia is so unique with its whitewashed houses carved into the rugged clifftops that overlooks the vast caldera in the sea. Exploring the picturesque village is an adventure you will never forget, through the ups and down of the numerous stairs, pathways and alleys. Every alley leads into a whole new view, each more gorgeous than the other.

I slipped into this stunning off the shoulder dress from Anna Kosturova for the evening. Coincidentally this number is actually called the Santorini Dress and from the minute I saw it a few months ago I knew I wanted it for my trip to Santorini! The blue and white color was a match made in heaven for this place. I love the blue crocheted panel accents and the flouncy off the shoulder detail on this airy dress. I wore it with these comfy gold Cocobelle sandals for the evening.

Along our way to the castle we stopped at several alleys and the views were just breathtaking at every corner. The colors in the sky had already started to change as it was close to golden hour, it looked like one big ethereal world. My absolute fave view was the sight of the iconic 3 domes of Oia! Literally had tears of joy when we were here and I had to pinch myself several times to remind myself that I was NOT dreaming! Sigh.. what I would give to go back there this very moment…

We had been warned of how packed the Oia castle gets at sunset. People here come and camp out 2 hours in advance to secure a good space! We got here *pretty* late but turns out luck was on our side. We crammed ourselves into a tiny little spot we found and were waiting with the rest of the eager crowd for the sun to dip below the Aegean Sea and light up the village of Oia in its magical dusk colors. There’s a reason why this sunset is known to be one of the most beautiful sunsets in the world and there is no iota of doubt about that! The whole experience itself was so amazing; I have never witnessed a sunset that so many people have gathered for. Everyone was applauding and cheering as the sun went down, the energy was so infectious and incredible with good vibes all around. Anush and I will truly cherish this memory dearly for the rest of our lives.

Stay tuned for my Santorini travel guide next week. You can also catch my Mykonos and Paros travel guides in the meanwhile.

Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by! xoxo

Jyo