Island Bus Tour: The Majestic Spots Of Santorini
Santorini, Greece
- 9 to 10 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
Explore our promoted experiences
Overview
Discover the best of the famous Greek island of Santorini—and leave all the logistics and navigation to someone else—during this full-day bus tour. Take in the views at the Prophet Elias Monastery, explore the village of Pyrgos, see the ancient ruins of Akrotiri, relax at the Red Beach, grab a bite to eat in Fira, and watch a stunning sunset from world-famous Oia. Don’t miss a thing during this comprehensive tour of Santorini.
- This tour is great for first-time or time-pressed visitors
- Travel in comfort aboard an air-conditioned vehicle
- Have the special chance to view the sunset at Oia—a Santorini must
- Multiple convenient pickup and drop-off points across Santorini are available
What's Included
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- Children under 4 years old can get free
- English speaking escort
- Pick up and drop off service
- Children under 4 years old will not reserve a seat on the bus. They will sit on parents' lap
- Admission Fee - Akrotiri Archaeological Site€20.00 per person
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Pickup details
Children under 4 years old can get free. Children under 4 years old will not reserve a seat on the bus. They will sit on parents' lap. The voucher should be printed twice. This is not a private hotel pick up, The guests should wait for the bus outside their hotel on the main road (all hotels are not accessible by bus). Bus Departure: Kamari 11:15, Monolithos 11:20, Messaria 11:20, Karterados 11.25, Fira 11:30, Perissa 11.15, Pyrgos 11:35, Megalochori 11:30, Vlichada 11:20, Perivolos 11:20, Akrotiri 11:25
Itinerary
1
Prophet Elias Lookout Point
25 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Pyrgos Kallistis
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Akrotiri Archaeological Site
1 hour 20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
4
Red Beach
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
5
Fira
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
6
Oia
2 hours • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 50 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.1
based on 140 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Nagaraja_R, Jun 2026
We had a terrible time finding the bus pick up stop! There was no clarity relying the message. We had to talk back and forth between stops, there was no one to give proper location. It was poorly organized. The tour guide was not friendly or had a jovial attitude. She did not do much, just constantly focusing on time to return to the bus! The last stop for sunset was excellent! It was a highlight of the tour!
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re sorry to hear that you found the pickup process frustrating and that the tour did not fully meet your expectations.
We would, however, like to clarify that detailed directions and the exact pickup point are provided to all guests in advance of the tour. We make every effort to ensure that this information is clear so that guests can arrive at the designated meeting point without difficulty. We understand that finding a pickup location in a busy area can sometimes be challenging, and we appreciate your feedback as it helps us identify where we may be able to make the instructions even clearer.
Regarding the guide and the focus on time, this is an important part of a bus tour. With a larger group and multiple stops scheduled throughout the day, the guide’s responsibility is to keep the tour running according to schedule. This allows all guests to visit the planned locations and enjoy the full itinerary without delays affecting the experience for the entire group. We appreciate that this may have come across as an excessive focus on timing, but maintaining the schedule is necessary to ensure a smooth experience for everyone on the bus.
That said, we’re pleased to hear that you particularly enjoyed the final sunset stop and that it was the highlight of your tour. We appreciate you recognizing that part of the experience, and we hope that, despite the issues you mentioned, you were able to enjoy the beauty of the destination and the overall itinerary.
Paula_M, Sep 2025
Great day. Guide Nikos was brilliant. Really informative and funny.
Definitely a good way to see the island. Worth the money.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for the great review! We're glad you had a fantastic day and that Nikos made the tour both fun and informative. Happy to hear you found it worth it — hope to see you again soon!
KSHAMIP_S, Jul 2025
Our entire family enjoyed. The tour guide (Niko) was the best. He had deep knowledge of the island and provided us all the proper information for everything.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
We are so glad your whole family got to enjoy our tour with our guide Nikos. Our staff strive to make a memorable experience for all of our guests through their knowledge and guidance. We hope to see you again in the future.
Nico_M, Jul 2025
The tour guide was excellent, and learned a lot about the country.
Culture, religion and population, speak a good English
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for the time taken to write the review. We are so glad you got to enjoy our tour. We strive through our staff for our guests to enjoy whilst learning about our island. We hope to see you again in the future.
stevenmichaelgibbs, Jul 2025
A long day especially at the end swapping coaches and dropping people off. Nixos kept saying I’ll tell you about that later and never did! But if you want to see the island in a day then recommend.
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you for the time taken to write the review. We are glad you got to see beauty of our island. We are sorry that you we not fully informed by the guide about the coach changes. We will take your comments into consideration, as we strive to improve through them.
Natasha_P, Jul 2025
We only had a few days to spend in Santorini so booked this tour hoping for an easy way to check out the highlights of the island, and that’s exactly what we got! So glad we booked this. Our tour guide Nikos did an incredible job at showing us around, explaining our options at each stop, telling us stories and interesting facts along the way, and overall kept us all informed and entertained - this man deserves a pay rise! Would recommend to anyone visiting Santorini :)
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you for the great review! We are so happy you got to enjoy our tour and our tour guide's special energy so that you can gain knowledge about the island whilst seeing its beauty. We hope to see you again in the future.
Sandra_M, Oct 2024
Very knowledgeable guide. This tour could have got a 4 or 5 if the company provided audio radios as the group was very large, in noisy places & due to time if you were slow a lot more information was missed. Saw lots of Santorini & felt very safe with our driver even on those hairpin curves. Lots of hills & uneven terrain.
Richa_K, Oct 2024
Oia Village: Witnessing the stunning whitewashed houses, blue-domed churches, and breathtaking sunsets that make Oia famous.
Debra_F, Sep 2024
Enjoyed the excavation site of the ancient ruins. I signed up for a tour but most was dropping us off at an area to buy trinkets and food. I didn’t want either. Then we went to see a dull sunset. A wasted 2 hours. Cannot recommend this tour.
Chelsea_C, Aug 2024
Awesome day really enjoyed our time. Our tour guide was a super star really easy to hear and sheared great stories.
Samantha_J, Oct 2023
This is a great way to see key parts of the island, especially if you are there for a short visit like myself.
Maria was our guide and she was fantastic. So knowledgeable with everything about the island and not just the areas we were going too. The itinerary stated time at the Akrotiri Archaeological Site and the Red Beach, however when we got there we could only do one and not both. I was quite disappointed with this as I wanted to see both.
Oia for sunset was obviously hectic with people but Maria had told us of quieter spots to see it which was great. Still had plenty of time before the sunset to see the windmills and domes for photos.
Pick up area was right next to where I was staying which was handy and had good communication the day before.
John_B, Oct 2023
It was a good way to see a lot of the island however the tour guide didn't provide a lot of information. We had a lot of free time in each stop (appreciated) but that also means it was a self-guided discovery of most locations.
MaryLou_T, Sep 2023
I was looking forward to see the Red Beach. Tour guide Maria only gave us 30 mins to enjoy the sights including the 10 walk each way. Also just before we got there, she informed us the beach was closed. The Red Beach was the only reason I booked this tour. Shame on me. Instead of disappointing us, she could have mentioned there was Black beach near by so I could have taken a little dip. Wasted my time and money.
Himanshu_P, Aug 2023
Maria the tour guide was knowledgeable, caring and friendly. Loved it. We had sufficient breaks through out the day.
Hayley_W, Nov 2022
Lovely trip, well organised and got to see all parts of the island.
Maria, our tour guide was brilliant and very knowledgeable.
I would advise this trip if visiting the island for the first time. We weren’t however that bothered about the archaeological site. Was expecting something different/more interesting.
Overall, great tour.
Pam_D, Oct 2022
Maria the guide was awesome!! Very informative, fab tour, except high price of archaelogical museum entry!! The walk up to red beach was a nice view!! She was very friendly and full of Jokes, most of these tourist on this bus were not as fun!!
Only issue I have had with kamari tours, each time they have picked me up they have always been late and I have been there at pick up point earlier than their specified time!!
Maria_L, Aug 2022
Maria was really fun, she would tell us the best tips for the town and was very cool. The spots they took us to were amazing!!! My favorite part was discovering the villas and watching the sunset!
Andrew_M, Jul 2022
Monestary of profit Elias & excavation site were beautiful. Tour was worth the money. Maria the tour guide was super friendly and knowledgeable. However, customer service was not helpful. Called a woman to confirm the pickup time (3 different times were posted between this app, their tour office and the ticket they provided). They were not very forgiving that we were running a few minutes late. Was called a “lazy American” after pointing out the fact 3 different pickup times were posted. Man helping me on Tuesday July 5 was extremely rude!
Loved the tour, but would recommend taking a similar one with a different tour line.
barbara_d, Jul 2022
Great tour to see all island by bus. very nice and friendly guide Maria, she was happy to answer all mine and my friend question. not enough spare time to see Akrotriri. also not enough time after sunset which was at 8;47 pm and then had to rush to the bus as we were told to be at 9 pm at the bus.
Ahlem_H, Jun 2022
The tour was all day and involved walking in heat. Not much time to rest and explore the villages. The archeology point was not very engaging. Maria was a lovely host. More time exploring the villages to shop around, eat and appreciate the different villages we passed would have been great. Red beach views were amazing.
Widya_S, Oct 2021
Great tour for first timers! If you don’t know much about Santorini, this type of tour can safe you time & money! It’s worth it!The tour guide was knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. They picked us up on time too!
Seungkue_O, Oct 2021
What a lovely trip. It was worth doing it all day. Basically they brought us everywhere in Santorini.
Michael_F, Aug 2021
My wife and I were only staying in Santorini for 2.5 days, and this tour seemed like a perfect way to see a large portion of the island in a single tour, and for a price cheaper than a round trip taxi from our hotel. The description promises a hotel pick-up/drop-off, and time in a variety of locations, including Akrotiri, Red Beach, Thira, and Oia. It seemed too good to be true, and in a lot of ways it was. Here's how our day played out:
1. Despite the promises of the description, we were instructed to find a way to get to a bus pick-up spot over a kilometer from our hotel 40 minutes before the tour's advertised 11:45 AM start time. We were the first ones on the bus, and spent the first hour plus picking up about 20 other guests at their hotels in various locations across the island.
2. The first two stops were a monastery on top of the island (which was closed, but still a beautiful picture spot) and a church that was up a ton of stairs. Each stop was supposed to be 20 minutes, but stretched longer because it was a 10+ minute walk to and from these locations once the bus parked. Also, during the ride to these locations, our guide was mostly silent.
3. From there, we took another mostly silent ride to Akrotiri. The description promises this location is a stop before Red Beach, but our guide informed us once we got there that we had to choose either Akrotiri or Red Beach, but could not do both. My wife and I chose Akrotiri, which is a nice spot and well worth a visit. Also, although it was after 2:00 PM, our guide told everyone not to eat, as there would be more lunch options in Thira, which was our next stop.
4. At this point, it was nearly 4:00 PM, and we were starving. We were told we'd have over 2 hours in Thira of free time to eat and take pictures of the caldera from an overlook. However, our guide then instructed us to follow her and hustled us to a restaurant. Everyone sat down, thinking it was included with the tour. When I asked her though, she said it wasn't, but told us that if we went somewhere else, she couldn't lead us to the caldera overlook. The restaurant didn't look great, so my wife and I went elsewhere, and found our own way to the caldera viewpoint (it was 5 minutes away walking). It rubbed us the wrong way that the guide tried to trick our group into eating somewhere with zero explanation. Thira is a beautiful town with shopping and a lot of restaurants.
5. From there, the tour went to Oia for the sunset. We were on our own here for about 2 hours, and had no issues, although at sunset time the crowds were packed in to get pictures.
6. They packed our bus at around 8:45 PM to take people home. Numerous people were dropped off at their hotels. When we asked to be taken to our hotel, as it was a dark 1+ km walk back, the driver and guide refused and said they couldn't go there. We paid for a taxi to take us back instead.
Overall, we did get to see a large portion of the island, and had wanted to go to Akrotini, Thira, and Oia, so the tour succeeded in that way. But numerous things rubbed us the wrong way and made for a stressful day: no pick-up, rushed stops, super late lunch, lack of guided narration, and no drop-off.
If you treat this tour as a glorified cab, it's probably worth it. If you want something more, you should look elsewhere.
Martha_E, Jul 2019
The idea of this trip seemed great but in reality it was a very stressful day. The day was more of a sprint than a tour. The pace was very fast with no bathroom or water breaks factored in to the schedule. Our tour operator had to walk very fast to keep up with the schedule and more than once lost members of the group or group members dropped out because they couldn't keep up.
Asenet_C, Jun 2019
The staff of the tour bus were so professional. They were prepared and geared up to help tourists coming from different countries. We’re from United States and we truly love the island. Thank you for the time spent with our group.
Response from Host, Jun 2019
Dearest Guest,
Thank you for writing about your experience in one of our excursions in Santorini! We are happy to hear that you had a great time and enjoyed our tour.
omardario_m, Oct 2025
not to miss Santorini, a beauty its streets, the sunset in some bar, etc. its people
Auto-translated
Response from Host, Nov 2025
Thank you for sharing your love for Santorini! We’re so happy you enjoyed the charm, sunsets, and friendly spirit of the island. Hope to see you back again soon!
Bianca_D, Jul 2025
The tour was well planned and you had plenty of time to explore everything. Fira is very nice and Oia crowded. But still very nice. Nikos went to great lengths
Auto-translated
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you for the time taken to write the review, we are so glad you got to enjoy the sights of Santorini. We strive through our staff to make our tours memorable for our customers. We hope to see you again on one of our tours.
Rosalia_M, Jul 2024
Eine sehr schöne Tagestour. Die Fahrt im Reisebus war angenehm und Maria hat uns alles gezeigt und war sehr geduldig. Preis/Leistung stimmte.
Sabine_D, Jul 2024
Chouette visite, ça permet de voir les points importants de Santorin.
Bien organisé.
Très chouette guide, dynamique
Amir_B, Jul 2023
Dårlig planlægning (startstedet blev brugt som mellemstop i 2 timer) Til sidst skulle vi stresses for at nå bussen...For lidt tid afsat.. Man kunne sløjfe mellemstoppet og bruge tiden til sidst.
Man kunne sagtens servere noget koldt vand i bussen...
Andre selskaber havde individuelle høretelefoner, så rejseguiden kunne tale til dem og forklare seværdighederne, men vi kunne dårlig høre vores
Aircon var dejligt varm i stedet for afkløling
From $60.70
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
Compare Similar Experiences
Current
Island Bus Tour: The Majestic Spots Of Santorini
140
10 hours
Free Cancellation
From
$60.70
Customers Who Bought This Tour Also Bought
Explore Similar Things to Do
- Food Tours
- Shore Excursions
- Half-day Tours
- Wine Tastings
- Bus Tours
- Food & Drink
- Private Sightseeing Tours
- Tours, Sightseeing & Cruises
- Private and Luxury
- Cultural Tours
- Santorini
- Half-day Tours - Ios
- Food Tours - Naxos
- Shore Excursions - Naxos
- Half-day Tours - Naxos
- Wine Tastings - Naxos
- Bus Tours - Naxos
- Food Tours - Paros
- Shore Excursions - Paros
- Half-day Tours - Paros
- Wine Tastings - Paros
- Bus Tours - Paros
Attractions in Santorini, Greece
- Ancient Thera Tours & Tickets
- Fira–Oia Hike Tours & Tickets
- Monastery of Profitis Ilias (Moni Profitou Iliou) Tours & Tickets
- Oia Tours & Tickets
- Akrotiri Tours & Tickets
- Perivolos Beach Tours & Tickets
- Port of Santorini (Athinios Port) Tours & Tickets
- Pyrgos Tours & Tickets
- Kamari Beach Tours & Tickets
- Santorini Volcano Tours & Tickets
- Thirasia (Therasia) Tours & Tickets
- Perissa Beach Tours & Tickets
- Red Beach Tours & Tickets
- Fira Tours & Tickets
- Amoudi Bay Tours & Tickets
- Skaros Rock Tours & Tickets
- Nea Kameni Tours & Tickets
- White Beach Tours & Tickets