That Cool Travel Couple

The Oia to Fira hike is one of the best hikes we’ve ever done. The views are absolutely stunning and it is very doable in one day. There are plenty of cool stops along the way to explore so you can rest if you need to. 

The Beginning

When we departed our villa at the White Pearl Villas in Oia one sunny Santorini morning, the hotel staff asked if we needed a taxi. We slung our backpacks on our backs and cheerily said “no thanks!”. Their jaws practically dropped. They asked we were going, and we replied “to Imerovigli, we are walking!”. They had never heard of this before. 

To clarify, TONS of people walk from Oia to Imerovigli and then further on to Fira along the craggy Santorini coastline. We suppose not too many people do it with their belongings on their backs. This method of transit was totally a last minute decision for us. This is one of the reasons we really love traveling with our backpacks! It allows us to take advantage of last minute plans and be flexible. We highly encourage to do as much of this trek as you can, with or without your luggage! 

The total trek from Oia to Fira is about six and a half miles in total. It’s about five and a half miles to Imerovigli, then another mile further to Fira. A Lot of the trek is actually on paved sidewalk so not very challenging. Other parts are on a dirt path but to us it didn’t seem overgrown or too rocky. Overall we thought the path was very well maintained. 

The challenging part of this trek is the incline. From Oia to Fira you will mostly be walking uphill. If you do the trek in reverse you’ll be going mostly downhill, so less challenging. Imerovigli is actually the highest point on the trek at 350 meters above sea level. There are many ups and downs along the trail but overall it is very doable. Just be sure to bring plenty of water with you. There are a few shops along the way, but honestly not too many. 

The Middle

Part of the way through the hike, you can actually see the entire curve of teh coastline. You can see Oia behind you, and Imerovigli and Fira up ahead of you, and the sparkling Aegean off to your right.

We really enjoyed taking a breather at the Profitis Ilias Church. We sat on a bench outside, caught our breath, had some water and took in the sparkling blue water. 

There are donkeys along the way if you get tired! 

Check out these amazing views of Skaros rock as we were coming up on Imerovigli. Once we got to the town we grabbed some beers from a general store and sat on a bench to take in the views.

The End (Sort of…)

We were staying in Imerovigli at Hotel Sunny Villas which has stunning views over Skaros rock and the caldera, so we ended the hike a little early. Check out Anastasi Church which is a classic blue domed structure for amazing views.

The Actual End

The following day we walked through the town of Firostefani to Fira to catch our tour of the caldera and hot springs (you can find that link here). Here is a snapshot of beautiful Fira! Its an excellent port town where you can catch ferries to other islands, or smaller tours exploring the area. There is an abundance of delicious food and market stalls selling souvenirs and hand crafted arts and crafts.

Hungry for more? Catch our full Greece itinerary here!