Thira - Santorini

Port of Fira Bay

The bay of Fira is the old harbor of Thira’s capital, which lies at the foot of its caldera slope. It is located on the western side of the island, in a distance of 8 km from Thira International Airport. It constitutes a nodal terminal for most cruise lines around the Aegean and the wider Mediterranean region. Fira ranks first in Greece in the number of cruise ship arrivals, hosting around 900.000 passengers every year. The transfer from Fira Bay can be undertaken either through the 587 stone build steps – on foot or via cable car.

Fira Bay is also the basic starting point for boat trips to the volcanoes of the Old and New Kameni and the adjacent islet of Thirasia, as well as a gateway towards the city of Fira, with its picturesque stone-carved alleys and its round-rooftop houses perched on the edge of the caldera.

Athinios Port, the Main Port of Santorini

The port “Athinios” is the main port of Thira and it is positioned geographically to the west coast of the island. It is the main gate to the island for the transport of both passengers and vehicles as well as goods to supply the market. In cooperation with the second port of the island, Fira Bay, Athinios also ensures the proper disembarkation of tourists from the cruise ships carried out in an immaculate manner by the boats of the well-organized Thira's Boat Owners’ Union. The transition from the port to the rest of the island can be done by using a private vehicle, the local bus network or taxi.

Fira Bay and Athinios Port have a Common Anchorage

One of the peculiarities that the port facilities of Thira present is that cruise ships can not anchore in a port infrastructure. For this reason, the sea area at west of Old Port of Fira has been set as port facility and it helps cruise ships to stay anchored. The current system of four floating buoys which are anchored  to 200 meters depth, provides a mooring possibility for small ships in buoys 1 & 2 and for bigger ships in buoys 3 & 4, but  needs immediate maintenance and repairing work. A study has been completed and procedures for the approval of the work and competition conduct are underway. The common anchorage of Old Port of Fira and Athinios (main port of Thira) is periodically activated only in the presence of a ship applying the security measures of ISPS Code.