Best Santorini Boat Tours (2024 UPDATED)

Santorini is an island, so getting the boat and “moving around” is one of the best things to do on the island. There are a lot of Santorini Boat Tours that are currently on offer, but they don’t all offer the same things, so here is what you need to know. ⛵

BEST SANTORINI BOAT TOUR: All-Inclusive Luxury Catamaran Small Group Cruise

I am pretty sure that a boat tour in Santorini will easily be the highlight of your trip, and it will be a shame if you don’t do one.

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There are a ton of boat tours to choose from, but all of them usually follow the same route, taking you to the volcano inside the caldera (the volcanic sea lagoon), the volcano island, the volcanic hot springs, the island of Thirassia, the famous red beach and even the white beach of Santorini.

The cheap sailing cruises to the volcano are very popular and it shouldn’t cost you more than 40-50 euros per person. They usually last about 5 hours and there is one in the morning and on the afternoon. You can book the cheap Santorini boat tour here.

This is on board the cheap Santorini boat tour. The cheap Santorini boat tour will take you to the volcano, the hot springs and the island of Thirassia. These tours are carried out on large wooden sailing boats (with a motor though) and in the high season they sell out quickly so you should book it well in advance.

Spiridakos boat tour in Santorini is one of the most famous and well-established tour operators on the island with decades of experience. If you hop on one of their tours (usually on a catamaran), you will also be offered (included in the price) a full meal and drinks as there are people on board cooking it. You can book Spiridakos sailing cruise here.

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE SANTORINI BOAT TOURS

There are mainly 3 types of boat tours you can take in Santorini:
- Cheap boat tours that will take you to the volcano, the hot springs and the sunset (around 3-4 hours and usually in large sailing boats with more than 20 people – no food is offered on board and they usually depart from Athinios port Cost: approx 30-40 euros per person
- Catamaran boat tours that will take you to the same route (pretty much) but will usually pick you up from your hotel and also offer you lunch or bbq on board (around 5-6 hours) in a smaller group of people (usually 5- 10 people on the catamaran) – Cost: approx 100-200 euros per person
- Luxury VIP Boat Tours that will also take you to the same route for about 5-6 hours but will usually offer a luxury lunch on board and a luxury boat, catamaran or even a luxury yacht – Cost: more than 200 euros per person

All tours are of excellent quality with very experienced crew, and whenever food is offered, it will be of high quality (usually seafood and fresh fish).

There are usually two boat tours per day for every operator: morning tour (no sunset) and an afternoon tour (sunset included). The morning tour will allow you more time to swim but doesn’t include the sunset. The afternoon boat tour will give you the opportunity to enjoy the famous sunset.

If you are on a honeymoon you MUST do a boat tour and preferably one on a catamaran as this will provide more luxury, though it is more expensive. There is nothing wrong with the cheapest ones and they are great, too if you are on a budget.

Most of the Santorini Boat tours operate between mid April and end of October. but there are a couple of boat tours that also operate till the end of November.

The famous Spiridakos Boat Tour is this one that you can book instantly. Spiridakos and his crew have decades of experience on Santorini boat tours and they are famous for their tours.

You shouldn’t worry if you are easily getting seasick because the waters are almost always very calm because you will be sailing mostly in the sea lagoon, which is calm 99% of the time.

If you book one of the most expensive private boat tours then you would have the opportunity to change the departure and arrival times as per your needs (but these tours can be expensive)