Santorini Cultural Tour: Traditional Villages and Akrotiri Excavation

Immerse yourself in the rich culture and history of Santorini on this 4-hour private tour. Explore traditional villages, visit ancient excavations, and experience the unique architecture of the island. Book now for an authentic and unforgettable journey!

Duration: 4 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Pyrgos - Start your cultural experience with the village of Pyrgos, the oldest village in Santorini, known as the island’s “historic monument”. Built on the top of a hill, this settlement holds a 16th century Venetian castle. A charming location to wander around, built by the locals to fortify the area into small alleys and circle shape roads. The village is surrounded by vineyards, blue domed churches, narrow cave houses with charming balconies and pebbled paths.
  • Megalochori - Traditional Village - Continue to Megalochori one of the most picturesque and quaint villages of the island with typical and classical Cycladic houses dug into the volcanic rock. The scenery includes white washed tower bells, underground caves and churches with blue domes. Stroll around the narrow pathways of this non touristy settlement, enjoy your Greek coffee at the pebble stone square and get involved with locals lifestyle & culture.
  • Castelli of Emporio - Discover Emporio, the entry to another past era and the island’s commercial center during the Venetian occupation. In Medieval times, the inhabitants of this village used to build their houses side by side in small quaint streets, so that they could shield themselves against the pirates. An exploration of the well-maintained castle constructed in the mid-15th century will give you a lovely sentiment as you walk through its paths.
  • Akrotiri Archaeological Site - Explore Akrotiri Archaeological Site and go back into time to marvel the secrets and wonders of this lost ancient city. This 4000 year old Bronze age settlement prospered for centuries before being eradicated by a great volcanic eruption. Eventually it was buried in Volcanic Ash, which ironically helped to protect the artifacts from being destroyed. Stroll through the ancient walls and take a glimpse of a Minoan town with the 3-story buildings, well preserved frescoes, an elaborate drainage system and much more.
  • Santorini - Enjoy a 5-Hour private journey on a deluxe and comfortable vehicle. Your experienced local driver/guide will pick you up at the time and place of your choice and share his knowledge of Santorini’s culture, traditions and curiosities. Your private experience with us will be flexible and customized to suit your preferences.
What's Included
  • Round-trip transfers from hotel, port, or airport
  • Complimentary bottled water
  • Free entry to Akrotiri Archaeological Site
  • Expert local driver/guide
  • Deluxe, air-conditioned private van
  • Maps and engaging live commentary
What's Not Included
  • Cable car tickets (6 EUR per person, per ride) for cruise ship travelers
Additional Information

Explore unique and fresh locations with a genuine and authentic journey. This 4-hour private tour will provide you with a connection to the heart of Santorini, its history and way of life. Your local guide/driver will lead you to the traditional villages of Pyrgos, Megalochori, Emporio & the renowned ruins of Akrotiri in a plush and comfortable van. Engage with the local customs as you stroll along picturesque trails, delving into the island’s past and Greek culture. Experience Venetian fortifications, gain knowledge about the island’s distinctive architecture and delve into the renowned excavations of the ancient town of Akrotiri. Departure time and pick-up location are tailor-made according to your preferences. Decide your own departure time for an unforgettable journey.

  • Cruise ship passengers must provide the following information at time of booking: ship name, docking time, disembarkation time and re-boarding time
  • Children must be accompanied by an adult
  • Your guide/driver is not allowed to guide within Akrotiri’s Excavations. You may hire one of the licensed guides in Archaeology provided by the site
  • The itinerary can be customized to suit your preferences
Location
Pyrgos
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(96 Ratings)
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Maya_g
Aug 14, 2024
Amazing tour! - Our guide Nikos was amazing and the vehicle was spotless and comfortable. We traveled with a baby and had no problems at all. Akrotiri was fantastic!!
Review provided by Viator
Bob_f
Aug 11, 2024
Nice tour limited sights - The vehicle and tour guid were perfect. Sights not great but good. English speaking tour guid. Air conditioned vehicle
Review provided by Viator
Kendallw330
Jul 14, 2024
Amazingly unique tour! - This was an amazing tour! Vasilis was our guide and he did an incredible job. We originally booked the Santorini cultural tour but he customized our tour so we were able to stop by a winery and end our tour in Oia to see the town. His love for the island and local knowledge was unmatched. We did this tour instead of an excursion through our cruise ship, and we are so glad that we did! A very great value and we felt like we got to see parts of the island we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Would definitely recommend to anyone traveling to Santorini!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tillytravellers
Jun 28, 2024
Amazing day - We took a seven hour private tour for three adults and loved every minute. They recommended that we start our day at 8.00am which was perfect as we got to beat the crowds. We covered an enormous amount in the day and feel that we got a good insight into life on Santorini as well as seeing all the major attractions. Our guide Vasilis has lived on the island all his life and was able to share his local knowledge and family history. He was an exceptionally safe driver and made it easy for us by dropping us close to major attractions and then meeting us at a designated spot after parking the van. This was ideal as it gave us time to explore as well as being guided. When he met us at our hotel we initially planned the day together taking into consideration what we wanted to see and local conditions. He showed us on a map of the island where we could go. We decided to have lunch at the black beach for about 45 mins, which was very relaxing, but not an essential part of the tour if you wanted to reduce the time. Driving on Mykonos looked stressful and this tour allowed us to focus on the sights and enjoying the scenery rather than navigating local traffic and winding, narrow roads. It was a very memorable and enjoyable day and I would highly recommend Santorini Road trips due to the high quality of their service, vehicles and guides. Thank you.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
F2297nfjenb
Jun 27, 2024
Best Tour of Santorini: Look no further - Our tour of the southern part of Santorini, including Akrotiri, with Tasos was simply outstanding! Tasos's depth of knowledge about the history, culture, and villages of the area truly made the experience unforgettable. His passion for sharing the stories and significance behind the sites we visited added immense value to our journey. My kids, aged 17 and 22, were thoroughly engaged and fascinated by Tasos's expertise. The tour not only showcased the beauty of Santorini but also provided a rich understanding of its heritage. We highly recommend Tasos for a comprehensive and enlightening exploration of this stunning island. This tour by Tasos was a 10 out of 5. Pictures do not do justice to all we saw.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jen_b
Jun 26, 2024
Best tour ever! - Our tour of the southern part of Santorini, including Akrotiri, with Tasos was simply outstanding! Tasos's depth of knowledge about the history, culture, and villages of the area truly made the experience unforgettable. His passion for sharing the stories and significance behind the sites we visited added immense value to our journey. My kids, aged 17 and 22, were thoroughly engaged and fascinated by Tasos's expertise. The tour not only showcased the beauty of Santorini but also provided a rich understanding of its heritage. We highly recommend Tasos for a comprehensive and enlightening exploration of this stunning island. It was 10 stars all around. We highly recommend asking that Tasos is your tour guide.
Review provided by Viator
Kenje_m
Jun 25, 2024
Great half day cultural Santorini tour - Our guide, Alex, was great. He was very knowledgeable- giving us historical and current info about what we saw. Pace was perfect and somewhat flexible for our family and perfect amount of time. Van was comfortable and clean. Highly recommend.
Review provided by Viator
Kenjem2024
Jun 25, 2024
Great morning cultural tour on Santorini - Our guide, Alex, was so helpful and did a fantastic job of explaining each stop with both history and local flavor. He moved at our pace, but made sure we knew what would be the best use of time. And, the van was clean and comfortable. Highly recommend this tour with Alex.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Q8673mdstephaniea
May 17, 2024
Great way to experience Santorini - We had a great time. A family of four, 2 parents and two young adult children, our guide Alex helped make this tour active enough and historical enough for everyone involved. He checked in with us to help decide what all we wanted to see as we went along and gave great suggestions along the way as well as interesting information about the island. He is a fantastic driver along the crazy roads of Santorini, always seemed to know a secret parking spot to keep the tour flowing nicely - no small feat on this island! He made sure to take us along roads we hadn’t been before and see new things. All in all, a wonderful way to experience Santorini with a great guide.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Marjorie_e
May 1, 2024
Great tour of Santorini - Michael’s friendliness, knowledge and effort to plan the best trip for us made this a five star experience. We would definitely recommend it!
Review provided by Viator
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up to 8 guests
1 Adult
September 2024
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