Santorini (Thira) Kythnos ferry

Santorini (Thira) Guide

Located in the southern Aegean Sea is the Greek island of Santorini and lies around 200 km to the south east of the Greek mainland. It forms part of the Cycladic group of islands and is the only location in Europe to have a hot desert climate. A popular pastime for visitors to Santorini is to take a cruise to the island's three islets, which were created in ancient times during a volcanic eruption. The islets are called Nea Kammeni, Palea Kammeni and Thirassia and provide an excellent vantage point for visitors to see the volcano, being located to the west of the island. The island's capital is Fira and is full of typical Cycladic houses with whitewashed walls, blue domed churches and stepped streets full of shops, cafes, restaurants and bars.

The island of Santorini has two ports. The main port is Athinios, where all the ferry and commercial boats arrive. There is also the Old Port which is mostly used for cruise ships. From the main port, ferries can be taken to Piraeus, Rafina and to the other islands in the Cyclades. Both conventional and high speed ferries operate on these routes.

Kythnos Guide

Kythnos is a Greek island that is located very close to Attica and is part of the Cyclades group of islands. The island, sometimes called Thermia because of the thermal springs on the island, is one of the lesser visited islands of the Cyclades but is popular with visitors because of its thermal springs. There is a modern spa located in Loutra, with two hot springs in the area. The spring of Ayio Anargyroi and the spring of Caucasus, where the temperature of the water reaches 52C, are famous for their therapeutic effects and have been since ancient times.

The island's harbour is located at Merihas and the island's capital is called Hora and are both located in the north of the island. In the south, only the areas by the bay of Ayios Dimitrios and Panayia Canála are inhabited. This is where a famous monastery is located within a pine forest.

Ferry services from Kythnos depart to the Port of Piraeus or to the port of Lavrio. The crossing to Piraeus takes approximately 3 hours by conventional ferry and approximately one hour by high speed ferry. The crossing time to Lavrio takes about 2 hours. Kythnos is also connected by sea with the islands of Serifos, Sifnos, Milos, Santorini, Sikinos, Folegandros and Kea.