Santorini splendor - 3 days unveiling the gems of the Mediterranean pearl

A bit of context

Santorini (Σαντορίνη), officially called Tira (Greek: Θήρα) and Thera in antiquity, is an island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 kilometers southeast of mainland Greece. It is the largest island in a small circular archipelago that bears the same name and is the remnant of a volcanic caldera.

Santorini, a Greek island in the Cyclades archipelago, is renowned for its dramatic volcanic landscapes, stunning sunsets, and white-washed buildings perched on cliff edges. Its history, shaped by volcanic eruptions and human resilience, is as captivating as its beauty.

In the 13th century, the first of the Venetians to arrive was Iacopo Barozzi, when they named the island Santorini, until 1335. By the Barozzi it was annexed to the dukes of Naxos, Sanudo, and from 1397 it passed to the Crispo family. It was occupied by the João Miquez in 1556. The island gradually fell under Ottoman rule from the mid-16th century onwards and joined Greece during the War of Independence in 1821. The archipelago's last volcanic eruption occurred in 1950.

Geographically, Santorini is the remnant of a volcanic caldera, formed by a massive eruption around 1600 BCE. The explosion, one of the largest in recorded history, destroyed the Minoan civilization on the island. The caldera's collapse created a crescent-shaped bay, now filled with the Aegean Sea. The islands of Therasia, Nea Kameni, and Palea Kameni are smaller remnants of the volcano.