Santorini Ferry Port Guide: Athinios, the Old Port and the Way Up to Fira

Santorini has two harbours with different jobs, and a ferry passenger and a cruise passenger usually arrive at different ones. According to Ferryhopper's port guide, passenger ferries use Athinios, while the Old Port (Gialos) below Fira is used by cruise ships and smaller boats. Our Santorini ferry hub lists the routes and operators; this post covers the harbours, the way up to Fira and what to check before you book. Everything below was read on official or operator pages on 29 October 2026, and where only a booking site or a visitor site says it, we say so.

1. Two harbours, two jobs

The Municipal Port Fund of Thira, the port body, lists twelve port zones for Santorini and Thirasia, among them Athinios and Fira bay. Its cruise page says cruise ships anchor in the caldera and are also served from the Bay of Fira, which has a pier with a useful length of 297 m, open 24 hours, from which most boats for trips to the volcano and nearby islands leave. That page does not describe how passengers come ashore from an anchored ship, so ask your cruise line how and where you will land.

For ferries, Ferryhopper's port guide calls Athinios the island's main hub for ferry arrivals and departures, and puts Fira about 7.5 km from it. The visitor site santorini.gr says ferries arrive at Athinios, from where you can take a taxi, a bus or a rental car.

2. The way up from the Old Port

The Fund's cruise page gives three ways from the Fira landing to the town on the cliff:

• The cable car, which it says takes about 3 minutes to reach Fira at 220 m altitude and carries 1,200 people an hour.
• A donkey ride, offered as an alternative to the cable car or the steps.
• The 587 steps.

It adds that buses, minivans and similar vehicles transport visitors from the Fira port. We found no official page describing step-free access at the Old Port, the cable car stations or the donkey route, and the Fund's page has no accessibility information, so ask your cruise line and the cable car office before you rely on any of them.

The cable car's own timetable page lists, from 1 September to 31 October, 07:00 to 22:00 every 20 minutes, with the last trip from the top station at 21:40. For 1 to 30 November and 1 to 31 March it lists 07:30 to 10:30 and 14:30 to 18:00 every 30 minutes, with "special trips" in the gap only if maintenance allows, so a shoulder-season visit can mean a four-hour break in service. The page adds that timetables can change without notice. On fares, the cable car's own price list shows a one-way ticket at 10.00 EUR and luggage at 5.00 EUR in its 2025 column (6.00 and 3.00 for 2017 to 2024), while the Fund's page still lists 6.00 and 3.00. Neither page shows a 2026 price, so check at the station.

3. Athinios and the ferry

Ferryhopper's port guide says there are cafes, banks, car rentals and a parking lot near Athinios, that public buses run to Fira and take about 25 minutes, and that taxis may be hard to find in peak season, so a transfer is best arranged in advance. It also warns that the ticket collection point can get very busy just before departure, and suggests arriving at least one hour before your ferry. Santorini.gr says taxis are limited in number and do not use meters, so confirm the price first, and recommends booking tickets in advance in peak season. We found no official page that states the walking distances, gradients or step-free facilities at Athinios, so treat that as a question for your operator.

4. Routes and what the booking site says

We give no crossing times. Ferryhopper's Santorini overview and its route pages disagree on some of them, for example on Mykonos to Santorini, and the operator's own ticket is what counts. We could not open SeaJets' site, so everything we say about SeaJets comes from Ferryhopper.

5. Tickets, weather and access

• Blue Star Ferries says web check-in opens 48 hours before departure and closes 2 hours before, and you show the e-ticket with an ID card or passport. Its general conditions ask passengers to be at the embarkation area at least one hour before departure.
• The company says it is not liable for schedule changes caused by orders from the Ministry or the port authorities, and that tickets for a cancelled departure are exchanged for the next scheduled departure, subject to availability.
• Strikes and itinerary changes are posted as notices on Blue Star's site. For example, a notice last updated on 26 October 2026 set out changes for a 24-hour strike on Friday 30 October 2026, including the cancellation of the Blue Star 1 sailing from Piraeus at 07:25 via Paros, Naxos, Santorini and Ios. Check the notices for your own date before you plan around a crossing.
• Blue Star says its accessible cabins are few and should be reserved in advance through its reservations centre (+30 210 891 9800), a travel agency or its online Help Center, which also takes requests for assistance with boarding. It allows luggage up to 50 kilos or 1 m³ free of charge.

6. Keeping a safe margin for the ship

A ferry and a shore day from a cruise ship are separate plans. If you are on a cruise, work out how long it takes to get from the landing to the cable car or the road, then up, and then back, before you commit to anything else. Our guides on tender access, the all-aboard worksheet and a plan B when your ferry is cancelled help you set the margin, and the access questions are worth sending to the operator in writing. All routes are on the Santorini ferry hub.