Santorini beach

Santorini is known not only for its white houses, churches with blue domes, and beautiful sunsets. People who like to rest on the coast will highly rate its variety of shores since the small island has got a great number of beaches that are different in their types. Here it’s possible to choose a shore literally by its color! So, we are heading for Red beach Santorini (Κοκκινη παραλια) — one of the most unusual and popular ones on the island.

Widely known coast with its exotic cliffs, red sand, and nearly Martian scenery, it leaves an indelible impression. Sheer black and red rocks fence the beach off to the winds, huge boulders, as if they were scattered in front of its entrance, make access for strangers more complicated. Those who can cope with the road, will see a wonderful view: the beach is covered with tile-red, and somewhere even with blood-red sand, black and red pebbles, and tiny rocks. It looks especially impressive early in the morning and in the evening, closer to sunset. 

The main characteristics of the Red beach

Coverage: sand, small pebbles;

Color: red;

Access: by car, bus, and on foot;

Arrangement: sun loungers, sunshades — yes,  freshwater — no;

Possibility to buy food and water — yes;

Natural shadow: nearly none;

Akrotiri Red beach in Greece is rather well equipped for its location: in the summertime, there are sun loungers, sunshades, and even several booths where it’s possible to buy a snack. Anyway, it’s necessary to pay attention that there are always crowds of tourists on the main part of the beach. So, it’s better to come here in the early morning, or no longer rely on the possibility of finding free sun loungers, and keep in mind the option of looking for a place to settle down on your towel. Also, it’s possible to search for a free zone near cliffs. By the way, it’s the only place with natural shadow. The more exotic option is to rest on one of the stone islands or huge boulders in the sea.

The Red beach presents a rather long strip, but it can’t boast of its width. In the broadest part there may fit only two rows of sun loungers, moreover, sometimes waves roll out onto the first line. At the same time, exactly where it’s possible to admire the amazing sand and small pebbles of bright red color. 

Depending on the location on the beach, the sea entrance may be either stony or fully sandy. Anyway, almost along the entire length of the beach, the depth begins quite rapidly — just a few meters after entering the sea.

There are not so many entertainments on the beach: swimming, diving and watching the sunset. There’s no commerce, and that’s nice. The main sightseeing is the queerness of the place, first of all, and it’s very popular among people. Tourists come there even if they don’t want to swim and follow only one goal: to watch a rare combination of red stones and sand with blue, turquoise, and sometimes green water of the sea. You can’t visit this place without a camera! 

How to reach Red beach?

Like the majority of the most interesting island’s shores, Red beach is located in the southern part of Santorini approximately 7 miles from Fira. Akrotiri is the nearest settlement which may be reached by a regular bus (1.8 - 2 euros) or by a rented car. If you travel by rented car or a scooter, near the coast you’ll see a big spot where it’s possible to leave transport. By the way, the trail, along which you can walk to Red Beach, begins there. Pay attention to the fact that it will be necessary to walk on stones: the closer to the beach, the rockier the path will become. The road doesn’t take much time, and it’s possible to reach the shore in 7-10 minutes. Also, you can get to Red beach with a sea excursion or sail (for 5 euros) on one of the boats that leave neighboring beaches every 30-40 minutes.