One of your visits to Santorini must be to the coast where good-tempered fishermen can be seen sitting on the black volcanic sand drying or mending their nets. There is happyness simply in being near the sea, in watching the waves in the sunshine, in breathing the fresh air, in the taste of salt on your lips. Kamari and Perissa are not only beautifull beaches but picturesque fishing villages as well. 

During the day fishing boats land there catch of fresh fish, the fishermen bronzed and weather-beaten, accustomed to hard-ship and peril. The increase in tourism over the past ten year has meant that fishermen have ben able to to keep their nets, and more and more tavernas rely on local fishermen to bring in their harvests from the sea. 

Sandy Beaches 

A new road now joins Phira to the sea. The best beaches, as men-tioned above, are those of Perissa and Kammari. There you will find restaurants, tavernas and hotels from simple pension size to four-star luxury. In these seaside places the foothills of Mesa Vouno come down to the beach and you can smell the scent of thyme and wild flowers from the hinterland.  

You can feel the breeze coming of the open blue sea and fill you lungs deeply with sweet-smelling air. You can swim in the crystal-clear sea, then stretch out on the the black sand under the hot sun, or have a rest under the shade of tamarisk trees. When it is time for lunch you can go to a nearby restaurant and be tempted by its succulent, freshly-caught fish. 

At Kamari there are several new and modern hotels which provide luxurious accomodation but you may be equally happy renting an inexpensive room near the seaside, where the facilities are basic, but comfortable. 

Perissa beach is also a wonderful place in the south of the island. It is a fine stretch of coastline—it's famous black sand made up of tiny particles of sand and stone. perissa is blue sea, black sand and blue skies; a formula that attracts thousands of visiters every year. 

However, some will lament the arrival of an airport large enough to handle big jets from all over the Continent. There are restaurants and beachside tavernas where, after your swim, you can simply be lulled into a state of physical and mental relaxation: the warm blue sea only yards away; a plate of black olives, tomatoes and fetta cheese, sprinkled with oil and herbs; a glass of cool white santorini Wine at your elbow. 

Centuries ago a small church was apparently buried beneath the site of the present five-domed church at Perissa. In 1835 a villager had a dream that he should begin digging on the site, and so it was that the old church was brought to light. In a well nearby was found an icon of the Panahgia and a bronze cross. Some villagers beleive even today that illness can be cured just by drinking water from the well. Just behind the well is a Roman monument while near the foot of the mountain can be found the ruins of an old church (Santa Irini).