The volcanoes of Santorini

At the beginning of the Christian era it began to move below the surface in the caldera. Slowly but surely two new islands were born, Palia Kameni (the old volcano) saw the light in 46 AD, and Nea Kameni (the new volcano) said hello to the world in 1711. Parts of the islands came and went, they were sometimes bigger and sometimes smaller, Nea Kameni is the largest of the two today. (Palia Kameni is also spelled Palea Kameni.) Nea Kameni have had fifteen eruptions. Since the great volcanic eruption around 1625 BC, the last one as late as in 1950.

The volcanoes seen from Imerovigli.

The volcanoes Nea Kameni and Palia Kameni seen from Fira.

The volcanoes Palia Kameni and Nea Kameni and seen from Santo Wines.

The two - still active - volcanoes are incredibly popular for tourists. Is it worth going there? Yes, I think so, but the hike to the crater on Nea Kameni is not worth the effort. Sure, it's a great feeling to stroll around on an active volcano, but when one tired and sweaty stand at the crater itself one will be pretty disappointed, there's not much to see. If you still want to hike to the crater, you should have good shoes, a hat and plenty of water with you.

Excursion boats at the volcano Nea Kameni.

Excursion boat at the volcano Palia Kameni.

Agios Nikolaos church on the Palea Kameni volcano.

Palia Kameni to the left and Nea Kameni to the right. Oia is visible between the volcanoes.

Nea Kameni and Palia Kameni seen from a vantage point above the port.

Nea Kameni seen from Venus de Milo in Firostofani.

The water is so hot in some of the bays of Nea Kameni that the fishermen wash their boats there. They anchor the boat and wait an hour or two, and then the boat is clean from algae and other dirt. Smart, isn't it.

A fishing boat washes its hull in a bay by the Nea Kameni volcano.

Watching the sun set into the sea from Santo Wines is a powerful experience and not to be missed.

The island to the left of the sunset in the picture above is called Aspronisi. About 3,500 years ago, parts of Santorini sank into the sea, and what remained were the islands of Thira (Santorini), Thirasia and the small island of Aspronisi. Aspronisi means the white island in Greek and that is because parts of the island are white. There is a small beach here that you can visit by boat.

The white island of Aspronisi near the volcanoes of Santorini.

Volcano Day is celebrated every August. It is an amazing experience. We saw the fireworks from Santo Wines one year. A few minutes after the sun went down, lightning and smoke began to erupt from the volcano. The flash and smoke were accompanied after a while by rumbling. For those who didn't know it was "the day of the volcano" it must have been a sight to behold. As darkness fell, the activity in the volcano increased: bombs went off, red lava pushed up and flowed down to the water.

Volcano Day on Santorini is celebrated every year in August with a big fireworks display.

It looked like it was real. Both scary and powerful at the same time. When the lava burned most intensely, the big fireworks began. I am childishly fond of fireworks, and has been ever since I was a child. When it really started, my smile matched the rockets. It was so beautiful I almost started crying.

Pyrotechnic lava flows down the volcano Nea Kameni during the day of the volcano.

Around both Palia Kameni and Nea Kameni there are hot springs with emerald green water. The program of the excursion boats always includes a stop for swimming in the hot springs. We went to the hot springs at Nea Kameni by private boat once. We arrived early in the morning, and we were there all alone. Perfect, we thought, and threw off our clothes, and threw ourselves from the boat and swam towards the volcano.

The hot springs at Nea Kameni.

When we reached the edge of the volcano, an excursion boat full of Italians arrived. The boat folded out a ramp and Italians poured out, and there we lay naked in the warm water, ashamed. We crept aboard our boat without being detected. We have been there several times after this fad, and I can assure you that now we always keep our clothes on.

When an excursion boat arrives, it gets crowded in the hot springs.

Read about the lesser known volcano Kolumbo here »

Do not miss the sunset from Santo Wines, which you can read about here »

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