A santorini yoga retreat is usually four to eight days on the caldera rim or the flat east coast, with two practices a day, the afternoons free, and a week costing roughly 900 to 2,500 euros. This page sets out what one costs, when to come, where they are held and what to check before you book.
A wonderful and well-known destination to many peoples around the world, Santorini in 2022, is a holiday proposal by Santorini Tours. In addition to the magnificent view, the world-famous sunset and the wild beauty it offers, produce delicious local wines and delicious food.
What to visit in Santorini?
Do not forget to visit Imerovigli, the highest point of the caldera to take the best photos, Oia for the sunset and the beautiful alleys decorated by nice souvenir and jewelry shops, Firostefani to drink at Mylos evening cocktail steep cliffs and the sea, Fira for fun and Megalochori for traditional cuisine, the beautiful village square and the Gavala winery. View
Megalochori is 6 km from the city center of Fira. Few people know this, but we believe that it is worth taking a walk. On the way to the winery, the houses have island colors on their windows and doors and the flowers complete a beautiful landscape.
Oia
Oia is the first village you will see from the ship as you enter the caldera and look up. The spectacle of Oia lying on the rock above the bay of Armeni and the picturesque port of Ammoudi welcomes the traveler and puts him in the climate of Santorini. Oia is world famous for its sunset.
Fira
The capital of Santorini, undoubtedly one of the most beautiful settlements in Greece – along with Oia. Fira is built in a very impressive location on the cliffs at the eyebrow of the caldera, at a height of 260m. The port of Chora is the bay of Fira, from where one climbs to Chora taking the cable car, the donkey or on foot for the most daring! The view of the sea captures the gaze so much that if you choose the last way to go up a lot of attention and eyes in front – the cliff is steep and unguarded. You can take a tour of Santorini!
Caldera
A few words can really describe the view from the Caldera to Santorini. Enchanting, seductive, dramatic, a breathtaking view.
The Caldera of Santorini is perhaps one of the most impressive but also important natural wonders on planet Earth: the contrast of the red volcanic rock with the endless blue of the Mediterranean and the whiteness of the villages of Santorini causes awe and admiration.
Imerovigli
Imerovigli is 3 km away from Fira to the eyebrow of the caldera, overlooking the peculiar and steep red rock of Skaros, which was once a Venetian castle – a fortified settlement. Imerovigli with its whitewashed houses, dazzling and tidy with colorful flowers in the courtyards and the harmonious in relation to the environment hotels along the width of the cliff, relax the eye and offer an unsurpassed spectacle. The cobblestone road that goes to the settlement of Firostefani and the capital of Fira is surrounded by dry stones while, a little further on, donkeys graze in blond fields. The settlement was created in the middle of the 16th century and its name was given by the then pirates – conquerors of the island (Imerovigli: observatory during the day).
Monastery
It is a Catholic Convent and is located above Fira, in Firostefani. The monastery of St. Catherine was founded in 1596 by a pious (catholic) Santorinian, with the help of the then bishop Antonio de Marchis.
On the morning of July 11, 1956, a strong earthquake struck, with devastating effects on the residents and buildings of Santorini. All the solitary battalions that had been in Santorini for centuries (Jesuits, Lazarists, Sisters of Mercy), left the island forever and only the Dominicans remained. In the mid-1980s, nuns came from a similar monastery in Spain and specifically from Olmedo. Fifteen nuns of different nationalities live in the Monastery, including two Greek women.
Do not forget to try vinsanto
The most famous wine produced only in this place is vinsanto. Its special feature is that while white fleshy grapes are used to make it, its color when the fermentations are completed turns out to be amber. It is very sweet in taste and is drunk as an aperitif or as a dessert wine. Otherwise it can be combined with yogurt and sweet grapes. If you do not try it at the beginning of the meal, you can try white assyrtiko or handkerchiefs. For the production of vinsanto no mechanical vintage is used, the grapes are normally pressed with bare feet. If you are on the island in August, you can visit the place and enjoy the experience of harvesting and pressing grapes.
Prehistoric settlement of Akrotiri
The prehistoric settlement of Akrotiri extends in a small plain at the southern tip of Santorini, near the modern village of the same name. It had two natural harbors protected from the strong north winds that blow in the area.
At Akrotiri, part of a rich city that flourished during the Middle Cycladic period (first half of the 2nd millennium BC) was excavated. The place was inhabited from the late Neolithic and the early Bronze Age (4th – 3rd millennium BC).
However, what made the revelation of Akrotiri world-famous was the discovery – in almost all the houses of the settlement – of frescoes, which in some cases are preserved in excellent condition. This is a phenomenon unique in the prehistory of the Aegean, as the archaeologist now has the opportunity to study this era from the illustrative documents themselves, designed by the artists of the time. The frescoes have now been detached and some are on display on the second floor of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, while most are in the Prehistoric Museum of Santorini.
Read more about Santorini Tours:
- Santorini Sightseeing Private Tour
- Exclusive Shore Santorini Private Tour
- Impressive Caldera Santorini Private Tour
- South Part Santorini Private Tour
- North Part Santorini Private Tour
- Santorini Historical Private Tour
- Santorini Sunset Private Tour
Santorini Yoga Retreat: The Short Answer
A santorini yoga retreat is usually four to eight days, based in a hotel or a villa on the caldera rim or the flat east coast, with two practices a day and the afternoons free. What the island adds that a studio at home cannot is the setting: sunrise on a terrace three hundred metres above a flooded volcano, and a sunset practice facing west into open water.
Length. Most every santorini yoga retreat programme runs four to eight days, and weekend formats and single drop-in classes also exist.
Cost. A santorini yoga retreat costs roughly 900 to 2,500 euros a person for a week including accommodation, most meals and two daily practices. Drop-in classes 15 to 30 euros.
Styles. Vinyasa and hatha most commonly, with ashtanga, yin and restorative programmes also running here.
Where. Imerovigli and Firostefani for caldera terraces; Kamari, Perissa and Vlychada for flat ground, beach practice and lower prices.
Season. A santorini yoga retreat runs April to early November. May, June, September and October are the comfortable months.
Who runs them. A santorini yoga retreat is usually run by visiting teachers hiring a venue for a week, plus a small number of resident studios.
What is included. Usually accommodation, breakfast and one other meal, all practices, and one excursion. Flights and transfers are usually extra.
The one thing to check. On any santorini yoga retreat, how many steps there are between your room and the shala. On a caldera property that number can be three figures.
Why Santorini Suits It
Several islands in Greece host retreats. What distinguishes a santorini yoga retreat is specific and worth setting out.
The light. Early mornings here are extraordinary. The caldera faces west, so at six the villages are lit from behind you and the sea below is still turning from grey to blue. A sunrise practice on a rim terrace is a genuinely different experience from a sunrise practice anywhere flat.
The stillness at the right hour. The island’s reputation is crowds, and the reputation is a function of the hours between ten and six. At six in the morning and after eight in the evening the rim is empty, which is exactly when a retreat schedules its practices.
The climate. A santorini yoga retreat gets dry, warm and almost rainless weather from May to October, which makes outdoor practice reliable in a way that very few European destinations manage.
The geology. Practising on the edge of an active caldera four hundred metres deep is not a small thing. People notice it, and teachers build sessions around it.
The food. The island’s own produce is largely plant-based by accident of geology: fava, tomatoes, capers, wild greens, white aubergine. A retreat menu here is local rather than imported.
The scale. Everything is within twenty-five minutes. A santorini yoga retreat can include a boat, a winery, a walk and an archaeological site without anybody spending a day in a vehicle.
The one drawback. Cost. Santorini is among the most expensive islands in Greece, and a retreat here prices accordingly against the same week on Naxos or Amorgos.
What a Week Looks Like
Formats vary, and the shape below covers most of what a santorini yoga retreat actually delivers.
07:00. A santorini yoga retreat opens with morning practice, usually the longer and more active of the two. Outdoors on a terrace or by a pool, before the heat.
09:00. Breakfast. Greek yoghurt, honey, fruit, eggs, bread, and on the better retreats something local like fava or wild greens.
10:00 to 17:00. Free, or one scheduled excursion: a boat into the caldera, Akrotiri, a winery, a village walk, a beach afternoon.
18:00. Evening practice on a santorini yoga retreat. Yin, restorative or a slow flow, timed so that it finishes at or near sunset.
20:30. Dinner, communal on most retreats.
Rest days. A week-long santorini yoga retreat usually includes one, mid-week.
Extras. Meditation and pranayama sessions, workshops on a specific area, sound baths, and occasionally massage or breathwork at additional cost.
What is not included. Flights, airport transfers on most programmes, alcohol, spa treatments and anything you do on the free afternoons.
Group size. Six to sixteen is typical on a santorini yoga retreat. Anything above twenty stops feeling like a retreat.
Where a Santorini Yoga Retreat Is Held
Imerovigli. The most popular santorini yoga retreat address, at the highest point of the caldera rim, with the best terraces and the best sunset position. Several small hotels host retreats here. The catch is stairs: many properties are built down a cliff.
Firostefani. The same view, marginally cheaper, five minutes’ walk from Fira, and frequently a little flatter.
Oia. Beautiful, expensive and busy. Fewer retreat venues, and the ones that exist charge for the address.
Pyrgos and Megalochori. Inland villages with courtyards and quiet. A santorini yoga retreat here is cheaper, greener and away from the crowd entirely, with the trade that you drive to a view.
Kamari and Perissa. A santorini yoga retreat here is flat, on black sand, with beach practice at sunrise and a fraction of the caldera prices. The practical choice for anybody with mobility considerations.
Vlychada. Quiet, on the south coast under the pumice cliffs, with a marina and very little foot traffic.
Villas. Whole-property rentals with a temporary shala, used by teachers bringing their own group. Usually inland or on the east side.
What to look for in a venue. A shaded outdoor practice space, a floor that is level, somewhere to be indoors if the meltemi blows, and honest information about steps.
Santorini Yoga Retreat Cost, and What Drives It
The range. A santorini yoga retreat costs roughly 900 to 2,500 euros a person for a week on a shared-room basis, including accommodation, most meals and all practices.
What moves the number. Location above everything: a caldera-view room is three to five times the price of an equivalent room inland or on the east coast, and a santorini yoga retreat prices accordingly.
Single supplement. Frequently 300 to 700 euros for a week. Shared rooms are the norm.
Season. July and August cost the most and are the least comfortable for practice. May, June, September and October are cheaper and better.
Group size. A smaller santorini yoga retreat costs more per head, and are worth it.
Meals. Full board costs more than half board and is not always better, because eating out in the inland villages is both cheap and excellent.
Excursions. A caldera boat adds 40 to 200 euros a head depending on the vessel; a winery 20 to 45.
Transfers. Rarely included. Budget for the airport or port at both ends, priced per vehicle rather than per person.
The comparison. The same week on Naxos, Amorgos or Sifnos costs a third to a half less. You are paying for the caldera, and whether that is worth it is a legitimate question to ask yourself before booking.
When to Book a Santorini Yoga Retreat
April. The santorini yoga retreat season opens as the island reopens, temperatures are 16 to 20 degrees, and the hillsides are still green. Cool for outdoor practice at seven in the morning and pleasant by nine. Cheapest of the season.
May. 20 to 24 degrees, effectively no rain, everything open and the crowd light in the first half. One of the two best months for a santorini yoga retreat.
June. 24 to 28 degrees, the longest days of the year, and the meltemi beginning. Sunrise practice at six is comfortable; anything outdoors after eleven is not.
July and August. 28 to 34 degrees, peak prices and the strongest wind. Practice moves indoors or to the edges of the day. Workable and not the sensible choice.
September. The warmest sea of the year, 25 to 29 degrees by day, the harvest in the vineyards and the crowd thinning from the second week. The best month of all for a santorini yoga retreat.
October. 21 to 25 degrees, golden light, the first rain since spring, and prices falling. Excellent through the third week.
November to March. Almost nothing runs. A handful of resident teachers offer classes in Fira and the retreat venues are closed.
The wind. Worth naming separately. The meltemi blows hard from June to September for two to four days at a stretch, and an exposed terrace becomes unusable. Ask any santorini yoga retreat what the wet-and-windy-weather plan is.
Practical Notes
Getting there. Most santorini yoga retreat guests fly to Santorini through Athens year-round, or direct from Europe roughly late April to the end of October. Ferries from Piraeus take four and a half to nine hours.
Transfers. Book them. There are around thirty taxis for the whole island and the bus network routes everything through Fira. Arriving at eleven at night with a suitcase and no plan is the worst possible start to a retreat week.
Steps. The single most underestimated factor. Caldera properties are built down a cliff and “a few steps” can mean a hundred. Ask for a photograph of the route from the road to the room.
Heat and hydration. No shade anywhere, tap water not for drinking, and a dry wind. Drink far more than you think.
What to bring. Your own mat if you are particular, a light layer for the evening practice, proper shoes for the village staircases, and sun protection at a strength you would not normally use.
Free afternoons. The whole island is within twenty-five minutes: Akrotiri, the wineries, the inland villages, the east coast beaches, the rim path, and a boat into the caldera.
Alcohol. Present on most retreats here rather than banned. If a dry week matters to you, confirm it.
Solo travellers. Retreats are among the easiest ways to travel alone here, and shared rooms are standard.
Levels. A santorini yoga retreat is usually mixed-level. Ask directly if you are a beginner or if you have an injury.
Choosing a Retreat
Check the teacher, not the hotel. The photographs sell the terrace; the week is made by whoever is teaching on it. Look for their regular classes and how long they have run retreats.
Check the style honestly. A week of ashtanga is a different holiday from a week of yin. Both are described as a santorini yoga retreat.
Check the hours. Two practices a day totalling three to four hours is standard. Some programmes are considerably more intense.
Check the group size. Six to sixteen on a good santorini yoga retreat. Above twenty, the individual attention disappears.
Check what happens in bad weather. An indoor space matters more here than the brochure suggests, because of the wind.
Check the meals. Vegetarian and vegan are straightforward in Greece. Confirm rather than assume.
Check the steps. Again, because it is the most common complaint about caldera venues.
Check what is not included. Flights, transfers, excursions, alcohol and treatments are usually extra.
Check the cancellation terms. Retreats are booked months ahead and deposits are frequently non-refundable.
Read recent reviews rather than the website. Venues change hands and teachers change venues.
What to Do on the Free Afternoons
Every santorini yoga retreat leaves the middle of the day open, and the island is small enough that nothing is more than twenty-five minutes away.
Akrotiri. The Bronze Age town buried by the eruption and preserved under ash, under a roof, cool at any hour. The best single hour on the island and the right answer to a hot afternoon.
A caldera boat. Nea Kameni’s crater, the warm sulphur springs at Palia Kameni, and Thirasia on the far rim. Four to six hours, and it is the day that explains the geology you have been practising above.
A winery. Assyrtiko from ungrafted vines trained into low baskets on the ground, and Vinsanto from sun-dried grapes. Late afternoon is the hour.
The rim path. Fira to Oia, ten kilometres, three to four hours, best started before eight. The middle section is empty even in August.
Skaros Rock. Forty minutes return from Imerovigli, and the best free viewpoint on the island.
The east coast beaches. Perissa, Perivolos, Kamari, Vlychada and Monolithos, all black sand, all shallower and warmer than the caldera side.
Pyrgos and Emporio. The two best inland villages, quiet at every hour, and a complete change of scale from the rim.
Ancient Thera. The Hellenistic city on the ridge above Kamari, empty and spectacular.
Nothing at all. Which on a santorini yoga retreat is a legitimate and frequently the correct choice.
Santorini Against the Other Greek Retreat Islands
Santorini. A santorini yoga retreat has the most dramatic setting and the highest price. Caldera terraces, sunrise light, and everything within twenty-five minutes. Busy from ten to six, and quiet at the hours a retreat actually uses.
Naxos. A third to a half cheaper, with long sandy beaches, a green mountain interior and villages. Far less spectacular and far more relaxed.
Amorgos. The quietest serious option: a dramatic spine of rock, a monastery built into a cliff, and almost no crowds. Harder to reach.
Paros and Antiparos. Good beaches, a proper harbour town, and a growing wellness scene at mid prices.
Crete. The largest choice of venues in Greece, mountains, gorges and a year-round season in the south.
Ikaria. Known for longevity and an unhurried pace, which is either exactly right or exactly wrong depending on your temperament.
Which to choose. A santorini yoga retreat if the setting is the point and the budget allows. Naxos or Amorgos if the practice is the point and the setting is a bonus.
The honest note. Nowhere else has the caldera. That is what the premium buys, and for a lot of people it is worth it once.
Santorini Yoga Retreat: Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a santorini yoga retreat cost? Roughly 900 to 2,500 euros a person for a week including accommodation, most meals and two daily practices. Flights and transfers are usually extra.
How long does a santorini yoga retreat run? Four to eight days most commonly, with weekend formats and drop-in classes also available.
When is the best time for a santorini yoga retreat? May, June, September and early October. July and August are hot, windy and expensive.
Where is a santorini yoga retreat held? Imerovigli and Firostefani for caldera terraces; Kamari, Perissa and Vlychada for flat ground and lower prices; Pyrgos and Megalochori inland.
What styles are taught? Mostly vinyasa and hatha, with ashtanga, yin and restorative programmes also running.
Are beginners welcome? On most programmes, yes. Ask directly, because a few are genuinely intensive.
What is a typical day? A longer morning practice around seven, breakfast, a free afternoon, and a slower evening practice timed to finish near sunset.
Is food included? Usually breakfast and one other meal. Vegetarian and vegan menus are straightforward here.
Do I need to bring a mat? Mats are provided almost everywhere. Bring your own if you are particular about it.
Are transfers included? Rarely. Book them separately, because there are about thirty taxis on the whole island.
Are there steps? Frequently, and a lot of them at caldera properties. Ask for photographs of the route from the road to the room.
Is a santorini yoga retreat worth the extra cost? If the setting matters to you, yes, once. If the practice is what you are paying for, Naxos or Amorgos gives you the same week for a third to a half less.
We Handle the Transfers and the Free Afternoons
We are a local operator running private tours and transfers in our own vehicles, and the two things a santorini yoga retreat almost never includes are the airport at both ends and the days off in between.
Tell us your dates and your venue and we will handle the arrival, the departure and whichever afternoons you want to spend at Akrotiri, a winery or on the water.
Prices are per vehicle rather than per person, hotel pickup anywhere on the island is included, we guide in twelve languages, and an 80 EUR deposit confirms a date.
See the personalised tour, the private transfers, or contact us.
Booking a Santorini Yoga Retreat Without a Programme
Not everybody wants a fixed schedule and a group of strangers. A large share of the people who arrive here looking for a santorini yoga retreat end up assembling their own version of it instead, and on this island that works better than it does in most places, because the distances are short and the studios are used to walk-ins.
Drop-in classes. Fifteen to thirty euros a class. Resident studios run them in Fira, Firostefani, Kamari and Perissa through the season, and several caldera hotels open their morning session to non-guests. Two classes a day for a week costs a fraction of a packaged santorini yoga retreat.
Hotel classes. A growing number of properties on the rim schedule a sunrise session on their terrace for guests. If the setting is the part you actually want, this is the cheapest route to it.
Private sessions. Fifty to a hundred euros for a teacher to come to your terrace or villa. Sensible for couples, for anyone working around an injury, and for people who dislike group practice.
Beach practice. Perissa and Perivolos have long flat stretches of black sand that are empty until nine in the morning, and nobody will object to a mat.
Teacher training. A small number of 200-hour courses run here, typically over three to four weeks in spring or autumn, and they cost considerably more than a santorini yoga retreat of the same length.
The trade-off. Doing it yourself is cheaper and more flexible; a santorini yoga retreat gives you a consistent teacher, a group, meals handled, and no decisions to make for a week. Which of those you value is the whole question.
What it costs assembled. A mid-range room inland, twelve drop-in classes, food and a car for two days comes to roughly half the price of the packaged equivalent on the rim.
The Rest of the Wellness Side
A santorini yoga retreat rarely stands alone here, because the island has a small but genuine wellness scene built around the same geology that makes the views.
The hot springs. Palia Kameni’s sulphur springs sit in the middle of the caldera and are reached only by boat. The water is warm rather than hot, iron-rich, and it stains swimwear permanently, so wear something you do not care about.
Spas. Most of the larger rim hotels run one, and several open to outside bookings. Prices match the postcode.
Massage. Widely available and commonly added to a santorini yoga retreat as an optional extra at forty to ninety euros.
Sound and breathwork. Increasingly common on retreat schedules here, usually as an evening session in place of the second practice.
Volcanic mud and pumice. Sold everywhere as a local product. Pleasant, not medicinal, and inexpensive.
Swimming. The sea is at its warmest from late August to early October, and the east coast is calm on most days when the caldera side is not.
Walking as practice. The Fira to Oia rim path at first light, three to four hours, is the single best thing anybody on a santorini yoga retreat can add to the week for nothing.
Common Mistakes on a Santorini Yoga Retreat
Booking July or August. The heat and the meltemi make outdoor practice difficult, prices peak, and the island is at its most crowded. Almost everyone who does it once moves to September.
Ignoring the steps. The most frequent complaint about caldera venues, and entirely avoidable by asking for photographs before booking.
Not booking transfers. Thirty taxis, one bus hub, and a lot of retreats that begin with an hour of waiting outside the airport.
Assuming quiet. Fira is loud at night. A santorini yoga retreat based there is a different week from one in Pyrgos.
Underestimating the sun. There is no shade on this island and the wind hides the burn.
Booking on photographs alone. The terrace in the picture may belong to the hotel rather than to the retreat, and the teacher matters more than either.
Filling the free afternoons completely. The point of the week is the space in it.
Paying rim prices for an inland experience. If your santorini yoga retreat practises indoors and drives to the view, you are paying for an address you are not using.
Every Village and Site on the Island
Any of these can be built into a private day. Each has its own page with what to see and how long to allow.
Caldera villages: Fira · Firostefani · Imerovigli · Oia · Finikia · Baxedes
Inland villages: Pyrgos · Megalochori · Emporio · Mesaria · Karterados · Vothonas · Vourvoulos · Exo Gonia · Mesa Gonia · Pigadia
Beaches: Perissa · Perivolos · Kamari · Vlychada · Monolithos · Red Beach · White Beach · Agios Georgios · Agia Paraskevi
Sites and landmarks: Akrotiri · Ancient Thira · Akrotiri Lighthouse · Nea Kameni · Palia Kameni · Thirasia · Athinios Port
All our tours: All Santorini tours · Full day tour · Sightseeing tour · Personalised tour · North part tour · Horse riding · South part tour · Sunset tour · Shore excursion · Caldera tour · Food experience · Wine tour · Historical tour · Small group tour
Planning and services: Famous sights tour · Private transfers · Transfers to Oia and Finikia · Transfers to other villages · Villages of Santorini · History of Santorini · Tours near you · Languages we guide in · Food and fun tours · Gay friendly tours · Our tour buses · Daily tours · Day tours · FAQ · Gallery · Tour photo gallery · About us · Contact · Blog
