Dreaming of Santorini on a Budget?

We’ve received many messages on Instagram asking for tips on finding affordable places to stay in Santorini! Here’s how you can enjoy this beautiful island without breaking the bank.

You can get direct flights from the UK to Santorini, but these can be quite expensive. A more budget-friendly option is to book a connecting flight with a layover in Athens. We flew with EasyJet to Athens and then switched to Sky Express, which turned out to be the cheapest and easiest option.

Travel Tip: Be cautious with luggage as some airlines try to charge extra fees. At the time of our travel, EasyJet allowed a hand luggage bag of 56cm x 45cm x 25cm with no weight restrictions. However, their policies are changing as of 10th February, requiring an extra fee for hand luggage.

Sky Express has the same size dimensions but imposes a maximum weight of 6kg. This can be challenging if you’re travelling for three weeks with only hand luggage! They also charge an extra €20 per kilogram over the limit. We saw some travellers getting heavily charged for slight excesses.

At Athens airport, you weigh your bag and get your tickets at the check-in desk. We were about 2kg over on both our bags and were facing an extra charge of €100. Being budget-conscious, we decided to take out most of our clothes and batteries and carried them around, eventually buying a bag at a shop to put everything in. We got some strange looks, but it worked! After check-in, you take your bags to a separate conveyor belt around the corner. Once there, we put everything back into our bags as no one could see us!

Santorini Airport is smaller but follows the same procedure. However, the conveyor belt is in an open area where staff can see you. We repeated our plan in front of the staff, and they didn’t mind at all! 😂 Both airlines were faultless, with helpful staff and timely flights.

Once you’re through the airport, there are multiple taxi and car rental companies to get you to your next destination. Or you can rent a quad bike to get around the island 🌴.

Anyway, here are some of our favourite places to stay in Santorini for summer 2021:

• Bedspot Hostel, Fira

• Caveland, Karterados

• Fire Backpackers Place

• Holiday Beach Resort, Perissa

• Villa Manos, Karterados

Enjoy your budget-friendly adventure in Santorini!