Exploring Santorini, Greece

The afternoon crowd flowed down among the shops, cafes and picture-postcard lookouts on the Greek island of Santorini, speaking at least a half-dozen languages.

It spread along the cliff-top village of Oia's cobblestone walkways, drifting into storefronts or up the stairs to open-air restaurants, eddying to photograph scenes of white buildings with blue doors and blue-domed churches.

The crowd thinned to little more than a trickle down the 214 broad steps to Amoudi Bay. There, seaside tavernas grilled the day's catch of fish and octopus. People lingered at outdoor tables, while a dozen small pleasure and fishing boats rocked gently on the Aegean. A cliffside pathway wound beyond to a cove, where you could lie in the sunshine amid the black volcanic rocks and swim in the sapphire sea.

ACTIVE VOLCANO

"What is Santorini? It is an island of black rock," said Nicos Plevrakis, manager of the Hotel Belvedere, where my wife and I stayed. "It attracts sunbeams." The island owes its unique, dramatic landscape to volcanic eruptions. A volcano, still active, stands at the center of a ring of islands, Santorini the longest. In between them is a vast, deep caldera, filled with water.

Geologists say a blast some 3,600 years ago created a tsunami that washed over Crete, wiped out Minoan civilization and reshaped this landscape.

The Belvedere, a cliff-top boutique hotel in the main city of Fira, overlooks the caldera, 500 feet below. You can visit what's left of the still-smoldering volcano, reachable by boat.

Santorini is about a 45-minute flight from Athens. While tourism was down in Greece last year, partly due to the financial crisis that led to protests and strikes, the disruptions have had little impact on areas outside Athens (although you can expect lower hotel prices). Santorini is about 30 miles long, with Oia and Amoudi Bay at its northern tip, Akrotiri and a red sand beach at the southern end, and miles of black sand beaches along its southeastern shore. Fira perches high at the heart of the crescent-shaped island.

EXPLORING THE ISLAND

My wife and I rented a two-seat SmartCar for 40 euros and spent a day driving the tight, two-lane roads. We visited the monastery at the central promontory and the large Santo winery nearby; then cruised the low coast road along the black sand beaches.

After an hour lying on two of the hundreds of lounge chairs under thatched umbrellas, and wading out into the surf, we had gelato and Greek coffee at a cafe and drove north back to Oia for grilled fish and another swim.

We also visited the Archaeological Museum of Fira, which has artifacts that include murals reconstructed from Akrotiri, an ancient settlement that was buried by that big volcanic eruption. Like Pompeii, it was preserved by the ash. Some believe Plato's storied Atlantis has roots here.

From Fira's port, we took a sailboat loaded with tourists, to the volcano for a hike and to an island where we swam in sediment-brown water heated from underground.

COLORFUL SUNSETS

Unexpected pleasures included the friendliness of the locals and the fact that nearly everyone spoke English. At the hotel, we were upgraded to a room with a balcony and given a free bottle of local wine.

We watched the hourlong sunsets from our balcony or lingering at rooftop cafes. After the last direct rays disappeared behind the volcano, the spray of clouds high overhead turned dramatic shades of red, purple and blue. Then, the lights came up and shone from the windows of the neat white buildings, creating a glittering cascade along the cliffs in either direction under a midnight-blue sky.

IF YOU GO

WHEN TO VISIT Temperatures on the island are in the 80s in July and August and in the 70s in September. Tourist businesses close from November through March. Nicos Plevrakis of Hotel Belvedere recommends July as the ideal time for a visit.

BY AIR Multiple daily flights from Athens are about 45 minutes and can be had for about $100 each way in summer. (Santorini's airport name is Thera.) More info at santorini.gr (click on the Union Jack for English).

STAY Nightly summer rates at Hotel Belvedere begin at about $315, or 255 euros. Closed November through March. For more information, visit belvederesantorini.com