Although not known as a great hiking destination, there are nonetheless a few good trails on Santorini for those looking to be a little more active during their stay on the island. One of them leads to Santorini’s famous Skaros Rock – a large flat-topped outcrop ascending atop a rocky promontory that was likely created by a volcanic eruption several millennia ago. In addition to being an excellent sunset-watching spot, Skaros Rock is the perfect place for a short hike, offering you the opportunity to view the Santorini coastline from a different vantage point. Below we present our Santorini Hiking Guide on the Skaros Rock Trail, which we hope will help you get the most out of your time in Santorini.
Although the trail to Skaros Rock is not particularly long, it’s still somewhat challenging given the number of staircase steps you will have to go down (and later come back up). Even if you are not particularly into hiking, it’s a great place to go either to enjoy great views of Santorini and the caldera or watch the sunset without the crowds of Fira or Oia.
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You might also be interested in these pages:
Best Things to See and Do in Santorini
Santorini Itinerary Ideas (1 to 5 days)
Santorini Travel Guide: Things to Know Before You Go
Where to Stay on Santorini
How to Get Around Santorini
Some Skaros Rock History
The elevated position of Skaros Rock made it an ideal location for defensive fortifications. The site was initially fortified in the early 13th century by the Byzantine Empire, which employed Venetian architect Giacomo Barozzi to construct a fortress around the promontory.
The settlement around Skaros Rock subsequently grew, with many homes, businesses, and further fortifications being built around the promontory. By the time of the Venetian Republic’s takeover of Santorini in 1336, the settlement consisted of several hundred inhabitants and became the de facto capital of Venetian Santorini.
A few centuries later, though already in decline, Skaros remained a prominent settlement until the Santorini volcano became active and began to erupt in 1650. This eruption caused several strong earthquakes which collapsed part of the town around Skaros Rock into the sea. The volcano continued to go through periods of activity over the next several decades, which eventually caused most of Skaros’ residents to move to Fira or the nearby village of Imerovigli. The old Venetian fortress subsequently fell into disuse, and by the early 19th century it already consisted of only a few weathered ruins.
Orientation – Where is Skaros Rock
Skaros Rock is located just off the western coast of Santorini, accessible by a footpath from the nearby village of Imerovigli. Hiking down the trail from Imerovigli is the only way to reach the rock and requires that you climb down a winding staircase (approximately 300 steps) to reach the base of the flat-topped outcrop (and another 200 steps to reach the Theoskepasti church beyond the outcrop).
The Skaros Rock trailhead is located near the Grace Hotel in Imegovigli and forms a T-intersection with the Fira – to Oia trail. You can definitely combine both the Skaros Rock Trail and the Trail to Oia, which should take about 3h-3h30 to do both (not including the return from Oia)
If you are coming from Fira, you can easily combine the Fira to Imerovigli Walk with the Skaros Rock trail, which can be completed together in about 1h45-2h15 hours (including return to Fira).
Skaros Rock Trail
Trail Summary and Description
Most people can complete the hike from Imerovigli to Skaros Rock and back in about 45 minutes, though it definitely be done more quickly if you are in good shape and want to turn it into a jog. It’s not a particularly long trail – there are just lots of stairs to go up and down.
The trail is fairly straightforward, and you can see most of the trail from a distance. It is also well marked, and for the most part, goes downhill from Imerovigli until you reach the base of the falt-topped rock.
Hiking Packing List
All Trails subscription – This comes in really handy for areas with little or no cell reception, as the annual subscription allows you to download trail maps for offline use.
External Battery – If you are using your phone to track your progress along the trail or to help with navigation, you certainly don’t want your phone to die on you. That’s especially true in the unlikely event that you might get hurt or need assistance.
Hiking poles – These can be particularly useful in steep trails or muddy/boggy trail conditions.
Soon after departing Imerovigli, you will first cross Grace’s Hotel “pool with a view”. Shortly thereafter, you can take a quick break to admire the Agios Georgios church built along the trail.
As you no doubt noticed from the pictures above, as you continue to go down the trail, you begin to get unobstructed views of Oia in the distance. If you look in the opposite direction, you will get a glimpse of Santorini’s southern tip and the cruise ships waiting near the port.
And looking ahead, you begin to see Skaros Rock in all its glory.
As you near the base of the flat-topped outcrop, the path starts to climb slightly as you eventually walk along the southern edge of it*.
*Disclaimer: as you approach the flat-topped outcrop, you will see signs saying that continuing forward is at your own risk. This is because the area around the outcrop is prone to landslides.
Once you go beyond the flat-topped rock, the path splits. Keep going straight and the path will lead to the Mother of Lord Theoskepasti Holy Orthodox Church. Go right instead, and you will see a sketchy unmarked path leading up to the top of the rock. Though we saw some people venture up there, we opted against it as the path up required quite a bit of scrambling over lots of loose rock and it didn’t seem to be worth the risk.
During the return leg of the hike, you will be rewarded with beautiful views of Santorini (and the sun rising over the island if you do this hike in the morning).
Other Skaros Rock Trail Details
- It’s best to do this hike in the early morning or the late afternoon (or for sunset) as the midday temperatures can become extremely hot in summer, and there is absolutely no shade along most of the trail.
- The area around the flat-topped outcrop is prone to landslides, so take great care when walking around Skaros Rock and avoid staying too close to the cliff edge.
- Although you get around most of Santorini in your flip-flops, it’s best to wear proper athletic footwear for this trail.
Preparing a trip to Santorini?
You might also be interested in these pages:
Best Things to See and Do in Santorini
Santorini Itinerary Ideas (1 to 5 days)
Santorini Travel Guide: Things to Know Before You Go
Where to Stay on Santorini
How to Get Around Santorini
Preparing a trip to Greece?
You might be interested in these Greece pages:
Top Things to See and Do in Greece
Two-Week Greece Itinerary (including Mykonos and Santorini)
Greece Travel Guide: Things to Know Before You Go
How to Travel Around Greece
We also highly recommend these guidebooks:
Rick Steeves Greece
Lonely Planet Greece
Photography Gear
If you like our photography, you might be interested in some of the gear we use to shoot our travel and hiking destinations.
Camera Body – Nikon Z 6ii Fx-series Mirrorless Body
Main Lens – NIKON 24-120mm F/4G ED VR AF-S
Zoom Lens – Sigma 745-306 150-600mm f/5-6.3
Polarizing filters – Urth Circular Polarizing (CPL)
Camera Tripod – K&F Concept 64-inch Camera Tripod
Mini-tripod – Lammcou Flexible Camera Tripod
Camera/hiking backpack – Vanguard Alta Rise 48 Backpack
Universal Travel Adapter – VYLEE Universal International Power Travel Plug
Other Travel Essentials
Travel Insurance
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e-Sim cards
Airalo is the world’s first and largest eSIM store with eSIM plans for 200+ countries and regions worldwide. With Airalo eSIMs, travellers can get connected the moment they land at their destination and avoid nasty data roaming charges
eSIMS are a sustainable alternative to single-use SIM cards – they are 100% digital, require less energy to produce and be re-used rather than disposed of.
Car Rentals
Discover Cars is our go-to website for car rentals. We almost always find our preferred rate there.
Transfer from Airport
Welcome Pickups is our favourite private transfer service, which you can pre-book at a fixed price. Currently available in 220 cities all over the world (mostly in Europe, but with several major cities in Asia, the Middle East and the US).
Kiwitaxi is another private transfer service – we haven’t tried it yet, but it’s currently available in a few more countries (102 as of 2024).
Hotels and Accommodations (coming soon)
Photography Prints
If you found this blog useful, you can help support our blog by purchasing low-cost digital prints. Printed physical prints are also available for purchase.
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Well, that wraps it up! We hope you enjoyed our Santorini Hiking Guide on the Skaros Rock Trail and that it will prove useful for planning your trip to Santorini.
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