Santorini Hot Springs: How Warm, and How to Get There

How warm are the Santorini hot springs?

Warmer than the sea around them, not hot. Two operators put a number on it in their listings: the luxury catamaran says the water is around 4 °C warmer than the open sea, and the volcano cruise says up to 4 °C warmer and adds, plainly, that it is not a heated swimming pool. Reviews match that. One guest on the small-group catamaran wrote that the water was not noticeably warmer on their day. The boats keep their distance from the coloured water, so the first part of the swim is through ordinary sea.

Can you only reach the hot springs by boat?

Yes. Palea Kameni is uninhabited, it formed in eruptions between 197 BCE and 47 CE, and nothing connects it to Santorini. Every boat stops short of the shallows: the volcano cruise and the luxury catamaran both state about 50 metres, and other listings say 30 metres. That gap is a real swim. Several boats carry foam pool noodles for it (the day catamaran and the volcano cruise list them), and the volcano cruise tells weak swimmers not to go in.

Clothes, stains and who should stay on board

The iron in the water marks fabric. The volcano cruise listing recommends dark swimwear and warns that light colours may stain; a guest on the wooden boat wrote that no one on their trip wanted to get in once they saw the orange tinge. Wear the swimsuit you care least about. The same listing says not to swim with heart disease, a sulphur allergy, during pregnancy or if you cannot swim well.

Which cruises stop at the hot springs

Every shared catamaran, the private catamaran, the wooden boat and both volcano boats list the springs. Only two state the length of the stop. The self-drive boat rental names the volcano area among its swim spots, so going there is your call.

• Volcano and hot springs cruise, from $34 — A 30-minute swim stop at Palea Kameni after the crater walk on Nea Kameni. The cheapest boat to the springs. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
• Volcano, Thirassia and Oia full day, from $64 — The listing says the boat may use springs near either Nea Kameni or Palea Kameni, depending on weather and sea. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
• Luxury catamaran, from $123 — A 30-minute hot springs stop is listed as an inclusion, along with towels and an on-board shower. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
• Sunset catamaran, from $88 — The hot springs are the first swim of the trip, before Red Beach and White Beach. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
• Day catamaran (Gold), from $95 — The second stop, after Red Beach. Pool noodles and towels on board. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
• Small-group, sailing, private and wooden boats — All four list a swim at the springs: from $145, $85, $129 per person and $112 respectively. Each has free cancellation up to 24 hours before.

What the hot springs cost on the ground

None of the ten listings names a fee for the springs. The €5 cash fee you may read about is for walking on Nea Kameni, the volcano next door, and only the two volcano boats land there. Getting to your boat is the only other cost: the catamarans include hotel pickup, and the volcano cruise's no-transfer sunset option leaves from Athinios port, where its listing quotes €2.00 for the public bus from Fira.

Hot springs, or hot springs and the volcano?

The springs and the crater are a few minutes apart by boat, and only the volcano boats do both. A catamaran gives you the springs plus Red Beach, White Beach and a meal; a volcano boat gives you the springs plus a walk to the crater, for far less money and with far more people on board. The comparison page sets the two side by side.