Santorini Private Yacht Cruise with BBQ & Open Bar

A brief review of our ½ day boat tour with Spiridakos Sailing Cruises in Santorini earlier today. TLDR – 5/5 Stars, would definitely sail with them again! First, a quick shout out to Lauren Gill at My Live Love Travel. One of my cousins was getting married in Crete and my wife coordinated with Lauren for all the arrangements (Los Angeles to Europe and back), including a jeep tour and the boat tour with Spiridakos here in Santorini. So last night, we were very surprised to find out that the Spiridakos tour Lauren had set up consisted of just us – i.e. we were the only two passengers on the boat! The only thing my wife could tell me was that the boat was a Targa motorboat. I looked up Targa online and saw a range of models/sizes and I thought we would probably get one of the smaller boats. Got to the marina and holy moly our boat was a Super Nice 46 footer (thanks again Lauren!!)! Lemme back up a little. Our reservations were for a 10am start (and today is a Thursday). “Mike” the driver picked us up from our hotel in Oia at 9:15am (and he was early). We had a pleasant drive to the Vlychada Marina at the south end of Santorini (which coincidentally we had visited during the jeep tour yesterday). Mike radioed ahead as we were arriving and when we parked, we were met by our tour guide, Neda. Neda introduced herself and walked us to the boat where we met the other crew member, Nobi, and our Captain, Leo (Leonidas). We walked across another boat and removed our footwear before boarding the aforementioned Super Nice 46’ Targa. We found out later that this particular boat was only 4 months old! (Note to self, wear sandals/slippers/water shoes next time instead of socks & sneakers – Neda wore Crocs and Nobi had sandals and I forgot what Capt Leo’s footwear was but we were all barefoot while on the boat). The first half of our tour was a leisurely ride around the south end of Santorini, a stop at the Red Beach*, a stop at the Hot Springs* in the middle of Santorini’s caldera, and then lunch at Kapetanissa in Ormos Korfou (Thirasia/Therasia). After lunch, we motored straight back to the marina, returning there around 2:30pm. * At both of those stops, we had the option of getting into the water and swimming/snorkeling around. We chose not to this time around but would probably the next time. This Spiridakos boat also offers free snorkeling gear and life jackets (PFDs) for guests and also has two showers IIRC. During the entire trip, Neda was our primary contact and did a fantastic job of spoiling us. She served us drinks and a fruit plate, provided a bunch of interesting information about Santorini/Greece, took numerous pictures (99% of the time, she was the one suggesting to take the pictures), answered all of our questions, and deftly balanced being attentive with giving us privacy/space. I was also really really impressed with her sea legs/balance! Note to Spiridakos – we didn’t get to see Neda at the helm but if her sailing ability is even half as good as her customer service and professionalism/friendliness, she would make a great captain! We didn’t interact as much with Nobi and Captain Leo but they gave off the same vibes of genuineness and geniality. I thought this crew did a great job of working together and representing Spiridakos in a positive light!

This was absolutely one of the best experiences of our lives. It was just me and my wife private cruise. We’ve done boat cruises all over the world and even have done one with Spiridakos in Santorini a few years ago. But this tour was incredible and better than all. Captain Leo and Martha and Nobi went the extra mile to make this trip fantastic. They even let us fish for a little while. They took us to all the great and famous locations including Red beach, the island where the goats live and the hot springs to swim. And then took us to eat on the island of Thirasia. The food and the service there were incredible. Eating on that island was such a wonderful unexpected experience. Our drinks stayed full all day. They let me play my music all day. Mostly Italian music. The boat was second to none. A brand new Targa 46. It was absolutely beautiful. We sat on the flying bridge most of the day, listening to Andrea Boccelli and Dean Martin. They fed us fruit and snacks and told us about the islands but they were not intrusive. They let us enjoy the Aegean Sea. It was very romantic. The sunset was beautiful. It was one of the best days of our lives. We have traveled all over Europe and Caribbean and this was the best tour ever. They treated us incredible from start to finish. I can’t say enough about how nice and accommodating they all were. It was an amazing day we will never forget. I will not say what it cost but the special deal they gave us was very very generous. And we sincerely thank you for that.

We had a fantastic cruise. Our host, Irene, made the day very special for my family. We boated, learned about culture, visited the hot springs, swam over and over at different locations, and had a wonderful lunch at a local restaurant on the water. Highly recommend booking with Irene and Captain Leo.

What a fun, interesting, amazing half day cruise. Anyone who visits Santorini and doesn't see the sights by boat is missing out and if you are going to do that, Spiridakos should be your yacht company. First, our family group of 5 were transported to and from Oia which is at opposite end of the island from the marina. That was very helpful. Our cruise was in the Oceanis 43 motor yacht. Boat was immaculate - felt brand new. Our captain Giannis and crew George were absolute gems. So friendly, knowledgeable and funny. They made sure we always had a drink in our hands and cooked an incredible meal - honestly one of the best of our entire trip. The sights as I said were just spectacular and a beautiful sunset to top it off. Highly, highly recommend! Thank you Giannis and George!!

Giannis and George were very entertaining as well as professional and excellent educators! Really loved the information that was provided, the humor was appreciated and exceptional, the skipping perfect, and I get seasick, but the secret spots for swimming, the information about the areas, and especially the food that they provided was exceptional! I would definitely take this cruise again “Oceanis” boat