Semi-private sunset catamaran cruise in Santorini
Fifteen guests on a boat we keep deliberately uncrowded. The 15:00 start is the same all season; the finish follows the sun, from about 20:38 in mid-June to 18:43 in mid-October.
€100 per person · 15:00 - sunset · Shared seats
The semi-private sunset catamaran cruise leaves at 15:00 and runs to sunset, five hours, at €100 per person. A Lagoon catamaran, kept deliberately uncrowded. The price covers hotel transfers both ways, swimming stops, dinner cooked on board, Santorini wine, beer, water, snorkelling gear and towels.
The day cruise sails the caldera loop in the morning. This one sails the same loop into the evening, then holds the open water off Akrotiri, where the horizon to the west is sea rather than the Thirasia rim.
Same boat, same €100, same cook. What changes is the light, and that the meal comes off the grill in the evening.
The facts, in one table
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Times | 15:00 to sunset. The start is fixed all season. The finish follows the sun. |
| Price | €100 per person. Nothing is added at the boat. |
| Guests | Up to 15, so everyone has a seat in the shade. |
| Boat | Lagoon sailing catamaran, two or three crew. Wide and level, with shade and room to move. |
| Departure | Vlychada Marina, on the south coast. The included car collects you from your hotel and brings you back, so you never have to find it. |
| Swim stops | Three, sea state permitting: Red Beach, White Beach and the volcano. The warm springs at Palea Kameni join in when the sea lets a boat hold there. |
| Dinner | Cooked on deck: BBQ chicken and shrimp off the coals, Greek salad, pasta in tomato sauce, vine leaf rolls, and the dips with bread. |
| Drinks | Santorini wine, beer and water, included. |
| Transfer | A car from your hotel to the boat and back again, included. |
| Sunset seen from | Off Akrotiri, the southern corner of the island, past the 1892 lighthouse. |
| Bring | A dark swimsuit for the hot springs, and a layer for after the sun goes. |
| Children | Welcome. Send their ages with the booking so the right life jackets are aboard. |
| Cancellation | Free seven days or more ahead. A weather cancellation is refunded in full. |
Your exact meeting point is confirmed with your booking. The car runs both ways, so nobody has to find a port in the dark.
When the sun actually goes down
The 15:00 departure does not move through the season. Sunset does, by nearly two hours between mid-June and mid-October, and the hour you come ashore moves with it.
| Month, on the 15th | Approximate sunset | What that does to the evening |
|---|---|---|
| April | 19:52 | The first late evenings of the season. The sea is still cold. |
| May | 20:17 | Long light, quiet stops, and a jacket for the run home. |
| June | 20:38 | The latest sunsets of the year. |
| July | 20:37 | Flat at the top: two minutes off mid-June. |
| August | 20:10 | Already about half an hour earlier than mid-July. |
| September | 19:27 | Losing roughly three minutes a day through the month. |
| October | 18:43 | The shortest evening of the season. Clocks go back on 25 October. |
Times are for Fira at sea level, computed with the NOAA solar equations and accurate to about two minutes. From inside the caldera the sun drops behind the Thirasia rim before these times, because the horizon there is land. Off Akrotiri it is water. The month-by-month detail sits on sunset times by month.
A September evening, hour by hour
Mid-September, when the sun goes at about 19:27. In June everything after the volcano sits an hour later; in October it sits an hour earlier. The 15:00 start does not move, and the captain reorders the stops when the wind asks him to.
The car
Pickup from your hotel. Come in swimwear with something over it; there is no changing queue on a boat this size.
Lines off
Bags below, shoes off, a two-minute briefing. Then west along the south coast, with the first anchorage twenty-five minutes away.
Red Beach
The rust-red face is oxidised iron in the rock. The land path in has had rockfall closures for years; from the water nobody is standing under it. Snorkels out — the visibility is usually still good.
White Beach
Pale pumice cliffs standing more than 20 m over the water. The shore itself is dark pebble, not white sand. People are often surprised by that.
Mesa Pigadia and the Akrotiri cliffs
The last of the south coast, where the cliffs stand highest and the water goes properly deep. The dirt track down to the cove defeats most hire cars, so nothing much is here but you.
The lighthouse
Round the southern corner past the 1892 light — the gate of the caldera, and the water the boat comes back to for the sun.
The volcano swim
Anchored off Nea Kameni's black lava, you swim inside the flooded crater. When the wind and sea allow, the warm ochre springs at Palea Kameni join the loop on the way back — dark swimsuit, remember.
The Fira panorama
The whole crater opens round the boat: Fira, Firostefani and Imerovigli stacked some 300 m above the Old Port and its cable car.
Dinner, sailing south
Chicken and shrimp off the grill, Greek salad, pasta, dolmades and the dips, and the wine comes out. The boat works back down the caldera while you eat.
The sun
Held off the Akrotiri corner, past the 1892 light. Open water to the west, so the sun goes down on the horizon rather than behind a cliff.
Ashore
The cliffs hold colour for a good half hour after the sun has gone. You watch that on the way home, and the car is waiting.
Those are September times. Your confirmation carries the times for your own date, and they are the ones that apply.
The evening, before the light goes
What the €100 covers
This is the standard catamaran list. On this departure the meal is cooked in the evening rather than at midday. Same grill, same menu, later.
In the price
- Return road transfer between your hotel and the boat
- Greek and English speaking crew
- A meal cooked on board: BBQ chicken and shrimp off the coals, Greek salad, pasta in tomato sauce, vine leaf rolls, and Greek dips with bread
- Santorini white wine, cold beer, soft drinks and water
- Snorkelling gear
- Towels
- Captain, crew, fuel, insurance and port fees
Not included
- Walking on the volcano (the boats anchor offshore)
- Nea Kameni national park entrance fee
- Gratuities
Who this evening suits
Anyone who wants the sunset without standing in Oia for it. The castle terrace fills long before the sun reaches the horizon, and getting out afterwards is slower than getting in. On the water you are already in position.
Couples. Fifteen people is a small enough deck that the crew know your names by the second swim stop.
People who ate lunch late. Dinner comes off the grill at the end of the afternoon, so the evening does not need a restaurant after it.
Photographers. From the water the caldera wall reads in layers from waterline to rim, an angle no terrace has. And when the sun itself goes, your horizon is open sea rather than somebody's roofline.
Who it does not suit
If swimming is the main event, take the semi-private day cruise. Morning water is flatter and the stops come in stronger light.
If you are prone to seasickness, the meltemi usually builds through the afternoon in July and August. The morning departure is the calmer one, and we would rather say so now.
If you want the boat to sit exactly where you like and leave when you like, that is a private sunset charter. On a shared boat the captain keeps the clock.
Small children can find a 20:00 finish long. Families usually do better in the morning.
The springs at Palea Kameni come up through iron-rich ground in Agios Nikolaos bay. The water is ochre, roughly 30–35 °C by the figures the tourism sources publish rather than by any instrument we carry, and it marks pale fabric for good. Wear something dark that you do not love.
Bring a jacket or a wrap as well. Once the sun is off the water the wind cools quickly, and the run home is the coldest half hour of the day.
What a sunset seat costs elsewhere
Ours is €100, the same as the daytime seat. Other operators charge a premium for the evening. Santorini Yachting Club's published price list, read on 25 August 2026, showed its Comfort Max sunset cruise at €120 against €100 for the same boat by day, and a Romantic Sunset at €150.
Across the market on that date, shared catamaran seats in Santorini ran from €79 to €190 per person, with most operators clustered between €100 and €130. We have written up the whole comparison, sources included, in what a boat tour costs in 2026.
Which evening are you thinking of?
Send the date and how many of you there are. We answer the same day, and we will tell you what time the sun goes that week.
Call the harbour office+30 698 977 1888
Common questions
What is the location of the boat during sunset time?
Off Akrotiri, at the southern corner of the island, past the 1892 lighthouse. The western horizon there is open sea rather than the Thirasia rim, so the sun goes down on water. The exact spot depends on the wind and on what else is out that evening.
Which is better — a day cruise or a sunset cruise?
The day cruise gives you flatter water and longer in it. This one gives you the light, dinner on deck, and the cliffs after the sun has gone. Both are five hours and both are €100, so it is a question of what you want the afternoon to be.
Is dinner included, and what is cooked?
Dinner is included. The crew cook it on board while you are in the water: BBQ chicken and shrimp off the coals, Greek salad, pasta in tomato sauce, vine leaf rolls, and the dips with bread. Santorini wine, beer, soft drinks and water come with it. Tell us about allergies when you book, not on the day.
What time does the sunset cruise get back?
It follows the sun, so it moves through the season. Mid-June sunset is about 20:38 and mid-October about 18:43, which is nearly two hours of difference. The 15:00 start never changes. The time on your confirmation is the one that applies to your date.
What should I wear on a sunset catamaran cruise?
Swimwear under something light, and a dark swimsuit for the hot springs, because the ochre water stains pale fabric. Bring a jacket, a wrap or a hoodie for the last hour; the deck cools quickly once the sun is off the water. Soft soles or bare feet on board.
How many people are on board?
Fifteen guests at most, with two or three crew on top of that. We hold places back on purpose. On an evening cruise that matters more than it does by day, because everyone wants the same side of the boat at the same moment.
Can we still swim on the sunset cruise?
Yes. There are three anchored swims before the light goes, sea state permitting: Red Beach, White Beach and the volcano, with the warm springs added when the sea allows. The water is at its warmest in late August and September. The boat anchors offshore at every stop, so you go in from the stern.
Santorini Boat Tour - Water Taxi is a catamaran cruise and water taxi operator based in Fira, Santorini.
Updated August 2026