Itinerary:
Your tour guide will meet you at the harbor - and will be holding a sign with your name on it; you will then begin your guided tour.
* The island of Santorini is what remains of an enormous volcanic explosion, destroying the earliest settlements on what was formerly a single island, and leading to the creation of the current geological caldera. Its spectacular physical beauty, along with its dynamic nightlife, have made the island one of Europes' perennial tourist hotspots.
A giant central lagoon, more or less rectangular, and measuring about 12 km by 7 km, is surrounded by 300 m (984 ft) high steep cliffs on three sides. The island slopes downward from the cliffs to the surrounding Aegean Sea. On the fourth side, the lagoon is separated from the sea by another much smaller island called Therasia; the lagoon merges with the sea in two places, in the northwest and southwest. The water in the centre of the lagoon is nearly 400 m (1300 ft) deep, thus making it a safe harbour for all kinds of shipping.
The island's harbors all lie in this lagoon and there are no ports on the outer perimeter of the island; the capital, Fira, clings to the top of the cliff looking down. The volcanic rocks present from the prior eruptions feature olivine and have a notably small presence of hornblende.
The island is the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions the planet has ever seen: the Minoan eruption (sometimes called the Thera eruption), which occurred some 3,600 years ago at the height of the Minoan civilization. The eruption left a large caldera surrounded by volcanic ash deposits hundreds of feet deep and may have led indirectly to the collapse of the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete, 110 km (70 miles) to the south, through the creation of a gigantic tsunami. Another popular theory holds that the Thera eruption is the source of the legend of Atlantis.
After that we will finish our tour at a wine shop, tasting wonderful local wine with Greek mezes (appetizers).
After the tour, we will provide a transfer to the harbor.
*** Tour ends ***
Cost: _______ Euro - (estimate for this tour is given upon request - please e-mail us your dates and how many people in your party.)
Includes:
* Pick-up and drop-off from harbor w/ comfortable vans
* Professional, English-speaking tour guides
* Entrance fee
* All tax and service charges
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