Getting from Santorini to Astakos

If you are heading to Astakos from Santorini you are making your way to one of the least visited corners of Greece and one of the most rewarding for it. Astakos is a small port town on the western coast of central Greece in Aetolia-Acarnania, sitting on a quiet bay surrounded by hills. It exists primarily as a departure point for ferries to Kefalonia and Ithaca, but the town itself has a genuinely unhurried atmosphere, good seafood tavernas along the waterfront and a sense of being somewhere that the wider world has not yet found. The surrounding region of Aetolia-Acarnania is wild and beautiful and almost entirely unvisited.

Take the ferry

There is no ferry from Santorini to Astakos. The town is a mainland port on the western coast of central Greece with no connection to the Aegean ferry network. Getting there from Santorini means flying to Athens and then travelling by road, which takes around 3.5 to 4 hours from Athens heading northwest through Lamia and Agrinio.

What about flying?

Astakos has no airport. The nearest airport is Athens, around 280 kilometres to the southeast. Flying from Santorini to Athens and then travelling by road to Astakos gives a total journey time of around 6 to 7 hours.

Your best option

Fly to Athens and drive to Astakos. The drive through central Greece is a good one and the road improves significantly once you reach the E65 motorway. If you are using Astakos to connect to the Ionian islands, Ionion Pelagos operates ferries from here to Kefalonia and Ithaca, with crossings taking around 2 to 2.5 hours.