- Updated on: 2024-04-17
Our island is of volcanic origin, which means that all kinds of deep rocks have burst to the earth’s surface in these places. In any case, most of the island’s beaches consist entirely of dark rocks, and only one beach in the south of Santorini can boast an unusual white color.
Aspri beach (Ασπρη παραλια in Greek), better known as White beach of Santorini, is a very small beach that gets its name from the light, almost even white rock covering a large part of it, and the surrounding high cliffs of white and light beige color. In these places you can find such stone walls:
Judging by the name, you might think that Aspri is the only beach with white sand in Santorini. In fact… We have no white sand beaches in Santorini at all 🙂 None! Zero! The volcanic origin of our island gives no chance for that and white sand beaches in Santorini are extremely hard to imagine. So the sand here, of course, though not black, but still dark enough – gray and gray-brown, but what you could see around…
Actually, White beach got its name exactly because of the white rocks that surround it, and not because the beach itself has white sand.
The uniqueness of this place of Santorini is precisely in the rocky rocks.
Aspri beach got its name because of the white rocks
Despite the fact that the steep cliffs close the coast so tightly that you can get to the beach only by water, this does not tourists and on this beach we have quite a few vacationers, especially during high season.
White beach in Santorini: general characteristics of the lightest beach on the whole island
- Surface: sand, small and medium pebbles, in some places – large stones;
- Color: dark sand and white stones;
- How to get there: by boat from the Red beach or Kambia beach;
- Organization and infrastructure: umbrellas and sun loungers – yes (sometimes), fresh water, showers and toilets – no;
- Opportunity to buy food/water: most of the time no;
- Natural shade: not much, only from the rocks.
Along with the much more famous and popular Black and Red beaches, this place is also very popular among tourists. White Beach is usually well prepared for the summer season in advance.
In the summer there are a few sun loungers and umbrellas, and boats often depart from the neighboring beaches (on average every half hour, the last one around 6 p.m.).
Note that there is no pier or any kind of mooring line here, and if you decide to get here by sea, you have to disembark in the sea – literally! So… Jump and swim 🙂 Also, there are no taverns or cafes on the White beach, so it is better to bring some snacks and water with you.
The entrance to the water on the white beach is quite flat, although in some places there are stone slabs. In general, it is quite a pleasant place, and it will be interesting to get here: the trip will be both on land and by sea.
By the way, White Beach in Santorini is also one of the points of the boat trips that are made around our island, so during the day small tour boats and catamarans stop for a while in this bay.
Where is the White beach of Santorini located: get ready for the road to the southwest of the island
White beach is located in the south-west of the island of Santorini. The distance from the city of Fira to the beach is about fourteen kilometers. It is impossible to get lost, because the nearest large villages – Vlychada (Βλυχαδα in Greek) and Akrotiri (Ακρωτηρι in Greek) – are marked on absolutely all (even the most schematic) maps of our island. White beach on the map of Santorini:
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White beach GPS coordinates: 36.35025, 25.38277
How to get to the White beach of Santorini
You can get there by bus (read more in our article about buses in Santorini), taxis or hired vehicles (read more about car hire in Santorini).
It is not possible to get to White beach right away: you can get to Aspri beach exclusively by water, for example by joining a tour by boat or by taking a boat from Red beach or Kambia beach. In any case, the cost of the trip will be 10-15 euros per person.
From the shore the beach is framed by high cliffs, and it is impossible to get there on foot.
If you want solitude, it’s better to try to get to this beach early in the morning, at least by 9-10 hours, because in the summer season after 11 am there are always a lot of people. An umbrella and two sun beds cost 10-15 euros for the whole day, depending on the time of the season. If you don’t want to pay or there are no free umbrellas and sun loungers, you can always sit on your own towel on the sand.
