Perfect terrain for some STRENGTH training!...Lots of up/down hills/steps.....Brotherleelove is the expert here....sure he'll provide some great tips....Enjoy!

Where will you be staying? You can run along the far side of the island away from all the crazy drivers and blind curves. The road is near the bus square in OIa, starts out as concrete and turns to gravel about a mile from Oia. It goes all the way to Imerovigli. There's very little traffic on that road. You can see it on this map: upatras.gr/dsp2002/IMGS/Maps/Santorini.gif

Thanks for the info! We're actually staying not far from Imerovigli so that would work out well. Do you by any chance know the distance of that route? (Also, probably a dumb question but I'm assuming Oia the same as Ia?) One other question - how are the beaches to run on?

I'm not sure, but that road's got to be about 5 miles long, maybe 6. It hooks up with the main road at the bottom of the hill in Imerovigli, so if you are brave you can run a circle, running the main road back from Oia (Ia). I had a friend there who was a runner who used to run on the main road every day. The beaches are not hard-packed sand like elsewhere, but soft and porous sand or rock. I wouldn't think they'd be good for running, but you'll have to judge that for yourself.

Hi mcbtb, definatelly a volcanic island with a cliff side aglomeration is not the most proper area to prepare your feets for a marathon distance straight run

Though I do believe that in the beach side from Vlychada to Perissa in late September , a 16km lond distance mostly straight is what you could apreciate for this option...

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i1121-Follow_th…

I know this is an old post but thought I would mention my experience of running on Santorini.

I was staying in Firostefani in July and went for a run the first morning at about 6:30am up to Imerovigli. It was cool, quiet and the path was virtually empty. There are alot of steps too which was tough as I am used to running on the flat.

HOWEVER! There are a lot stray dogs on Santorini which during the heat of the day are lying across the path however at 6:30am they are out playing and chasing each other... and trying to play with me! I'm not afraid of dogs but at one stage I had 5 of them running and jumping around me. I stopped running and they calmed down but I was terrified! I doubt they would've attacked me but I didn't want to find out - especially because there was no-one else around...

mcbjtb

The first time I attempted to run in Santorini was in late May. From 6:15am onwards, I used to take the route from Imerovigli - Firostefani, then turn left by the school and past the Pet Shop. Even though the first part was on the road travelling downhill, it was quite slippery under foot. The mornings always seemed to be 'dewy', so when I took the odd steps through the residential areas, I was cautious.

Late September, I did various routes from Monolithos beach(near Airport). Very hard going on the 'calf muscs' (black sand) didn't help the 'achilles' much either.

November - Took a route between Fira - Messaria - Vothonas. Pleasant if the weather was reasonable, but I think I would prefer to run in the UK in Winter than Santorini in NOVEMBER!!

From Imerovigli to Ia, I took the main road, mainly because I was unsure of what the coastal route was like (being on my own), didn't want any mishaps.

NB Average life of my trainers in the UK is 3-4 months. On Santorini, 2 weeks!

Hope this gives you some idea.

For future reference, the coast road is relatively flat, straight and paved. If I were a runner this is where I'd go.

Also, there's comparatively little traffic on that side of the island.

That side of the island... still has the old traditional charm of locals going about their lives and watching the SUNRISE coming up.

No crazy drivers either, so ideal for RUNNING/POWER WALKING.

Better still, NO TOURISTS...B L I S S ! !