Santorini Secret Suites & Spa ★★★★★

Normally, a hotel experience as sublime as this one has people racing to tell their friends, family, and anyone who will listen about it. Not so with the Santorini Secret Suites. A great deal of the charm of this hotel and spa is the seclusion; Oia is mostly visited by day-trippers from nearby Thira, arriving by cable car or donkey ride from further down the mountainous island. Don’t be afraid to come in the low season to avoid the crowds. Thira has the museums, the galleries, the cathedrals and the nightlife – Oia is a secluded traditional hilltop village, a maze of tiny twisty streets, stark white houses, blue dome churches, and ancient castle ruins. You might expect explosions and flare-ups at a hotel set on the precipice of a volcano; instead you’ll find a place of absolute tranquillity.

Remote location aside, the Santorini Secret Suites themselves are not exactly what you’d think of as “roughing it”. From the moment you arrive, greeted with fresh fruit and a cocktail, they provide you with the finest five-star service imaginable. The staff are professional and always on hand to direct you to the infinity pool, the spa, or the delectable Thai/Japanese fusion hotel restaurant Oozora. The rooms, soothing white and decorated with stone crafted from the local volcanic materials, are equipped with bubbling hot tubs on the balconies, looking out to the glistening Aegean Sea.

The views are one of the few secrets of Oia that have managed to slip out. It is widely regarded as the most beautiful region of Santorini, which is itself considered a place of outstanding natural beauty. Curving around a giant lagoon, the sunrises and sunsets over the caldera are awe-inspiring. Closer to land, things are no less picturesque – instead of the typical white beaches found at so many coastal destinations, Santorini displays its volcanic past through striking black pebble and red sand beaches. Visit now, before the rest of the world finds out!