Santorini at Easter is even more dreamy! At least that’s what the local rumor is! By all accounts, the island during the Easter period is more beautiful, quieter and more enjoyable than in the summer. If the locals say so, it should be right, shouldn’t it?
On Easter season, Santorini is not the cosmopolitan place we all know, music won’t be playing everywhere, nor are the alleys crowded. However, you can feel the solemn atmosphere the traditional aspects of the island and the family environment that prevails. People come closer together and revive the customs like a ritual.
So, if you want to live the fantastic Easter experience like the locals, you should visit and follow the customs and traditions of this period. One visit will make you want to return to the island again and again.
The most important moment for Santorini at Easter is the procession of the Epitaph in the village of Pyrgos. After the deposition, on Good Friday, Tantalus, as he is called, comes out to announce the event. In the background the bells ring loudly and mournfully. The procession of the Epitaph in the village of Pyrgos – and in recent years also in Akrotiri – will be a unique experience of your visit.
Throughout the village there are tin candles with fires, which are lit with oil, thus creating a solemn atmosphere. In every courtyard people place these candles and so the whole village is transformed into a fiery scenery. Women sprinkle the procession of the Epitaph with rose water, from their houses’ courtyards.
On Easter Sunday, women prepare the traditional sweet “melitinia”, which are pies made with myzithra, sugar, and mastic and shaped and folded in a special way, like small stars. They are accompanied with cinnamon and are an excellent and original dessert.
Easter in Santorini will be a lifetime experience!