Perivolas was our first hotel we stayed in to start our honeymoon, it was perfect. After traveling for 24 hours, and arriving at the Santorini airport, we had our transfer waiting to bring us to the hotel. We checked in to our junior suite after being given a tour of the property, and welcome drinks.
The view was amazing, breakfast was good with a variety to choose from, the staff was very helpful and friendly. I had emailed the hotel prior to arrival to make dinner reservations. The reservations were made when we got there, and they called us to remind us every day.
The hotel is a short walk to town, which is great because your still close enough to town but away from all the noise and tourists coming in from the cruise ships.
We had a couples massage on our second day and it was wonderful.
The pool was great.. I would recommend this hotel to anyone who is looking to get away, and relax and take in the spectacular view.

We just returned from a three week vacation to Greece. We had the hardest time trying to pick a hotel in Santorini (Perivolas,Katikies,Kirini). This has always been a dream destination for us & wanted to stay at the perfect hotel. We emailed Perivolas with some questions when we were first researching hotels. Kelly from Perivolas was so quick to respond & more than happy to answer any questions we had. We were so impressed by Kelly & her service that we decided on Perivolas. It turned out to be the right one. This place is truly special!!!!!

When we very first stepped on the grounds at Perivolas, WOW!!! Our jaws dropped, the grounds & views are simply breathtaking. The hotel area was nicely landscaped & the view was remarkable at any spot. It did not feel like a hotel but more like a little village w/ little homes. We stayed in a Suite w/ a private Jacuzzi. The décor of the room was simple yet modern. The views from our room & terrace were just glorious.

The pool is spectacular. You can very easily lose track of your day sitting by the pool staring out to the caldera. The staff who worked there were extremely polite and always available if you needed anything. They would come around with complimentary cherries, grapes & iced tea around the pool area daily.

Complimentary breakfast was served daily in an area around the pool with a selection of fruits, juices, meats, cheeses, pastries, breads, cereals, yogurt, etc., and they would also cook omelet’s and other hot breakfast items to order. You could also order breakfast to be room serviced. The lunch & dinner menu is also very good if you want to dine at Perivolas. The sunsets are magnificent from the hotel.

Although Perivolas is in Oia, it is not right in town. This is actually nice b/c you are away from the road and the hustle and bustle of tourists. It’s just a ten minute walk which we quite enjoyed.

Yes, there was not much closet space & yes, the bathroom is a stereotypical European bathroom. But the simplicity of it all actually contributes to the ambiance.

If you are looking for a large resort with lots of action, this is not the place for you. This hotel is the exact opposite, its absolute peace and tranquility. Everyone spoke in whispers...as if not to disturb the natural beauty and serenity.

Truly a magical place!!! Would return in heartbeat.

We stayed at Perivolas July 18 - 23

Room: Our room was very nice. Upon arrival they greeted us with a complementary bottle of wine along with a fruit and cheese tray. We stayed in the executive suite. My husband and I went, along with a friend of ours. We had two bedrooms. After being there a while, I realized there was no television in our room. I thought this would bother me b/c I usually like to watch tv before bed. However, there is so much to do in Santorini and I was very tired by bedtime, so who has time for tv? However, we did have a cd player in our room. (If you like to have your music with you, it's a good idea to take your iPod and speakers with you.) The shower was on the bathroom wall (about waist high, like the typical European showers), with no walls around it. So, if you use it the entire bathroom floor gets wet. However, our suite also had a really nice steam shower that was enclosed, so we usually just took our showers in there. We had a private pool which was very nice. We had a great balcony area with the pool and a table.

Sidenote: They had a converter for American appliances, but it didn't work. Luckily we took our own. My friend who recently went to Europe had a converter, but her Chi iron still melted. So, I took a straightening iron with different temperatures and set it on the lowest. It seemed to get really got even on the lowest temperature.

Staff: Very accommodating. Room service is prompt. Kelly at the front desk is a Greek-American. She is very nice. Front desk staff is very helpful. The room service staff brings what you request, quietly and inobtrusively.

Pool: We had our private pool, so we didn't really use this one, but looks very nice. We went to it one afternoon, but it was really quiet (and we're not, haha) so we went back to our pool at our room. The pool temperature was nice, for the few minutes I was in it.

General: This is a nice hotel. It definitely has great views of Santorini. It was a little to quiet for us, but I'm sure this is just what some people are looking for.

We went to Perivolas for a perfect two night three full day stay in a junior suite at the Perivolas for our five year wedding anniversary. It seems as though the people with negative reviews in previous posts had different expectations for Perivolas. As noted in the Perivolas website, it is “intimate and informal” as well as coined by other reviewers, rustically luxurious. During the first two
days you could tell that all the guests there really were respecting the amazing views and rustic beauty of Perivolas. Each couple would quietly talk to themselves without altering the mesmerizing peacefulness that is Perivolas. Although the hotel was full my wife and I most of the time were the only people in the pool. The hotel never felt crowded. We so enjoyed the peacefulness and that we almost
embarrassingly only left the hotel for dinner and to stroll around Oia (the “center” is only about a 15 minute walk away) a few times. We quite happily enjoyed breakfast, lounged in the sun, went to the sauna, steam room, Jacuzzi, to the pool…and repeated the process over
and over again. It was such a relaxing stay. The views of the caldera
from everywhere on the property are astounding. When we first arrived
and throughout our stay, we were mesmerized watching toy sized giant cruise ships puttering across it.

The hillside perched infinity pool really is beautiful. My wife and I often hooked our arms on the side of it and just stared down across
the caldera. It is not a huge pool (probably 10 feet by 20 feet give or take), but at such a small hotel and property at such a premium is
a larger pool really needed? I appreciated that the pool and Jacuzzi were open 24 hours a day; we noticed other hotels that closed theirs promptly at sunset.

And yes, as noted by negative reviewers Perivolas is not the Ritz. However, the cave rooms are very distinctive and unique. The floors of the caves are finished in a smooth cement and the walls are a white plaster. There are no T.V.’s or CD players; and a phone and small refrigerator is really the only modern convenience in the room. The beauty of this is that you never hear a noise anywhere on the property besides people talking and soft music coming from the hotel bar (if you are sitting near it). The beds are quite comfortable and set into small cavey nooks in the rooms. Our bathroom
was small and cavey with a small (one person shower :^) which got the
floor a bit wet. The rooms are minimalist, but quite attractive. We had our own terrace, however due to the cliffside setting ours and most others had a walkway passing along next to it. We did not ever notice anyone passing on it besides the cleaning lady and our neighbors a couple times. We had a little kitchen and sitting area in our cave as well, but besides sleeping and changing, we spent a majority of our time in and around the pool. Our room was cleaned with fresh towels delivered twice a day.

And a complaint voiced by another person, is what I found as quite desirable. There is not staff hovering over you waiting to take your drink order or racing to be at your beckon call. But that is what makes this place so amazing. You and your special someone can sit undisturbed tucked away under an umbrella on the hillside for hours.
Anything you want is just a few steps away at either the pool bar or at reception. The hotel staff are very warm and friendly and were by no means hiding from you. When I asked for a beverage or a towel, they were delivered to you wherever you were sitting. Delicious meals
were always served piping hot and were delivered promptly.

Breakfast is “serve yourself” and consisted of fruit salad, fresh bread, jam, pastries, yogurt, cereals, honey, hard boiled eggs, cheese, cold cuts, nuts, dried fruit, fresh squeezed orange juice, pie, coffee/expresso…The “serve yourself” is very tastefully done, so erase any images of a college cafeteria. There isn’t a monster omelet station and waffle bar as maybe others might hope, but we were very pleased at breakfast each morning. You could chose to have breakfast in the restaurant/bar area next to the pool or bring it to any location you wanted (your terrace, by the pool, tucked away on the hillside…) and eat for as long as you wanted. I always brought my
tray back as a matter of common courtesy which was always met with a sincere thank you. I suppose you could request of the front desk to have breakfast delivered to you at your room, but with only 17 cave rooms none are that far away from the pool area. And besides what is cuter than wandering down to get your loved one a cup of coffee and pastry to eat on your terrace overlooking the Caldera. One morning I did that at around 8:30 and we headed down for breakfast #2 a couple hours later.

And if you don’t like cats, do not go anywhere in Greece or Cyprus. There are part of the islands charm I suppose and you will find calendars and postcards of the “Cat’s of Greece.” There are a few
“pet” cats roaming around Perivolas (and I’m sure every hotel), but they are by no means strays. We saw the same three or so cats during
our stay and enjoyed their occasional antics. There are not hordes of mangy cats wandering through the property begging for food.

Again no where is absolutely perfect, but Perivolas is pretty close.
Perivolas only takes cash/wire transfers/ travelers checks (no credit
cards), a laundry basket and cleaning supplies did stay on our walkway for a couple hours on our day of departure, the shower (no tub) was small, and the area around the pool could have used a one or two more umbrellas. We did not notice stained toilets or chipped fittings, as the complex is quite new it is surprising to hear another poster mentioning that. But possibly, maybe we were so content that we were not looking the little flaw here and there (I did notice a weed by the pool though :^) Unfortunately on the last day, two American couples arrived and broke the unspoken tranquility rule, and interrupted the two full days of peacefulness with constant
unending stream of loud chattering by the pool – oh well. We overheard them saying something along the lines of “I can’t believe we got shooshed” referring to a previous hotel stay, so hopefully they were just a Perivolas anomaly.

Yes, Perivolas costs A LOT of money, but at some you just have to bite the bullet and accept that this is going to be a very pricey part of your vacation and forget about the exact dollar amount you end up spending. If you are concerned about the price, are the nitpicking don’t want to lift a finger are going to count every cent you spend and each one better be worth it, and are expecting a Paris Hiltonesque she she Ritz Carlton, do yourself a favor and stay elsewhere. We are by no means “high rollers,” but for us on our anniversary this two night splurge was so worth it. The rooms are so strikingly unique, the views are incredible, and hotel grounds are beautiful. Our memory of Perivolas will be cherished as our honeymoon was five years ago.

One final thing, if you do go to Perivolas, please try and speak softly and remember the “unspoken tranquility rule.”