Santorini is pitching itself as more than a caldera-view photo stop. At the GNTO Santorini Tourism Forum 2026, held 5-8 October with the Greek National Tourism Organisation, local officials and around 30 international travel journalists, the island unveiled a digital campaign of 32 short social videos spotlighting the food, wine, culture and everyday life that tend to get overshadowed by those famous sunsets.
The push is also about timing. With European travellers increasingly looking outside the July-August crush, the island wants to fill spring and autumn. Two flight announcements back that up: Transavia has extended its Santorini routes until November, and Jet2 will fly weekly from Leeds-Bradford from 6 May to 7 October 2027.
What's actually on offer? Start with wine. Santorini's volcanic soil produces a distinctive wine culture, and growers still train vines into the "kouloura" — low circular baskets woven to shield grapes from fierce wind and sun. The native Assyrtiko grape has won international acclaim, and many wineries run tours and tastings. In the kitchen, the island's signature products are fava (yellow split pea purée), tiny cherry tomatoes and white aubergine, all shaped by that same terrain. The Michelin Guide clearly sees something here: in December 2025 it announced Santorini and Thessaloniki would join Athens in its Greek selection for 2026.
Beyond the glass and plate, there's Akrotiri, a prehistoric settlement preserved under volcanic ash, traditional villages like Megalochori, and caldera-edge hiking trails. Local authorities also want to grow hands-on options such as cooking and pottery classes. Georgia Nomikou, president of Thira's Municipal Council and Tourism Committee, said production of the 32 videos is already under way, focused on the moments visitors actually remember.
The forum's market reports explain who this is aimed at. UK travellers still associate the island with luxury, but GNTO's London office sees rising interest in gastronomy, wellness, family trips and multi-island itineraries. French visitors, says the GNTO's Paris representative, are explorers who skip the all-inclusive wristband and spend in the local economy — and they'll travel in spring and autumn. Germans and Austrians are after wine, food and wellness, with repeat visitors hunting fresh experiences; Scandinavians want nature, hiking and sustainability.
For travellers, this is good news on two fronts. First, the shoulder seasons — May-June and September-October — are when Santorini is pleasant, cheaper and far less crowded, and the new flight schedules make those months easier to reach. Second, if your mental image of the island is a wall of sunset-chasing crowds in Oia, the wineries, villages and trails offer a genuinely different trip within the same island. The kouloura vineyards alone are worth the ferry or flight: no other Greek island grows grapes like this.
