Stelios Place

This charming two-floor hotel is painted white with blue shutters and turquoise pool lounge furniture. It's owned by a family -- Stelios, Eva, and Katerina -- who take care of the operations. Hibiscus, bougainvillea, and lava rock details add charm to this property, and guests are offered figs from the family garden. This affordable hotel suits beach lovers and budget-minded travelers who want to be near Perissa Beach and save money by cooking at the 24-hour communal kitchen, which has a dining table, mini-fridge, and double-burner hot plate. There's a patio featuring pebble details and a picnic table just outside the kitchen area.

At the rear of Stelios Place -- no more than five minutes on foot via an alleyway -- are the black sandy shores of Perissa Beach, with tiki umbrellas and cushioned lounge chairs. The shore is lined with restaurants, bars, and shops, and there's a lively nightlife scene come evening. Quads and cars can be rented nearby, and across from the hotel is the Santorini Dive Center. The STS Fun Train runs by the hotel and takes tourists on Perissa city tours and to Vlichada. Wine tasting at Santo Winery in Pyrgos is a 15-minute drive, while Ancient Thera is a half-hour drive. It’s a 20-minute drive to the Santorini Airport. Getting to Oia to experience its famous sunsets takes 45 minutes by car.

The hotel's 21 rooms are clean and basic, but pleasant, and some have furnished private balconies that overlook the pool. Others share a patio outside the communal kitchen. They feature tile floors, light wood or white metal furniture -- headboards, desks, and wardrobes -- and pops of orange or blue bedspreads. Some bath and beach towels are a reportedly threadbare, however. All rooms have air-conditioning, mini-fridges, hairdryers, safes, and flat-screen TVs. Double/Twin Rooms fit two people, Triple Rooms fit up to three, and Quad Rooms are designed for a maximum of four guests.  Extra beds can be requested. Bathrooms have small walk-in showers with curtains and fun, colorful tiles.

The main attraction for guests of Stelios Palace is the nearby black-sand beach, but there’s also a small and well-maintained pool on-site with a few blue lounge chairs and parasols on the deck. A small pool bar offers cooked-to-order breakfasts (for a fee) and cocktails with some indoor seating by the front desk, where there’s a flat-screen TV and books available to borrow. Wi-Fi is free throughout the hotel, and there are two PCs at the bar that guests use for free. The hotel offers other nice freebies as well: luggage storage, on-site parking, and round-trip shuttle service to the ferry terminal and airport (with advance notification and a three-night minimum stay). Electrical adapters can also be borrowed.