Alexandra Billington joins the tourist throng on beautiful Santorini.

© Paul Cowan / 123rf.com

This particular Cycladic Island needs no promoting – but indulge me anyway; heart-stopping, dramatic scenery, both natural and manmade beauty. I’ll stop there because that isn’t quite the full picture.

Tourism overwhelms Santorini and whilst that can be a total pain, such as the Cruise Boat Crowds in Fira clogging the narrow streets and overpriced restaurants, it has been a necessary evil on an island that otherwise may have faded into obscurity when many of the young people left decades ago to find work in the larger towns and cities.

Since the ‘70s, Santorini has been on a tourist upswing, and for good reason; it is truly spectacular.

I stayed in the village of Oia at the tip of Santorini, where whitewashed buildings and marble paved winding roads make you feel as if you’re half-floating in a magical town that could pass for a fantastical film set.

Sunrise and sunset are even more otherworldly, when the white houses, which seem to cling to the side of Oia’s steep cliff side in layers, become hued with shades of pink, purple and orange.

Sometimes, tourism is a good thing.