#10 in Top 20 Santorini for A Honeymoon · ★★★★★
Aenaon Villas
Eight whitewashed villas, no big-resort presence, for couples who want Imerovigli without the show.
Eight whitewashed villas, no big-resort presence, for couples who want Imerovigli without the show.
"The 2011 Imerovigli boutique, 9 villas only, the smallest luxury property on Santorini, family-owned."
Why this rank, Aenaon Villas opened in 2011 in Imerovigli, 9 villas only, the smallest luxury property on Santorini and one of the smallest luxury hotels in Greece. The Tsanos family ownership has been continuous since founding; the small scale and the family operational involvement produce a stay format closer to a private Cycladic estate than a hotel. Each villa was individually designed by the family with no two villas identical, and the Imerovigli caldera-edge position places the property at one of the village's most-photographed cliff segments. Restaurant: Aenaon Restaurant operates seasonal Cycladic-Mediterranean menus with breakfast and dinner service; the small scale means dining capacity is effectively bookable only to residents. The infinity-edge pool faces directly west for sunset alignment. The Skaros Villa at 70 sq m with private terrace and outdoor jacuzzi is the property's most-requested category. The family-owned independent operation gives Aenaon the most-personal service register of any Imerovigli property. Best for honeymoon couples and travelers prioritizing the smallest-scale, most-personalized Santorini stay.
Best room: Skaros Villa - 70 sq m, private terrace, outdoor jacuzzi.
"Eight whitewashed villas, no big-resort presence, for couples who want Imerovigli without the show."
Aenaon Villas is the smallest of the high-tier Imerovigli properties. Eight private villas, family-owned, opened in 2010. The hotel was built by the Vamvakas family on a single terrace cut into the cliff between Imerovigli and Firostefani, high enough for a clean caldera view, far enough from the Imerovigli cluster to feel genuinely separate. Each villa is a freestanding whitewashed Cycladic house with a private plunge pool, an outdoor lounge, and a small kitchenette. There is no large pool, no restaurant, no bar. Breakfast arrives at the villa each morning. Aenaon is the hotel for honeymoon couples who do not want a hotel, the shared-pool deck, the sunset crowd, the dinner reservation system, any of it. The trade-off is dining (you walk to Imerovigli for restaurants or arrange a private chef) and the lack of a bar. But the privacy is unmatched on the cliff, eight villas spread across a single terrace means you may not see another guest in three days. For the honeymoon that is built around a partner and a plunge pool, this is the most concentrated version of that on the island.
Honeymoon Villa or Aenaon Villa, both have private plunge pools facing the caldera.
Book a private chef in the villa for one of the nights, Aenaon will arrange a Cycladic mezze tasting on the terrace. Reserve dinner at La Maltese (a five-minute walk away) for another night; it is one of the best-kept restaurant secrets on the cliff.
Aenaon Villas sits within our broader Top 20 Hotels in Santorini for a Honeymoon list. It scored an aggregate 9.5/10 across the three editorial criteria, competitive against the field but, on a honeymoon-specific factors, the angle above is what earned its rank. For the alternatives in the same Santorini neighbourhood, see Imerovigli, central Santorini and adjacent. For a different city entirely, see the related lists below.
If you have already chosen the dates, our editor recommends booking the room twelve weeks ahead. The best suites with the right view orientation go first, and inventory for the popular months is quoted in months, not weeks. Suite-level rooms with private plunge pools or terraces, the ones that earn this rank, are typically the first to sell out.
Editorial · #14 on the Top 20 Santorini Hotels 2026 list
Aenaon Villas is the smallest luxury property on Santorini at 9 villas only. The Tsanos family ownership has been continuous since the 2011 opening, and the family's daily operational involvement produces a stay format closer to a private Cycladic estate than a hotel. Each villa was individually designed by the family with no two villas identical.
For Santorini visitors, Aenaon is the address for travelers prioritizing the most-personalized Santorini stay possible. The 9-villa scale produces a staff-to-guest ratio approaching 1:1 at full occupancy. The Imerovigli caldera-edge position places the property at one of the village's most-photographed cliff segments. The Skaros Villa with private terrace and outdoor jacuzzi is the property's most-requested category. For honeymoon couples and small-group stays where the working hotel format itself feels too institutional, Aenaon's family-owned independent character is the working answer.