These dreamy cliffside suites in Santorini invite you to sink into serenity

This year marks four decades since the Chaidemenos family first helped turn Santorini from sleepy volcanic rock into an island synonymous with luxury, romance and creamy white walls angled perfectly toward the Aegean sun. And in time for the summer season, their flagship property, Canaves Oia Suites, has unveiled five new private pool suites, perched on the cliffside like sleek white shells and conceived in collaboration with Greek firm Kapsimalis Architects – the local firm known for translating the island’s language of light and limestone into minimalism with soul.

Tour Canaves Oia’s new cliffside pool suites

The new suites are, in a word, serene. Or maybe serenity, because they feel more like a state of being than a hotel category. From the outside, they nestle discreetly into Oia’s volcanic façade. But inside, they open up expansively: Pale marbles, natural stone, soft linen drapes and earth-toned accents mirror the tones of the island’s terrain and the shifting blue light outside. Each suite features its own infinity pool – private, yes, but not withdrawn. You’ll want to float there endlessly, watching the sun paint shadows across the caldera.

Kapsimalis Architects have long championed a language of space, light and texture. And here, they’re in fluent form. Terraces become extensions of living spaces. Showers are carved into curves. Beds are framed not by headboards, but by horizon lines. The whole effect is airier than the island’s famously dry whites, and just as transportive.

Of course, this being Canaves, it’s not all chill. There’s the attentive service, the discreet staff members who seem to arrive with fresh towels or espresso just before you realise you want them. There’s Petra Restaurant, where the tasting menus bring Santorini’s terroir to the table without the weight of pretence. And there’s that unmistakable energy Oia gets just before sunset – a slow collective hush as cameras are raised, heads tilted the whole town bathed in gold.

But when the crowds disperse and the cruise ships retreat, the new suites at Canaves are exactly where you want to be: dipped in silence, bathed in moonlight and soaking in your own private pool, far above the world.

Canaves Oia Suites is located at Main Street, Oía 847 02, Greece.