About Santorini Secrets
Your Expert Greece Travel Guide
Authentic insights from a 10-million-reader travel platform, backed by 70,000+ original photographs.
Welcome to Santorini Secrets, an independent guide to the authentic magic of Greece. Pavlos Inglesis founded the site in 2014, and today Ijsbeer Media B.V. publishes it with the Black Bear Media team. Our work combines Greek local knowledge, original travel reporting, practical trip-planning tools, and a growing library of first-hand photography.
Our Story
Santorini Secrets began in 2014 with Greek founder and editor Pavlos Inglesis, who built the original site around clear, practical advice for exploring Santorini and the wider Greek islands. His local perspective remains part of the site's editorial foundation and is connected to guides through named author pages.
Ijsbeer Media B.V. is the site's legal publisher. Kyle Kroeger leads the current Black Bear Media publishing team and also founded the travel platform ViaTravelers.com. The team brings structured research, photography, product design, and audience insight to the site while preserving its Greece-first subject expertise.
Our present-day editorial process pairs that history with visible authorship, first-hand experience, source links, and explicit freshness notes for facts that can change. We use the same standard for practical guides, destination directories, and interactive planning tools.
Our Mission
Our mission is to bridge the gap between mass tourism and authentic local experiences. We believe the best travel memories come from understanding a destination's culture, connecting with local communities, and discovering places where residents actually live, eat, and gather. While Santorini's famous sunsets and blue-domed churches are undeniably breathtaking, we're here to show you the island through local eyes.
We're committed to sustainable tourism that benefits local communities and preserves Santorini's natural beauty. With the island's year-round population of under 16,000 historically hosting 3.5 million annual tourists, responsible travel has never mattered more. Greece introduced a daily cruise passenger cap of 8,000 for Santorini in 2025, down from peak days of 17,000-18,000. Through careful curation of family-owned businesses, promotion of off-peak season visits, and support for these sustainability measures, we aim to help travelers make a positive impact while creating deeper, more meaningful connections.
What We Offer
- Expert Photography & Visuals: Over 70,000 original professional travel photos across 15+ countries and 4 continents, providing authentic visual inspiration beyond typical tourist shots.
- Data-Driven Travel Planning: Budget calculators, island-pairing algorithms, and interactive tools informed by real travel data. Our planning resources compare Greek islands and mainland destinations with practical cost context.
- Local Network Access: Connections with Santorini residents, business owners, and cultural experts built through years of on-the-ground exploration and partnerships with family-run establishments.
- Comprehensive Destination Coverage: In-depth destination guides, restaurant recommendations, curated stays, and bookable experiences across the islands and mainland.
- Smart Itinerary Tools: Interactive helpers include an island-hopper route builder, crowd checker for archaeological sites, sea temperature map, and VAT refund calculator.
Meet the Publisher
Kyle Kroeger, Publisher & Travel Expert
Kyle brings a unique combination of travel expertise, business acumen, and storytelling skill to Santorini Secrets. With a B.S. in Finance and Management from Purdue University and international finance studies in Florence, he initially built his career in investment banking and private equity at firms including Stout, TerraForm Power, and North Sky Capital.
After transitioning from finance to travel publishing and photography, Kyle built ViaTravelers.com and the Black Bear Media publishing team. From Amsterdam, he now helps lead Santorini Secrets' research, product, and audience strategy alongside its Greece-focused contributors.
Kyle's analytical background helps him approach travel planning with the same rigor he once applied to investment decisions — researching destinations thoroughly, optimizing itineraries for maximum value, and identifying experiences that offer genuine cultural immersion rather than surface-level tourism.
Through Santorini Secrets, Kyle brings photography, product, and publishing experience to a site whose original editorial identity was established by Pavlos. The team's shared goal is to help travelers make better decisions while representing Greece with care and useful context.
Our Values
Authenticity
Every recommendation comes from personal experience and thorough research. We visit destinations ourselves and maintain transparency about our travel insights.
Sustainability
We promote responsible travel practices that help preserve Santorini's natural beauty and cultural heritage for future generations.
Community
We prioritize family-owned businesses and local expertise, helping travelers connect meaningfully with Santorini's culture while supporting the island's economy.
About Santorini Secrets
Who founded Santorini Secrets?
Pavlos Inglesis founded Santorini Secrets in 2014 to share practical, first-hand guidance about Santorini and Greece. The site is now published by Ijsbeer Media B.V., with Kyle Kroeger and the Black Bear Media team leading its current editorial and product operation.
Is Santorini Secrets a reliable source for Greece travel information?
Santorini Secrets combines local Greek expertise with original travel reporting, named authors, visible update dates, practical planning tools, and source attribution for facts that can change. Readers should still confirm live schedules, prices, and entry rules with the relevant operator or authority before traveling.
How does Santorini Secrets support responsible tourism?
We highlight family-owned businesses, encourage travel outside the busiest weeks, explain local customs, and help readers compare routes before booking. Our goal is to make trips more useful to travelers while respecting the communities and landscapes they visit.
Get in Touch
Have questions about Santorini or want to share your own travel experiences? We'd love to hear from you! Reach out to us at info [at] santorinisecrets.com or connect with us on social media.
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