The Ancient Splendor of Naxos
The next stop on our Greece trip was to the beautiful island of Naxos, which is the largest and greenest of the Cycladic Island Group. Naxos has a lot of charm within it’s ancient alleyways, natural wonders and local delicacies. Since our stay in Naxos was fairly short, we focused ourselves in the capital of Chora, also known as Naxos City. We explored the ancient castle and old alleyways on foot and wandered around tasting food at different cafes. I hope to one day return to Naxos to explore the other parts of the island.
Last June we took our first trip to Greece and we loved it. This post will detail our third stop in Greece to the island of Naxos. My first post in the series was about our stop in Santorini, followed by my second post about Milos. Follow up posts will outline our stops in Athens and the Ionian Island of Corfu.
Trip Planning: Before
As I mentioned in my Santorini and Milos blog posts, I did a lot of research before visiting Greece. My main focus was to build a good itinerary that didn’t feel too rushed. Specific to Naxos, I made sure I had our transportation booked ahead of time, as well as our lodging. Since we would be in Naxos for only two nights, I did not book us a rental car for our time there. In hindsight, I wish I had booked a car for at least one day to explore the island.
For lodging, I looked at places on Airbnb and booking.com that were located in Naxos City. My main goal was to find something close to the beach and within walking distance to the ferry port. I also booked our ferries ahead of time, both coming from Milos and then leaving for Athens.
Getting to Naxos
As mentioned in my Milos post, we took a very rough ferry ride from Milos to Naxos. Thankfully that was a one time event and our other ferry rides were uneventful and smooth. The majority of visitors appear to arrive to Naxos via ferry, but there is an airport that you can access as well. Upon arriving at the ferry port, it was a short walk to where we were staying. Since we didn’t rent a car, we walked or ran to get around the island.
Naxos Basics
Naxos is the largest of the Cycladic Islands at 165 square kilometers. The island is known for its lush valleys, beautiful beaches and ancient villages. The climate of Naxos brings mild winters and hot summers. The island is considered to be more fertile due to a stable water supply, which allows it to support a bustling agricultural sector. In total, the population of Naxos is around 19,000, with a large portion concentrated in the capital.
Upon entering the main port, you will see the Portara, which is the doorway to the ancient Temple of Apollo. Beyond this magical site, the city expands up the hillside. It is a bustling city filled with hotels, restaurants and shopping. There are plenty of ATMs and it is easily navigated on foot.
Where to Stay
We stayed at a cute little family run hotel that I found through Airbnb. It was a clean room with a balcony, a refrigerator, AC and breakfast was included.
Our Airbnb was in a good walkable location to downtown Naxos, where we spent a lot of time. We could also venture out to the Agios Georgios Beach directly from our hotel. We enjoyed having a balcony and being so close to the beach.
Since we didn’t have a rental car, we were limited to staying near the ferry port in Naxos. There are many other options in other parts of the island that might feel more private. For our needs this place was great, but review what you need and let that guide where you choose to stay.
What to Eat
While we were pretty low key with our meals, we did have one amazing dinner while we were in Naxos. We ate at Doukato Naxos, which sits in a small courtyard in the middle of old town. We found the food to be spectacular, the service amazing and we were overall very impressed. I definitely recommend it if you are in Naxos. We also ate a lot of ice cream while we were there, to beat the heat of course!
What to Do
There are many notable things to see around the island, including some beautiful beaches, ancient villages, as well as Zas Mountain. Since we were located only in Naxos City, we didn’t get to explore much of what the island has to offer. I will outline what we did get to do below.
Explore Naxos Old Town
We spent most of our time walking around Naxos, especially the old town area where the castle is located. The maze-like alleyways are filled with impressive architecture, tourist shops and small cafes. This was a fun place to wander around in to experience some of the city’s charm. There are also some really delicious restaurants located in this area.
Go to the Beach
We lucked out that the Agios Georgios Beach was right below our Airbnb. We spent our second day laying out on the beach and relaxing under the sun. This beach is nothing spectacular, but has a nice array of chairs and umbrellas for rent and little restaurants that you can order from while on the beach. If you have a car, I recommend you check out some of the more picturesque beaches on the island.
Visit the Temple of Apollo
The Temple of Apollo at the entrance to Naxos is remarkable. It sits on a strip of land jutting out from the capital near the ferry port. The temple is the only remaining piece of an unfinished temple created in 530BC. There are four remaining parts of the temple, each weighing about 20 tons. It is an easy walk from downtown and worth a visit.
Naxos Running
Naxos has more options for running in comparison to some of the other islands. This is mainly because there are a number of empty rural roads that you can safely run on. The first run that we took was along some rural roads near our Airbnb that lead out of town. From this vantage point, we got to see another side of Naxos by running through the farmlands outside the capital.
On my second run in Naxos, I headed to check out the Temple of Apollo on a route near the water. Since I went early, I was rewarded by having the beautiful ruins mostly to myself.
Reading on Naxos
We stopped by an adorable used book store called Papyrus Jewellery and Used Books to stock up on some reading material while we were in Naxos. The bookstore has a large selection of used books at good prices to re-up your book supply while you are in town.
Getting Away: Next Stop Athens
With a decent amount of apprehension we took our last ferry ride to Athens on Seajets. It was a huge boat, as you can see from the photo. Thankfully we had smooth sailing on calm seas into the Piraeus Ferry Port in Athens. The ferry port is about 14km south of the city center, so you will have to take the subway or a taxi to your final destination in the city.
Loved this post Lucy! Super informative, beautifully written, and amazing pictures, especially the one you are in this black and white ally! Makes me want to visit Naxos!