Cheap Flights to Naxos

Quick summary

Identity

The largest Cycladic island, still far from mass tourism

Unlike neighboring Mykonos or Santorini, Naxos built its economy on agriculture rather than tourism for most of its history, and that legacy still shapes the island today: a developed west coast alongside a mountainous interior and a wilder north that remain largely untouched. According to Greek mythology, it was on the islet of Palatia, right at the harbour entrance, that Theseus abandoned Ariadne after leaving Crete, before Dionysus found her and made her his wife. In 1207, the Venetian ruler Marco Sanudo conquered the island, founded the Duchy of Naxos with Chora as its capital, and built the Kastro that still crowns the hilltop today.

Don't miss

The Portara, a monumental doorway welcoming visitors for 2,500 years

On the islet of Palatia, connected to Chora by a causeway built in 1919, stands the Portara — the giant marble doorway of an unfinished temple dedicated to Apollo, commissioned around 530 BCE by the tyrant Lygdamis. Built from four separate monoliths of Naxian marble weighing about 20 tons each, the doorway alone stands around 6 meters high and 3.5 meters wide, all that remains of a temple that was designed to rival those of Zeus in Athens and Hera in Samos, yet was never completed. It's the first thing arriving ferries reveal on approach, and one of the busiest sunset spots on the island, when the marble glows gold against the Aegean.

To discover

The Venetian Kastro and the old town of Chora

The Kastro, the fortified hilltop quarter built by Marco Sanudo, is the only surviving Venetian castle outside Italy. Its outer walls are literally the back of noble Venetian mansions, several still bearing carved family crests, and access is limited to two gates — the main Paraporti gate to the south and the Trani postern to the north, beside the Crispi and Barozzi towers. Inside sits Greece's oldest Catholic cathedral, dating to the 13th century, alongside the Archaeological Museum, home to a fine collection of Cycladic marble figurines spanning from the Neolithic to the early Christian era. Just below the Kastro, the old market street and the once-Orthodox quarter form the liveliest part of town, packed with tavernas, boutiques and narrow alleys draped in bougainvillea.

Excursion

The Tragea valley, mountain villages and Mount Zas

Naxos's mountainous interior reveals a completely different side of the island: the Tragea valley, a sea of olive groves dotted with Byzantine churches and traditional villages. Apeiranthos, the "marble village," pairs streets paved in the local stone with Venetian and Cretan influences, and is home to the largest library in the Cyclades. Filoti, the largest inland village, is the usual starting point for hiking Mount Zas — at 1,001 meters the highest peak in the Cyclades and, according to legend, the place where Zeus grew up. Nearby, the ancient quarries of Flerio still hold two unfinished archaic kouroi, colossal marble statues abandoned mid-carving, a striking reminder of just how much of the island's economy once depended on its marble.

Local food

Graviera cheese, Naxos potatoes and kitron liqueur

Naxos is a genuinely fertile island, and its food is often ranked among the best in the Cyclades. Graviera Naxou, a hard cheese with protected status, shows up on nearly every taverna menu, alongside the island's well-known potatoes, grown in its volcanic soil. Kitron, a liqueur distilled from citron leaves, remains a local specialty still sold in traditional shops along Chora's old market street. Restaurants near the harbour and around the Kastro serve grilled fish and slow-cooked meat dishes drawing on local produce, best rounded off with a glass of kitron.

Beaches

Over 20 km of sand, often ranked the best in the Cyclades

Where most Cycladic islands offer little more than pebbles or small coves, the west coast of Naxos unrolls over 20 km of gently sloping, fine-sand beaches with turquoise water, stretching from Agios Prokopios to Agiassos. Agios Georgios, just a short walk from Chora, is shallow and family-friendly, while Agia Anna and Plaka, further south, offer quieter stretches of the same coastline. The east and south coasts, remote and undeveloped, are left to visitors with their own transport looking for solitude — a sharp contrast with the busier holiday feel of the west.

Getting around & budget

Airport 3 km from Chora, ferries from Piraeus

Naxos Airport sits just 3 km from Chora, with domestic flights from Athens taking around 45 minutes. The port of Naxos, overlooked by the Portara, also handles direct ferries from Piraeus — about 3.5 hours on a fast catamaran or 5-6 hours on a conventional boat — plus solid connections to Mykonos, Paros and Santorini. Locally, buses reach the west coast beaches and the main villages, but renting a car is well worth it for exploring the Tragea valley and the northern part of the island at your own pace, especially if you're not staying in Chora itself.

When to go

When to visit Naxos?

Naxos Airport

A quiet gateway to the largest of the Cyclades

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions about flights to Naxos