Getting there is half the fun… right?
We have always said the holiday officially starts when you get through security at the airport! Cheers to that….or as they say in Greece…. Yamas!
Our flight didn’t leave until 9pm, so plenty of time for a wine and good for the body clock to prepare for a sleep. From Australia it’s a long flight to Europe – 14 hours to Dubai, 5 hours from Dubai to Athens then another short flight to Naxos, and that doesn’t include the layover time! I was trialing a new travel pillow as I have a lot of trouble sleeping on planes. It was a big thumbs up for the Trtl pillow, I think I actually slept! We landed in Naxos feeling quite energized and ready to explore!
Where to stay in Naxos
We did our research and decided to stay just outside the main town of Chora in the little beachside town of Agia Anna. It was an excellent choice for us, within walking distance of the neighbouring beautiful beach of Plaka, but less busy and with a great selection of wonderful waterfront restaurants. We couldn’t get over the stunning location of our accommodation and how lovely our host Foteini was. We can highly recommend Litsa Studios, amazing!
The first order of business after accessing our accommodation was to take a look around and get something for dinner. We chose a popular restaurant, Taverna Akrogiali, with tables down on the beach. We were just finishing our meal when, as if by some sort of magic, the night sky exploded in colour! It was fireworks for the nearby wedding celebration, but really, it was Naxos welcoming a couple of excited broads to its sparkling shores.
Day 2
We were up nice and early in search of coffee and walked around the headland, past a cute old church, to Plaka Beach. Loved this beach, it was early and therefore super quiet, but I can imagine it would be quite busy in high season.
No joy with the early morning coffee, so we quickly worked out the local bus system and made our way into Naxos Town. You can buy bus tickets at some local supermarkets, then when you get to the old town, head to the main kiosk, right next to where the bus drops you off, and purchase all the tickets you will need for the day – easy!
Our plan was to check out a couple of lovely hilltop villages, then head back to town to watch the sunset from the Portara. First stop though, was to find that coffee!
A leisurely walk along the waterfront led us to the With Cafe -great coffee, great location and friendly wait staff. Milana is quite gifted at picking up languages quickly, and after a little tutorial by our lovely waiter Antony, she had a handful of common phrases down pat. It really does make a difference when you make a little bit of an effort to communicate in the home language. The locals appreciate the effort and are super friendly and helpful.
After recharging with our coffee, we hopped on the bus and made our way to our first village of the day, Halki. To read more about the villages Halki and Filoti, just click on the link, but for now, let me just say, they are a must visit when you are staying in Naxos.
We made our way back to Naxos town in time to watch the sunset from the Portara. I think this is the number 1 thing to do in Naxos, because everyone was doing it! Crowds of people lining up to get the perfect sunset Instagram photo. Well, we were two of them, so we can’t complain! The fun part was watching people running the gauntlet, trying to get across the causeway without getting soaked by a random large wave.
Having ticked that off our list, we made our way back to the town desperate to find a bathroom…. the sunset seemed to take forever! We remembered that there was a bathroom at the end of the jetty servicing a small cafe there. Well, it wouldn’t be a Broads’ trip if there wasn’t at least a little bit of drama! I was busting so I went in first, while Milana held the door because the handle was broken. As I was washing my hands, Milana jumped in as she was a bit desperate as well. The wind blew the door shut, and with years of warping from sea spray, it was stuck fast. With no handle to speak of, I tried pulling the door open from below and above, nothing….I was starting to panic that we would be stuck in there overnight as everyone on the pier had gone for the day. There was one small window that dropped straight into the sea! My rising sense of panic, hurried Milana out of the cubicle and she was soon on the job…..result = ‘We’re free!’
With our new-found freedom, we ventured back into town for a spot of shopping and wandering around the gorgeous alleyways, followed by a few sundowners during the Captain’s happy hour.
Back to Agia Anna we went for a shower and a change, then off to find a venue hosting some live music. We had high hopes for an artist called Nikos that we had seen advertised on posters all over town. By the time we found him we were tired and hungry and not overly impressed by the tunes floating towards our ears, so we made a decision to skip the music, and head back to our local restaurants for a late dinner. The Palatia restaurant graciously gave us table even though the kitchen must have been very close to closing for the night and the pastitsio was delicious!
Day 3
Fantastic full day spent aboard Jason Daily Cruises out to Koufonisi Island. Click on the link to read about our fun sailing day.
Day 4 – Our last Day
We had no fixed plans for this day but started it off with a delicious breakfast at our favourite cafe, With. Then spent some time shopping in the old Town, which is very pretty, and visited another hilltop village, Apiranthos , click on the link to read more details on the gorgeous hilltop villages of Naxos.
When we got back into Naxos town at the end of the day, we made our way to a rooftop bar that we had discovered earlier in the day. A few hours were spent drinking Mojitos and Mai Tai Margaritas, watching a storm roll in, solving the problems of the world and reflecting on how much we loved Naxos. The bus ride home that night was fun, as the cocktails kicked in and an impromptu Mamma Mia karaoke session began thanks to Milana and a lovely family of 4 UK sisters.
The next morning, nursing a small hangover, we packed up, checked out, and made our way by bus to the port, to catch our ferry to Santorini.
