Blogs from Naxos, South Aegean, Greece, Europe
Naxos - The Romantic Greek Island
Published: September 12th 2011Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Naxos
August 25th 2011
After our ferry ride, we found a cab that took us straight to our hotel for a really cheap €8. When we arrived at our hotel, we were blown away. It was a 4 star hotel in the outskirts of the city of Naxos, but was still close enough to walk to the centre in 10 minutes. Because it was our anniversary week, we decided to spend a little more on the hotel than we normally would and it certainly was worth it. The Porto Naxos hotel had a sauna, gym, tennis court, massive swimming pool and a separate kiddie pool as well as one of my favourite things in the world. A pool bar!!! So we settled in to our room which was amazing. Big bed and a bath and TV which were things we ... read more
July 13th 2011
July 8-10 We thoroughly enjoyed our 3 days on the island of Naxos. It was our first island stop in Greece and it was just what we were looking for. Our ferry left the port at 7:15 am and thankful it was pretty large so I didn't get seasick and was actually able to sleep for the first 3 hours or so. Then we made a stop to let people off in Paros and I woke up and we went upstairs and outside to be able to watch until we arrived in Naxos. There were some pretty great views and some that were very typically Greek with the white building and blue roofs, just what we were hoping for. We had forgotten to notify the hotel of our arrival time, but when we called from the ... read more
May 29th 2011
Sunday 29th May 2011 We had a slow start to the day and went off to a nearby restaurant called To Ellieniko for some breakfast, it has live Greek music every night after 7 o'clock so at that point we would steer clear of it. The breakfast was €5.50 each and I have to say I have had far better for the price and the attitude of the guy running the place wasn't entirely pleasant. The coffee was advertised as continual refill, but once he had taken away the milk and sugar from our table, I guess he thought we had had enough at two cups each! The only highlight was the home made orange marmalade. Well it's another place added to the list of never visiting again. We pottered around Naxos town (the Chora) looking ... read more
May 28th 2011
Saturday 28th May 2011 We went down to breakfast and had the same as yesterday. Back to the room and packing our bags again. We moved our stuff round to reception to leave until later, paid the bill and then headed off into Thira town. We wandered around and went into the Archaeological museum, entrance €3 each near to the cable car station and the place was not only pretty useless but uninviting and not up to much. We then headed back slowly and had a quick drink in Ladokola's on the way back. We arrived about 1.45 and our transport was due at 2.20 so we did a little surfing the net while waiting in the reception area. The guy at the hotel has been really hospitable, for example yesterday when we were using Wifi ... read more
September 26th 2010
Friday 24th September 2010 The wind had dropped during the night and the weather forecast was that the winds would abate even more during the day. As it was about a 3/4 run for most of the way to Naxos, the next island about 25 Nautical Miles (Nm) away, we left just after 7.30am, having breakfast as we sailed. Rags was given the helm, ok for a short time but with the wind steady he set the auto-helm making for a smoother trip. About 10Nm off Naxos a pod of dolphins, the first we have seen, joined us, jumping and bow-surfing around the boat. These dolphins were much smaller than the ones normally seen at home, the largest only about 1.5m long. The Naxos harbour was just as we remembered when we were here in 2002, ... read more
September 11th 2010
IOS, was, we found, a very quiet island, despite the reports that it is the party island. Not that we were looking for anything remotely suggestive of parties. But being September, it seemed that the youngsters had mostly mostly gone home, although I did hear a group returning to their room at our hotel at around 5.30 one morning. Well, Ios. Not much to say really. We spent the first day on this island meandering through the back streets, and the next day ( our 24th wedding anniversary ) we spent on the beach. Not usually being beachy people ( although an odd one here and there is perfectly nice), but there wasnt anywhere else to go. So we enjoyed Mylopotas beach. The next island we visited was NAXOS. What a contrast! Of course, it is ... read more
September 5th 2010
I was told that pictures are not always better than words recently so I think I will provide a succinct narrative this time. So after Istanbul I made my way down to the Turkish coast to the touristy but awesome city of Bodrum. One reason I was stoked to visit Bodrum is because it is the birthplace of the first Greek historian, Herodotus. Bodrum also has a nice medieval castle that is in the middle of the city. The bus ride took 14 hours and none of the staff spoke English, they would give me the thumbs up and say Obama. Anyway the hostel I stayed at Bodrum backpackers was awesome- over the three days I stayed there I had a great time with about 12 other travelers (most were traveling alone too). I was able ... read more
It is not a requirment, but to be a windsurfer or kitesurfer in Mikri Vigla definitely helps...!
Published: August 15th 2010Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Naxos
August 8th 2010
New day, new island… Just a small matter of a ferry journey to ‘get through’ first! Woke up and munched the v delicious chocolate croissants purchased at the bakery yesterday, packed our bags and made our little packed lunch sandwiches for the ferry (bless). Our taxi to take us to the port arrived on time, despite a momentary panic from me! As we were loading our bags into the taxi, out pops Katerina to say goodbye to us (whilst chatting away in Greek, of course), then it was off following the masses to the port in our very hot taxi. We became the foot passengers penned in the hut when we arrived at the port and waited for the ferry to arrive, but thankfully we were in the shade so didn’t mind too much. The ferry ... read more
August 1st 2010
That I am uploading this travelblog entry almost a year after the event, is perhaps evidence enough that I have been working too much and travelling too little. My recollections of the trip aren't the best. I have been a fond visitor of the Greek islands for many years, and the trip to Naxos only served to augment my fondness. However, the all too common 'falling sick when allowing oneself to rest' fell upon me, the very week I planned to go to Greece with the girls. And so it was that for seven full days I was unwell (rest assured my health was restored in time for my return to work)... We began the trip in Athens, meeting my friend at the airport, despite the fuel protests that were prevalent in Athens at the time, ... read more
August 19th 2009
Day 494 (18/8/09) After a entertaining night, our neighbours leaving to go out just before midnight and returning after 5am when the gates reopened perhaps just a little inebriated. We bought breaky and headed to the beach for a day of relaxing, reading, beach tennis and swimming in the chilly water. We took a stroll down the beach only to find ourselves in the 'naturalist section' opps and quickly retreated back to our family area. Continuing our international cruisine we had dinner at the local Italian restaurant and spent the evening playing cards. Day 495 After the domestics of hand washing (thank God I was born in the washing machine era), we got the bus into Naxos town with nothing specific to see. We arrived by the port and walked up to the huge door way ... read more
