Ideal location

Saint George’s Beach is a sandy, crowded beach with shallow waters and is located only three (3) min. away from Naxos Town when moving south.

It is sheltered from the winds, which is a frequent phenomenon in the Cyclades. It is ideal for families with children and for various water sports. All around you will find bars and restaurants for all tastes.

The Apano (Upper) Castle of Drymalia stands in the valley of Tragaia. Its location indicates the importance of the castle in ancient times for the whole Naxos island. It is located at a key point and this proves that it served as a fortress to guard the area from pirates.

Along the walls of the castle stand the Byzantine churches of Agios Georgios and Panagia Kastriani. The most important monument of the castle though are the two ancient cemeteries. Visitors can find there are the places named “Slaves” and “Little graves of slaves” which are directly connected with the history of the castle and the attacks from pirates. Unfortunately during these attacks, most people captured were brutally tortured by the conquerors. There are many myths and legends in which the pirates ,usually after tricking an old woman, took the keys for the castle, only to capture it and start the killing afterwards. The remnants of that turbulent era, the old ramparts, the arcades, the walls crumbling, abandoned cemeteries and chapels stand imposingly, even today.

The castle was rebuilt by Marco Sanudo in order to reside in it, but he finally chose the castle in Naxos Town (Chora). The castle eventually became permanent home of the Duke of the island.

A visit to the Apano Castle , is a unique experience that every visitor of Naxos should not miss. The view is unique and the tour at the castle revives stories with dukes and princesses, pirates and lost treasures.pa

In an area full of monuments and Venetian buildings, in Naxos Town, is the Archaeological Museum of Naxos.

Among the hundreds of exhibits, you will find the famous Cycladic figurines as well as a beautiful mosaic.

Location:

The Archaeological Museum is located almost at the top of the Castle, next to the Cathedral of the Catholics and the Monastery of the Capuchins.

What you will see there:

In the historic building of the Emporiki School of the island – where students of important art and intellectuals, such as Nikos Kazantzakis, studied as students, the Archaeological Museum of Naxos is housed.

His collections include a series of particularly important and rare exhibits, dating back to the 5th century BC. until the 5th century AD.

Among them is the trademark of the islands of the Cyclades, the marble figurines of 3200 BC.

The visitor’s attention is the vase of the Mycenaean period, the ceramics of the Hellenistic period, and the ancient sculptures!

The Archaeological Museum of Naxos is open all day of the week, except Mondays from 08:30 to 15:00.

As we understand from its name (Vigla) it was previously an observatory, probably because of the fear from pirates in Naxos. There are essentially two beaches: Limanaki and Parthenos, separated by a huge rock.

Both beaches are sandy and wonderful. The Parthenos beach is a meeting place for the friends of kitesurfing and windsurfing since weather conditions are ideal here for these kind of sports.
The special about these two beaches is the fact that while on the one beach you can enjoy the windless bath , on the other beach the sportsfans enjoy the strong winds!
In the area there are also some restaurants.

The village of Aperanthos, is the only village of Naxos which has 4 museums and all of them are around the center of the village.

The Archaeological museum of Aperanthos:

It is located in the center of the village and it features important finds dating from prehistoric times and brought to light the archaeological excavation. It belongs to the Ministry of Culture and has the name of the inspirer of the creation of the Museum of Mathematics, Professor Michalis Bardanis. The important scientist gathered the most, giving them to the state and urging the rest villagers to do the same.

The Geological Museum of Aperanthos:

It is one of the most important museums of its kind in Greece.

The Geological Museum of Apiranthos is at the entrance of the village. More than 2500 rare stones are exhibited in its showrooms, both from the village, Naxos and the Cyclades, as well as from the rest of Greece and various regions of the world.

The Museum of Natural History of Aperanthos:

It is located at the entrance of the village and its exhibits are of particular interest. It has special departments dedicated to the sea and land. The visitor will admire a large natural aquarium in the first part of the museum, as well as a wonderful collection of 265 shells on the island. In the section devoted to the land, the collection of the flora found in the water basin of the Perahoritis torrent is very close to the village. In the same section, there are samples of the fauna of Naxos. It is open to the public all days (except holidays) from May to October from 11.00 to 17.30.

The Museum of Fine Arts of Aperanthos:

The Museum of Fine Arts operates in a hall of the Cultural Center of Aperanthos. It was a vision of Manolis Glezos and Nikos Katsouros , which became reality. The museum exhibits works of 75 Fine Art Artists (painters, sculptors, engravers and potters) and artists from all over Greece. The entrance fee is 2 euros. The museum is open to the public all days (except holidays) from May to October from 11:00 to 17:30.

The Folklore Museum of Aperanthos:

It is housed in a traditional house, located in the village square. The museum consists of three rooms (kitchen, loft and bedroom workshop) and a yard. It is a representation of the interior of a villa, just as it was 100 years ago. Visitors can get to know everyday the farm tools, the shepherd’s tools and the clothes of the inhabitants of Apernathos through the years.

The Portara, the great marble gate that stands high on the islet of Palatia, now united with Naxos town, is what remains of the Temple of Apollo, who started to be built around the 6th-7th century BC and was never completed.

The Portara gate is the first image visitors face when the ship enters the port of Naxos and is of course the trademark of the island of Naxos. On the islet, according to mythology, Theseus abandoned his love Ariadne, after killing Minotaur in Crete.

In fact what we see today, is the gate of the temple that the tyrant Lygdamis began to build, wishing to present a larger temple than the temple of Zeus in Athens and the Temple of Hera in Samos. After the fall of tyranny on Naxos although, the temple remained unfinished. Today only the foundations of this majestic temple are visible. The glorious gate was constructed of four large pieces of local marble, each of them weighing around 20 tons. It has a height of almost 6 meters and a width of more than 3.5 meters.

Between the 5th and 6th century AD the temple became Christian and it was used until the Venetian era when it was destroyed completely and its marbles were used by the Venetians for the construction of other buildings, mainly for the Castle of Naxos Town (Chora). During the time that it functioned although, a village developed around it.

Because of the rising of the sea level from ancient times until today, the shore have been covered by water. Nowadays we know that in ancient times the islet of Palatia was a low hill opposite of the castle and in between there was a flat area.