Walking, hiking tour in Naxos
General Description
Day 1:
After your arrival in our island, we welcome you in the Port of Naxos. With our Hotel mini bus we transfer you in the hotel, we give you the first necessary information about your accommodation and you have free hours to relax and enjoy the wonderful beach of Agios Prokopios and Hotel Katerina.
Day 2:
After the breakfast we have the first meeting with our guide (Spiros) and the members of the group. The mini bus begin to Naxos Town in order to get the first taste of the island. The Temple of Apollo - Portara, one of the most important monuments in Naxos, is the first sight that we visit, then we continue to the Grotta Area. The coastal road lead us to the Old Town (Kastro). There we can visit the Castle of Naxos, the Archaeological Museum, the Venetian Museum, the Metropolis site, and the Folk Museum. Walking around the traditional alleys, we will find the main Market road of Naxos which is connected with the coastal road, and the old market!!! We explore the closer, beautiful and most famous beaches of Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, Plaka. With view to the sea, we can enjoy our meal in one of the traditional beach taverns.
Day 3:
Evaluation: This is a very beautiful hike, both because of the trajectory to Danakos, and because of the part between Danakos and Aperanthos. The Fotodotis Monastery is a really original place of interest. In order to climb to this monastery you follow a marvelous kalderimi (stone path) and the landscapes are absolutely magnificent.
Route description: We start from the main square of village Filoti and Platanos. We go up the first steps on the left, we are ascending all the time and then we walk horizontally for a short while in order to pass underneath the church of Agios Andreas. We go higher up again, via the houses. Via a concrete staircase we get to the highest point, where we will find a small parking lot. There is a small road off the left and to the right of this road we can see two trails: we take the left-hand trail, a truly beautiful path that quite soon gives us a nice view over Filoti. After some minutes, we keep to the right on a rocky spot, over there we find a staircase that meanders upwards. The panoramic views over Filoti, Chalki, Tsikalario and to the right over Moni and the entire Tragia valley with thousands of olive trees are marvellous. The red roof midst the olive trees is the large school of the Tragia valley, next to Chalki. After a lot of zigzags there are another 30-40 concrete steps, until we arrive at the asphalt road, which you follow towards the left till the crossing. Over here we take a right, in the direction of Danakos.
We continue by following the zigzags of the road and in the meanwhile you have a great view again on the summits and on the white chapels on top of them. After having followed the road for about ten minutes, we reach the very modest chapel of Agia Marina. At this point, on the left of the chapel, also the hikes to Danakos and Fotodotis Monastery commence.
We take the trail immediately on the left of the chapel: between two walls you therefore have to open a gate and we thus get to a really beautiful path. It is a very idyllic stretch, nicely shaded and running between fields. We descend midst the singing of birds and after about fifteen minutes you go down in a small side valley with water. We crawl on the right of a tree and we cross the valley. We walk past deserted vineyards and on overgrown fields. On a vague junction we keep to the left, we go through another gate and we continue again between lonely fields, which are overgrown by flowers.
At last, after half an hour all together, we go through another gate and we arrive at a marvelous broad, stone path. This path meanders above the beautiful valley all the time, until we get to a gravel road after yet another ten minutes. We follow this gravel road to the right for a short while. We arrive all the way down in Danakos, on a wonderful spot: there is a really beautiful plane tree near a well filled with water. We can also note a bridge and further down along the water pipe there are even five water mills!
We take a concrete staircase going up on the left of the school. After a couple of minutes, we get to the road, we take a right for a short while, but almost immediately we see another trail that goes up on the left. For about ten minutes this trail meanders up above Danakos, by describing beautiful and very steep bends. For yet another ten minutes we then follow a marvelous kalderimi, leading up higher and higher. At the end, we have to go through a large wooden gate, and the following path is a little narrower for a while. Thereafter, we get again to a more beautiful path in stone. About 30 minutes later, we have left Danakos, we will see the fortified tower of Fotodotis in front of us. This fortified monastery dates from the 15th century, or even earlier. It has been deserted for a long time, but inside you can still see a surprisingly well-preserved dome, some aisles and probably an original stone floor. Via an external staircase on the right we can get above and next to the dome and in this way we can notice how the church is actually built inside the old tower.
From the tower we follow the trail to the end of the gravel road and then you take a right till you get above the house nearby. Over here, we go down a number of steps and on the left of the vineyard above the house we find the beginning of a narrow path. From this point, we have a nice view on the tower and in the east we can also distinguish some small islands and the island of Donoussa. For a short while we climb down quite steeply. We thus get to a depression in the hills: we open two gates and in front of us there is a nice view on Aperanthos. After the second gate, we continue on the left of a valley full of trees.
For the next five minutes we keep following a trail alongside a wall. We thus get to the left and above the field with trees. We get a marvelous view on the entire green valley of Aperanthos with a chapel. At a little stable, we keep to the left and then we bend to the right again. Underneath a wall we thus reach the trail again. We now continue straight to the church.
We take a right, we cross a valley and we keep following a vague trail on the right-hand flank of the valley situated underneath Aperanthos. We thus arrive at a spot about 150 meters away from the church of Agios Georgios. We get to a narrow road alongside the water and we take a right for one minute. Finally we go through an iron gate, we cross a small bridge on the left and we thus get to a concrete road.
We leave the valley now, going up quite quickly. After about five minutes, we pass a trail off the left (which leads to the chapel of Agios Pachomios) and after another five minutes we get to the large asphalt road. We follow this road to the right. We visit now the nice town of Aperanthos, we should go a little further and then take the staircase up on the left.
We then reach a small square with beautiful houses from 1846 and 1897. Above these houses, we find the folk museum, consisting of three rooms of a not too old house: in the living room, the kitchen and the bedroom you can see all kinds of traditional objects and tools.
Day 4:
After two days of walking tour, we can get a short different experience about the Aegean beauty, with a small wood sailing boat. We start from the small harbor in Agia Anna for one day sailing tour. It will take about 10 hours and we will have the opportunity to visit some unique and lonely places and beaches around Naxos island, the famous Rinas cave and additionally the closest small islands (Koufonisia islands, which depends from the weather). On the boat we will taste delicious Greek pieces, local wine and traditional music.
Day 5:
Evaluation: Another highlight hike. You can not only visit two Kouros statues, but the hike also leads you through a highly diversified and sometimes very green landscape. It ends in the town of Chalki, which is truly a pleasant place.
Route description: From the square of the bus stop we walk into the village, on the right hand side of the cafe O Kouros. We follow the paved road underneath the houses and you have a great view to the left on the valley of Kourounochori and Myli. This street runs fairly horizontally in southern direction and it leads us out of the village. We cross a small bridge and we thus arrive at a magnificent spot, among lemon and orange trees, oleanders and cypresses. In the old chapel you can admire some wall paintings. We describe a wide bend to the left, with a nice panoramic view on a valley full of cypresses and on Kourounochori with the Della Roca Tower.
After five more minutes, we keep to the left and we go down into the valley. Some four minutes later we get to the corner of a water mill where we can notice a lot of streaming water. We go right here and after a while we reach a second water mill with a water pipe. It only takes a couple of minutes to walk through the village of Myli, this is a perfect name since Myli means mills. In front of us, we can still admire the beautiful view on the green valley and on a bizarre rock formation. Out of the village we find another nice trail that runs more or less horizontally. After about five minutes you see another ruin of a mill and a water supply system on the left. Straight ahead there is a staircase which leads to the asphalt road, when following this road to the left you could reach the statue of Kouros.
The Kouros of Melanes or of Flerio: This statue dates from the 1st half of the 6th century BC and it was never finished because of a crack in the material. Through a little gate on the left we can get to the gardens of the Kondili family, the land where the statue is situated actually belongs to this family. The garden is beautifully maintained and when having a seat at the stone table under the large olive tree between the actual garden and the kouros, it really feels as if you are sitting in paradise! We can also have a glass of Naxos wine or some citron-liquor.
From the Kouros and the garden we go back to the road. We take right turn and past the garden you can follow the large path going up on the right, along the water pipe. We go through the gate as well and we walk up the hill on a nicely constructed path. Some steps take us to a recently laid out spot, where we notice the Kouros of Potamia, midst the remnants of an old stone quarry. We are actually dealing with a kori, so the statue of a girl.
From the second Kouros we return: we go down the steps, after the gate we go left along the railings and we follow the beautiful trail between walls for 6-7 minutes. We thus get to the three-forked-junction again. We follow the marvelous flat path for yet another ten minutes, by following the blue arrows and dots and the red sign Ano Potamia. After these ten minutes we go left on some concrete for a short while, but then we find a beautiful trail again on the right. In this way we arrive at a trail that is sometimes nicely paved, a long descent along the cemetery will lead us to the asphalt road: in front of you there is the church of Pano Potamia.
We continue straight ahead by going down and on your right you see a beautiful well and the wonderful outdoor terrace of Piges. After a possible pause we continue into the village. After three minutes you reach a small square with a fountain. Some concrete steps, later turning into a concrete road, take us up, all the way above the village, at last we get to the asphalt road again. Almost on the opposite side, at the sign to Apano Kastro, we take the gravel road to the left. About seven minutes later we arrive at a junction: for a little while we follow the bend to the left, but after ten meters we find a trail straight ahead.
We thus walk on the left of a wall and after a couple of minutes we see a concrete bridge on the left. We cross this bridge and we now get to a kalderimi with a broad retaining wall. This ancient trail bends to the right and we continue on the retaining wall of the overgrown kalderimi. After 5-6 minutes we reach some passages between walls, in between the rock of the Kastro and the pointed rock. Our trail goes on between two walls. Slightly further up, on the highest point, we have a nice view behind us on the town of Chora far away. In front of us, we can see a wonderful valley, bordered with high summits. At more or less the same altitude we keep walking around the Kastro. After four minutes we go through a primitive gate and we continue amid a grand landscape.
A little further on we get to the left of the old chapel of Agios Panteleimonas, at the sign Kastro Tsikalario. The trail is not that clear at this point: we go through a breach to the other side of the wall till the church. From the church we continue, more or less on the right of the wall, over some grass and a rather vague trail. A couple of hundred meters further down you go through a breach on the left and on the other side of the wall you find the trail again.
We now walk with a view on Filoti far away, sometimes the path is worn out in sand stone. After five minutes we keep to the right at a first stable, on the grass the trails gets vaguer again, it runs alongside a wall and after some minutes it gets to a gravel road, between lots of stable and rocks. Our trail turns into a concrete road and after another five minutes we arrive at the village of Tsikalario. We walk through the village till a small parking lot, with on the left a little white church and a wash place. At this point we have a nice view on the valley full of olive trees, with Damarionas on the other side. Further to the left we can distinguish the large town of Filoti and all the way to the left, midst live trees, there is Chalki.
On the left past the church, in the furthest corner of the square, we find the beginning of the final part of the trail to Chalki. The first part is very beautiful and runs between olive trees and then you get to a gravel road, close to the asphalt road, opposite a chapel. We go down for some minutes, we cross a fairly large bed of a river and we continue straight ahead between walls. The following stretch tends to be overgrown once in a while and there is lots of junk. We cross a road, which might be under construction, and then the trail becomes much better and we get to a final junction.
Straight ahead we find the beginning of a paved trail, which goes all the way to the village. We zigzag through the streets: right, left, right, all the way walking towards the south-southwest. We thus get to the distillery Vallindras. This citron factory, or workplace where citron is being produced, is one of the distilleries of Naxos where this famous lemon drink is manufactured. This working place is really worth a visit, you can also taste all kinds of varieties of this tasty drink.
From this spot, you can walk through the shopping street and we thus reach an asphalt road with the bus stop. On the right we notice the beautiful church Panagia Evangelistria, or Protothronos, which contains important wall paintings but unfortunately it is usually closed. On the left of the church we can also walk into the small street, in order to have a look at the large tower of the Pyrgos Grazia, above the entrance you can admire the coat of arms of the famous Venetian family Barozzi.
Day 6:
Rating: This hike follows lengthy first of all a small concrete road, starting from Eggares, then there is a beautiful trail that continues in a leafy valley, next to some remains of water mills and along some irrigation gutters- up the massive of Koronos is on our left. After the bridge, we follow a gravel road that climbs fast enough to Kinidaros, fortunately there are still long stretches of the old path that allows us to avoid the monotonous road. Kinidaros is a beautiful village which is situated really in the heart of Naxos.
We go to the right towards the village centre (Mesa Gitonia , Empoli) and we follow the main street. We continue on the paved road, taking a little to the right, and already after 2 minutes, we arrive at a small concrete road, which we will now follow for 1.2 km. This path continues over a leafy valley, along the small fields and passing by some houses. After 6 minutes, we continue straight and we do the same thing a little further. So we continue straight on the concrete road and soon enough we see on the left and just below the tower (rather ugly) of Pradounas.
Another 5 minutes later, we miss a few ruins and we go in zigzags. We pass over the tower behind us with a beautiful view of the green valley, which continues beyond to Engares. After a climb, we come close to a water tank: concrete ends here permanently. A little further on, the gravel road bifurcates, we continue right for another 600 meters and we veer right towards the small chapel of Agios Georgios.
We arrive at the height of this elegant chapel, after another 8 minutes, and we continue to follow the grassy dirt road. A little further on, we do not assemble the right, but we continue straight ahead through a metal barrier, the real trail begins here. Unfolds before us a beautiful valley with the top of Vourles, 436 meters high.
Fortunately, this dirt road ends suddenly after 9 minutes, next to some rocks, and the old narrow path continues. On our left we see the top Koronos behind the valley. The next part is really beautiful: our path climbs gently above the valley that rises too. Sometimes it drives in the countryside or continues in the midst of oleanders in bloom. After 10 minutes, just after a well distribution of water below us in the valley, we hear the water running.
The following are still very beautiful: we follow a trail flat, then we go down very quickly and we get near the top of a water mill, with a stream of irrigation. We pass through some decks, then we cross the water to the left on a concrete ledge. We pass a white house and a garden with lemon trees. Thus we come before a big bridge, our trail passes under the bridge, then turns left, with a water mill before us. We climb left again and we come out well on the gravel road that passes over the bridge. So we cross the bridge to the left.
We now follow a sandy gravel road, which describes a left turn. Already 10 meters ahead, there is the old path that goes right. After 3-4 minutes, the path goes sharply right and begins to climb in zigzag. A little further, we will no longer go right, and we cross a small stream with a source and then move to the right of a house with a beautiful garden. Soon after, our beautiful trail with its uneven pavement continues straight and it goes up again in many zigzags so we have a more beautiful view of Koronos. The path continues to Kinidaros.
After 16-17 wonderful minutes, we come again on the sandy road that goes right. We climb for 8-9 minutes, sometimes in tight turns on a beautiful pavement, the last part of a pavement that has been renovated recently. We come with some difficulty on the road to the right of these rocks - now we will follow up to the village. And indeed the neck windy village Kinidaros finally emerges before us, we still encounter a marble quarry on the left, then we want to go to the right near the first house. We are already seeing the blue dome of the church before us, we follow the paved road and we arrive at a small square. We cross a beautiful arch and we go down to the right. We walk past the coffee bar and "Koronia" and we reach another square, the Platsa. Taking this one step left, we can come to the church - if we go all the way to the left, we came out on the asphalt road.
We retrace our steps. We can still wander in the quiet village, but taking the left, we will return to the Platsa, we will continue right into the main street and we come back to the terrace of Koronia. A great place to drink or eat something.
Day 7:
This is our last day on the island of Naxos and you can enjoy your day as you want, we can help you to rent bicycles, motorbikes, cars or to organize other activities like water sports, windsurfing, diving, horse riding etc.