Where to Stay in Naxos: The Beds Are All on One Beach

Naxos is the largest island in the Cyclades and the only one that would be fine without tourists. It grows its own potatoes and citrus, makes its own cheese, quarries marble, and has mountain villages that have been getting on with it for a very long time.

Some links below are affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you. We do not rank hotels, and any prices on the map come live from the booking sites.

But almost every bed on Naxos island is on one six-kilometre strip of sand on the west coast. Agios Georgios, Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, Plaka and Mikri Vigla run in a line south from Naxos Town, and the great majority of hotels are along it. The interior, where the island is actually itself, has almost nowhere to sleep.

So where to stay in Naxos Greece comes down to one question: is it better to stay on the sand, or on the island proper with a hire car? Most people should take the sand, and drive inland for a day. Naxos is one of the best places in the Cyclades precisely because you can have both.

Beach positions, distances and bus routes checked 10 September 2026. Rates change enormously by season, so check current prices yourself.

Where to stay on Naxos island: the best place to stay at a glance

The best areas to stay in Naxos, Greece

If you want one answer: Agia Anna or Agios Prokopios. Both sit on the best beach on Naxos, both have tavernas within walking distance, and both are near Naxos Town, ten minutes away by bus. They are the best base for a first trip.

Stay in Chora: Naxos Town, Agios Georgios beach and no car needed

Naxos Chora is the port, the capital and the old town, built up a hill under a Venetian castle with the marble Portara standing on an islet beside the harbour.

• The ferry docks here, so if you arrive late or leave early it is the sensible base for that night at least.
• The old town is a maze of whitewashed lanes climbing to the castle, and it is the one genuinely atmospheric town on the island.
• The best restaurants and bars on Naxos are here, along the waterfront and up in the lanes, and it has the only real evening.
• Agios Georgios beach is a short walk south of the port: shallow, sheltered and perfect for small children, and the only beach on Naxos you can reach on foot from a ferry.
• The lanes have steps. A room up in the castle quarter is charming and a genuine climb with luggage.
• Best for a first visit, for anyone visiting Naxos without a car, and for a short stay. To stay in Chora is to be located in Naxos proper rather than on a resort strip.

The west coast beaches: where the majority of hotels are

Running south from the Chora, this is the strip that holds most of the accommodation on the island. These are the popular beaches: all sand, all west-facing, all with fantastic beaches either side of them and all getting the sunset.

Agios Prokopios beach: the busiest beach stay

• Agios Prokopios beach is regularly called one of the best beaches in Greece, and it is about four kilometres from Naxos Town.
• The most developed of the beaches: hotels, apartments, beach bars, sunbeds and a small strip of shops.
• Buses run every half hour to Naxos Town in season, so a car is optional.
• Prokopios beach gets busy in July and August, which is the trade for having everything on your doorstep.
• Best for a beach stay where you want amenities more than quiet, and one of the best places to base yourself on Naxos without a car.

Agia Anna: the compromise most people should make

• Immediately south of Prokopios and joined to it by the sand, Agia Anna is smaller, lower and calmer.
• A row of tavernas along the little harbour, a handful of small hotels, and the same beach without the volume.
• Walk to the beach in a minute from almost anywhere in the village, and to Prokopios in fifteen.
• Best for couples and families who want to eat well, swim and not think about transport. If you want a room right on the beach with a taverna next door, this is the place.

Plaka beach: the long empty one

• Plaka beach runs for about four kilometres south of Agia Anna and is the longest sandy beach on the island.
• Low dunes, cedar trees and space. Even in August you can walk five minutes and find room.
• Accommodation is spread out in low studios and small hotels set back behind the dunes, often a few hundred metres from the beach.
• Fewer restaurants, so a car or a scooter makes life easier in the evening.
• Best for a pure beach stay and for anyone who found Prokopios too busy. These are the most beautiful beaches on the island and among the best in Greece.

Mikri Vigla, Alyko and the southern beaches

• Mikri Vigla is split by a headland: one side is calm, the other is the windsurfing and kitesurfing beach, and the meltemi wind blows hard here in summer.
• Alyko, further south, has cedar forest behind small secluded beaches and almost no development.
• The southern beaches are the emptiest and the least served by buses.
• You need a car. Without one you will be stuck.
• Best for windsurfing, for pristine beaches and for a second visit.

Stelida and the boutique end

• Stelida is the headland between Agios Georgios and Agios Prokopios, and it holds many of the newer small hotels with sea views.
• Naxian Collection, up on the hillside there, is the landmark for the best luxury end of the island, with villas and suites looking west.
• Naxian on the Beach is the same group’s beachfront property, which is the other half of that equation.
• Nissaki Beach and Kavos Naxos are the other landmarks people recognise on this stretch, and they are a short walk from the sand.
• You are a short drive from everything and a long walk from anything, so a car helps.

These are listed as landmarks, not recommendations. Nobody here has stayed in them and we do not print rates. Check current prices and availability yourself, and book early for July and August.

A village on Naxos: the mountain villages with the fewest beds

This is the part that separates Naxos from its neighbours, and almost nobody sleeps in it.

• Halki, in the middle of the island, is the old capital of the interior: neoclassical houses, a distillery making the local citron liqueur, and a marble-paved square.
• Filoti sits on the slope of Mount Zas, the highest mountain in the Cyclades, and is the largest village on Naxos.
• Apiranthos is built entirely of marble, streets included, and is the most striking village on any Cycladic island.
• There is very little accommodation in any of them, and what exists is a handful of rooms rather than hotels.
• Each village is a half day, and the drive between them through the terraces is the point. This is the part of any Naxos travel guide people skip and then regret skipping.
• Best as a day out from the coast, or as two nights if you want to stay on the island properly. This part of Naxos is the reason people come back.

The best Naxos hotels: booking a beachfront hotel, boutique or luxury hotel

Naxos has a quieter hotel market than its famous neighbours, which is part of the appeal. The best hotels here are small, and prices sit well below comparable hotels in Greece. Here is what each category means and where it sits.

Beachfront hotels on the west coast

• A beachfront hotel on Naxos usually means a low two or three storey building set back behind the sand at Agios Georgios, Prokopios, Agia Anna or Plaka.
• Right on the beach is genuinely possible here, which is not true on most Greek islands, because the west coast is flat.
• Check the distance in metres from the beach before booking at Plaka, where properties are spread out behind the dunes.
• Nissaki Beach and Kavos Naxos are the landmarks people recognise on the Agios Georgios and Stelida stretch.

Boutique hotels and the luxury end

• The best boutique properties are on Stelida, the headland with the sea views, and in the lanes of Naxos Chora.
• Naxian Collection is the landmark luxury hotel on the island, a hillside set of villas and suites, and Naxian on the Beach is its beachfront sibling.
• Small hotels of ten to twenty rooms are the norm rather than large resorts, which keeps the island quieter than Mykonos.
• A suite with a private pool is available here at a fraction of what the same thing costs on Santorini.

Apartments, studios and booking notes

• Studios and apartments are the bulk of the market and the best value, particularly for a week or more. Airbnb and the usual booking sites both cover the island well.
• Book early for July and August. Naxos absorbs crowds better than most, but the good beachfront rooms go first.
• Many places close from November to April, along with most of the beach tavernas.
• These are listed as landmarks, not recommendations. Nobody here has stayed in them and we do not print rates. Check current prices yourself.

Getting around Naxos, and how long to give it

Naxos Island, Greece is big enough that transport and length of stay are the same question.

• Buses run along the west coast every half hour in season from the port, which gives easy access to Naxos Town from Prokopios and Agia Anna without a car.
• Buses inland are infrequent, so getting around Naxos properly means a car or a scooter for at least part of the trip.
• Four nights is the minimum and a week is better. This is not a Greek island you see in two days.
• Proximity to Chora matters more than it sounds: staying within four kilometres of it means dinner, the ferry and the shops are all easy.
• For your entire stay in one place, pick Agia Anna. For a split, four nights on the coast and two in the hills.

Do you need to rent a car on Naxos?

• Not if you stay in Naxos Town, Agios Prokopios or Agia Anna. Buses run frequently along the west coast in season and taxis are available.
• Yes if you stay at Plaka, Mikri Vigla or anywhere south, and yes if you want the mountain villages at all.
• Naxos is big. It is roughly 430 square kilometres, which is why a car changes the trip more here than on a small island.
• If you are planning to rent a car for part of the stay, take it for two days in the middle rather than the whole week.
• Roads inland are good but narrow and twisting, and the villages have no parking to speak of.

Where to stay in Naxos by traveller

Eating on Naxos, and why the food is better here

• The island feeds itself, which is unusual in the Cyclades. Naxian potatoes, graviera cheese, citrus and beef all come from the island.
• The best restaurants are in Naxos Town, along the old town lanes rather than the harbour front.
• Agia Anna has the best beach tavernas, several right on the water.
• A village taverna in Halki or Apiranthos at lunch is the best meal you will eat on the island.
• Kitron, the citron liqueur, is made in Halki and is the local drink.
• A coffeehouse on a village square in the middle of the afternoon is the thing to do when it is too hot for the beach.

Naxos, Paros and the ferries between Greek islands

• Naxos is well connected for a Greek island: ferries to Athens, Mykonos, Santorini, Paros and the Chora of Ios run daily in season.
• Paros is thirty to forty-five minutes away and the two are often paired on the same trip.
• Naxos has a small airport with flights from Athens, but most people arrive by boat.
• Use Naxos as a base for exploring the Small Cyclades, which are an hour or less by local ferry and almost untouched.
• Book ferries ahead in August, particularly the fast boats.

Planning a trip to Naxos: how long and when

• Four nights minimum, and a week is better. Naxos rewards slowness in a way Santorini does not.
• June and September are the best months: warm sea, fewer people, and the meltemi wind is less relentless than in August.
• July and August are busy and the west coast fills, though the island absorbs crowds better than its neighbours because it is so much bigger.
• Split your stay if you have a week: four nights on the beach and two in a mountain village.
• Do not treat Naxos as a day trip from Mykonos. It is too big to see in a day.

Planning the rest of the islands? See our Greece itinerary, where to stay in Santorini and where to stay in Mykonos.

Check hotels on Naxos →

Not sure which area to book? See where to stay in Rhodes.

Paros is a short ferry ride away; see where to stay in Paros if you are splitting your stay.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best area to stay in Naxos?

Agia Anna or Agios Prokopios for a beach stay, and Naxos Town if you want the old town, the restaurants and no car. The three sit within four kilometres of each other on the west coast, connected by frequent buses in season, and between them they hold the majority of hotels on the island.

Should I stay in Naxos Town or on the beach?

Naxos Town if you are visiting Naxos without a car, arriving late by ferry or want the best restaurants and an evening. The beaches if you came to swim. Agios Georgios is the compromise: a shallow sandy beach that is a ten-minute walk from the port and the old town.

Which is the best beach on Naxos?

Agios Prokopios is the most celebrated and the most developed. Plaka is the longest and emptiest, running about four kilometres with low dunes and cedar trees. Agia Anna sits between them with the best tavernas. All three are sand, west-facing and get the sunset, which is not true of every Greek island.

Do you need a car in Naxos?

Not on the west coast strip between Naxos Town and Agia Anna, where buses run every half hour in season. You do need one for Plaka, Mikri Vigla and the south, and for the mountain villages, which is where the island is most itself. Renting for two days in the middle of a week is the efficient compromise.

Is Naxos better than Mykonos or Santorini?

It is different rather than better. Naxos has far better beaches than Santorini, is much cheaper than Mykonos, and unlike either it has a working interior of farms and mountain villages. What it does not have is the caldera view or the nightlife, so it suits a longer, slower stay.

Where should I stay in Naxos with a family?

Agios Georgios if the children are small, because the water stays shallow a long way out and the old town is a ten-minute walk for dinner. Agia Anna if they are older, for the beach tavernas and easy swimming. Both avoid the wind that makes Mikri Vigla and the southern beaches harder work with children.

How many nights do you need on Naxos?

Four nights minimum and a week if you can. The island is roughly 430 square kilometres, so the beaches alone take several days and the mountain villages need a full day of driving. On a week-long stay, split it: four nights on the west coast and two inland at Halki or Filoti.