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, , .Along with its unique combination of Cycladic tradition, Venetian past and ancient

Greek monuments, Naxos offers visitors impressive scenery, endless beaches, gorgeous villages and superb local cuisine.

/ : B Y F O T I S V A L L A T O S / P H O T O S : P E R I K L E S M E R A K O S

: Naxos: The heart of the Cyclades

/ The Portara

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be a forerunner to the Parthenon, is lo-cated close to the airport.

For food, Apostolis (tel. 22850-26.777) and Antamoma (tel. 22850-24.324), both of which serve local Cycladic dishes, are standouts. Wine lovers should head to Lavyrinthos as well as La Vigne, which serves very good French cuisine, both located in the old town, known as Palia Hora. Naxos famous graviera hard cheese is available at the Koufopoulos store on Papavasiliou St. Tziblakis, a tradition-al grocery store, is something of a local landmark. It draws an uninterrupted flow of customers seeking select island products. Behind the town hall, you find Melimilon (tel. 22850-22.230), a tasteful caf-restaurant serving break-fast as well as homemade dishes. The wonderful handcrafted shoes at Niki-foros Tsakoniatis store, on Pantan-assis St, make for a great alternative-type souvenir or gift.

For coffee and drinks, head to Me-li kai Kanella, a spot with a definite Cycladic feel in the old town, seaside Spondi, offering the best view of the Portara and good food, Swing, by the beach, for special cocktails, Citron, al-so near the shore, offering cocktails featuring a local liqueur, and Elia, a traditional caf in the old town.

The islands Venetian past is most visible in Hora, the main town, where youll find the impressive Portara, a marble gateway to an unfinished tem-ple dedicated to Apollo. The castle and the old town stand at the top of Ho-ra. Various monuments and museums such as the Archaeological Museum (tel. 22850-22.725) are here, while the archaeological site at Yria, featuring the Temple of Dionysus, considered to

guide | Naxos

/ Palia Hora

/ Arseniko traditional cheese

/ Orkos

T / The sanctuary of Demeter and Apollo

/ Agia Castle

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/ The Ai-Nikolas Chapel in Agia Anna

/ Apeiranthos

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In the heavenly southThe islands best beaches are locat-ed along its southern shores, a long lacy coastline with golden sand and turquoise waters. First stop is Agi-os Prokopios, a vast and stunning stretch of sand. Next is the delightful Agia Anna, featuring superb water and dunes. The Paradiso tavernas (tel. 6944-624.259) emblematic tamarisk and decorative lighting create a Fell-iniesque setting. Plaka beach, an en-closed bay with shallow blue waters, is next. From here, following the sea-side dirt track will lead you to one of Greeces most magical settings, Mikri Vigla, a surfers paradise that is ideal for calm holidays. For food, the Kon-tos taverna (tel. 22850-75.278) offers home-style dishes, cheese and vegeta-ble produce. The Victoria Caf is rec-ommended for breakfast and its great cocktails. Kastraki, the next stop, is a seemingly endless beach with dunes and crystal-clear waters. Here, the very good Axiotissa (tel. 22850-75.107) dishes up wonderful taverna fare such as oregano-seasoned rabbit and a sen-sational kakavia soup made with as-sorted small fish. Alyko is one of the largest, densest cedar forests to be found in Greece. Small isolated tama-risks may be found here.

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/ The beach of Agios Prokopios

/ A landscape near the village of Sangri

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From Hora to ApeiranthosThe road towards the islands moun-tainous interior goes through the vil-lage of Glynado, where youll find Dal Professore (tel. 22850-41.771), for Ital-ian cuisine with a Greek twist. Carry on to Sangri and the Sanctuary of Dem-eter and Apollo. Consider a pit stop in the picturesque village of Halki at the Galanis caf, renowned for its galakto-boureko (custard-filled pastry), as well as the Vallindras distillery, featuring a museum (tel. 22850-31220). For food, Yiannis (tel. 22850-33.023), in a com-forting 70s time warp, serves excep-tional roast meat and casserole dish-es. From here, head to Apeiranthos, a traditional village with elegant stone-paved alleys, and houses with marble faades. For local products, go to Epile-kton. The traditional bakery sells sweet skaltsounia pies with quince and wal-nut. Lefteris (tel. 22850-61460) has tasty meat dishes.

Quiet east coastFrom Apeiranthos, the road will take you through Moutsouna, near which are mining caves where emery was once loaded for export. The Apanemi fish taverna (tel. 6944-138.610) serves

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fresh fish, straight from the eaterys own little fishing boat. Heading south from here leads to the exquisite Psili Ammos beach and then Panermo. The route includes numerous coves with secluded beaches.

Heading northIn the area of Melanes, there is an in-complete ancient kouros statue, the ancient aqueduct at Flerio and the me-dieval Tower of the Jesuits. Yiorgis taverna (tel. 22850-62.180) is ideal for lunch. Next along the way is Eggares, with its informative Olive Press Mu-seum (www.olivemuseum.com) and the superb Haris taverna (tel. 22850-62.266), where you can tuck into what is arguably the best stuffed omelette on the island. The road then leads to Apollonas, site of an even larger in-complete kouros, measuring over 11 metres in length. The regions Ammi-ti beach is decent, as is Abram beach. From here, keep going until you reach Koronos, a very elegant and remote village nestled in the hillside, home to one of the islands best tavernas, Ma-tina & Stavros (tel. 22850-51.243), in an old-school setting with traditional culinary delights.

/ Psili Ammos

/ The churches of Agios Georgios and Agios Pachomios at Apeiranthos

/ The kouros statue at Apolonas

/ Mikri Vigla