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31 May 2023 - Day Trip on Naxos Island, Greece
Rain was forecast at midday, but as the weather forecasts have often been wrong we decided to climb up Mount Zas. Mount Zas is 1,003 metres high and the summit is the highest point in the Cyclades Islands.
We drove up to an elevation of about 700 metres before starting the hike so the elevation gain was only 300 metres. It wasn't a difficult hike and the round trip took us 2.5 hours.
Unfortunately the weather forecast was correct! We reached the summit of Mount Zas in cloud and there was no view as a result. Soon after having our lunch we heard thunder and decided to descend as fast as we could.
It soon started to rain lightly and it made the rocks slippery. Luckily we each had a hiking pole which made the descent a lot safer. Some hikers without poles really struggled.
See my blog "Naxos, Greece: Travel Guide" for more information about visiting Naxos.
1 June 2023 - Day Trip on Naxos Island, Greece
As the weather was sunny and hot we decided to explore the beaches south of Naxos Town. These beaches are the best on the island.
We started by driving as far as we could to the south west of Naxos Town and then slowly driving up the coast back towards Naxos Town. Agiassos Bay was the first beach we saw and we had the large sandy beach to ourselves. We swam there, but after a while the wind picked up and we moved on.
We next stopped at a beach on the Alyko promontory known as Hawaii beach due to the vibrant blue colour of the water. We didn't swim there though.
A bit further is Mikri Vigla beach, which is very popular with kite surfers. There were lessons taking place. It was fascinating to watch people learning to kite surf.
Just before we reached Naxos town we parked at the popular Ayios Prokopios beach and had a walk there.
2 June 2023 - Day Trip on Naxos Island, Greece
The weather forecast for Naxos was for rain in the afternoon so we thought we would be able to do a walk in the morning. Unfortunately the weather forecast was wrong again and the rain began soon after we started our walk. Initially it was light rain but it soon became a bit more substantial.
It was a 3 hour circular route via 3 villages and it would have been very nice in dry conditions. By the time we got back to the car we were wet and ready for a hot shower. When we arrived at the house we couldn't find the house key. I must have dropped it during the hike!
I tried calling the house agent, but there was a problem with our phone and she couldn't hear me. The only option was to drive to the agency office in Naxos Town. We were wet, the weather was miserable and we were miserable!
Luckily the agency office was open, but they had to get the spare key from the owner and have a copy cut for me. We finally got into the house about 2 hours after we had first returned. The rain continued until 19.00.
3 June 2023 - Day Trip on Naxos Island, Greece
We drove through the mountainous centre of Naxos to the far north of the island and then returned on the coastal road. The coastal road is also mountainous.
Unfortunately there are very few places where you can pull in to take photos. For the driver (me!) it makes it difficult to enjoy the scenery as you can't take your eyes off the road for long.
We stopped first at the hillside village of Aperathou, which is the nicest village on Naxos. We were lucky that there were very few other tourists. I could see from the restaurants and shops that it is a popular place.
We next stopped on the main road above Koronos. I didn't want to risk driving down to the village as I was concerned the streets would be narrow and it would be difficult to turn around. We had a quick walk down the steep lanes and then back up!
At lunchtime we reached the small resort of Apollonas at the northern end of Naxos island. It was a bit windy and we decided not to swim.
On the way back to our accommodation we stopped off near the village of Flerio to see 2 kouroi. They are partly finished marble figures abandoned around 570 BC as they were broken during transport. We could have seen these kouroi during our walk yesterday, but we were too wet and it wouldn't have been enjoyable.
4 June 2023 - Sighteeing on Naxos Island & Ferry to Tinos
Our ferry to Tinos wasn't until 15.30 so after checking out of the apartment we drove to the nearby villages of Halki and Filoti. Halki is very nice, although it is popular with tourists. There are a lot of churches and also some nice walks. However, we didn't have time for a walk.
There isn't so much to see in Filoti but there is a nice church.
It was a 2 hour ferry ride from Naxos to Tinos as we went via Mykonos. As usual at Naxos there was no indication where to wait for the ferry. Happily everything worked out and there was no difficult maneuvering on the ferry.
In the evening we drove to Tinos town and found a restaurant that served good souvalaki and gyros. The owner was very hospitable and spoke English well.
We had a quick walk around the town which was interesting as it caters for a lot of pilgrims. The street up the hill to the main church has a carpet on one side so that pilgrims can crawl up to the church on their hands and knees.
See my travel blog "Tinos, Greece: Travel Guide" for information about visiting Tinos.
5 June 2023 - A Wasted Day on Tinos!
It wasn't a very productive day. We relaxed at the apartment in the morning and I planned what we could do on Tinos. I found a circular walk on the Allroutes hiking app and in the afternoon we drove to the village of Falatadhos to start the hike.
Unfortunately I couldn't get the app to work once we were there and the signs for the route weren't clear. A bit demoralised we drove back to the apartment. We could see a beach from our apartment and decided to drive there for a swim.
We should have walked as it was difficult to find the road to the beach. We went down a couple of bad and narrow roads before we managed to locate the beach. We had a quick swim, but then noticed that the plastic protection for the car's under carriage had come loose.
We went to the same restaurant as the previous night and the friendly proprietor recommended a garage for fixing our car. It hadn't been a good day and it got worse as we drove back to our apartment! 2 port policemen flagged us down and asked for our car ownership document.
We had left all our papers at the apartment for safekeeping. They weren't happy when I told them we had left them at our apartment. They were even less impressed when they asked for my driving license and I told them it was at the apartment as well! We were very fortunate that we got away with a verbal warning. Luckily in Greece they can't issue on the spot fines.
6 June 2023 - Walk & Sightseeing on Tinos, Greece
In the morning we drove to the garage recommended by last night's restaurant owner and arrived there at 08.30 just as it was opening. Unfortunately the mechanic only arrived at 09.15. He was very helpful and quickly reattached the plastic underneath our car.
Whilst repairing the car he noticed that the front brake pads required replacing. He ordered them from Athens and said they would arrive the next morning. The cost for everything was only Eur 120 if we paid cash and he didn't want any money in advance. Very trusting!
We then drove to Livada beach which is a 45 minute drive to the north west of Naxos town. The map showed that the road descending to the beach wasn't paved but in fact only the last 3 kilometres wasn't paved.
It was a pleasant 40 minute walk on a well marked trail to the lighthouse on Papargyros Cape. The scenery was great and we had the trail to ourselves.
Afterwards we drove to the 570 metre high Exobourgo "mountain" in the centre of the Tinos island. There are a number of pretty villages at the base of the mountain. We drove around the mountain stopping at a few of them. Tripotamos was the most interesting one as it has a lot of old buildings, enclosed alleys and churches.
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