Greece › Naxos › Best Beaches
Updated: August 13, 2026 • By Santorini Dave
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The beach in front of Iria Beach Art Hotel at Agia Anna Beach.
Naxos Beaches: My Advice
- Best Beach Overall: Plaka. Long, beautiful, excellent for swimming, and spacious enough that you can choose between organized beach clubs and quiet stretches of sand.
- Best Swimming: Agios Prokopios. Clear water, good protection from the prevailing north winds, plenty of beach facilities, and easy access from Naxos Town.
- Best for Young Kids: Agios Georgios. Shallow, sandy, relatively sheltered, and within walking distance of Naxos Town.
- Best Beach Village: Agia Anna. Great swimming, tavernas right by the sand, and a smaller, more charming feel than Agios Prokopios.
- Best for Couples: Agia Anna or Plaka. Agia Anna for restaurants and atmosphere; Plaka for more space and quieter beach days.
- Best for Restaurants & Beach Bars: Agios Prokopios and Agia Anna. For actual nightlife, stay in Naxos Town and use nearby Agios Georgios as your beach.
- Best Without a Car: Agios Georgios. Agios Prokopios and Agia Anna are also easy by bus, and northern Plaka works well in summer.
- Best Quiet Beach: Alyko. Beautiful coves, protected juniper forest, and very little development. Orkos is another excellent choice if you want quiet closer to the main west-coast beach strip.
- Best for Windsurfing & Kitesurfing: Mikri Vigla. The windy northern side is one of the island’s main wind-sports beaches; the southern bay is much more sheltered.
- Best Remote Beach for Families: Pyrgaki. Quiet, sandy, shallow, and more sheltered than many of the exposed southwest beaches.
- Best for Luxury Beach Hotels: Plaka, with several of the island’s best upscale beachfront properties.
- Best for Value: Agios Georgios. Lots of studios and smaller hotels, plus you save on taxis because Naxos Town is walkable.
Most of Naxos’s best beaches are on the west and southwest coast. Agios Georgios is the easiest from Naxos Town; Agios Prokopios and Agia Anna have the best combination of swimming, restaurants, and convenience; Plaka is longer and quieter; and the beaches farther south become progressively less developed and more car-dependent.
You do not need a car for Agios Georgios, Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, or northern Plaka. For Orkos, Mikri Vigla, Kastraki, Alyko, and Pyrgaki, a rental car makes the day much easier.
Naxos buses are excellent for getting from Naxos Town to Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, and Plaka in summer. Mikri Vigla, Kastraki, Alyko, and Pyrgaki have much less frequent service. Schedules change through the season, so check the current timetable before planning a remote beach day around the bus.
Wind matters, especially in July and August. Agios Prokopios and Agia Anna are good choices when the meltemi is blowing. The north side of Mikri Vigla is deliberately exposed and ideal for windsurfing and kitesurfing. Conditions vary around the island, so a windy beach in one location does not mean every beach will be unpleasant.
For sunbeds, beach bars, and an easy lunch: choose Agios Georgios, Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, or northern Plaka. For a more natural beach: head to southern Plaka, Orkos, Kastraki, Alyko, or Pyrgaki.
A bus stop on the main beach route to Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, and Plaka.
The 9 Best Beaches in Naxos
1. Plaka Beach
Idyllic Plaka Beach in front of Naxian on the Beach.
Plaka is the best beach in Naxos and one of my favorite beaches in Greece. It has a long stretch of golden sand, clear water, and enough space that it rarely feels cramped even in summer.
Where you go matters. The northern end around Maragas has most of the restaurants, beach clubs, hotels, and bus stops and is easiest without a car. Head south and the development thins out, leaving longer stretches of sand and a much quieter feel.
Choose Plaka for a full beach day or longer beach holiday. Choose Agios Prokopios instead if you want a more compact beach with restaurants and services concentrated close together.
Best for: overall beach quality, couples, families, long beach days, luxury hotels, and travelers who want both organized and quiet sections.
Recommended Plaka Beach Hotels:
- Ammothines Cycladic Suites (luxury)
- Naxian on the Beach (luxury, couples)
- Cosmos Hotel (families)
- Athina Studios and Suites (families)
- Naxos Island Escape (couples)
2. Agios Prokopios Beach
Agios Prokopios is the best all-around swimming beach on Naxos. The water is clear, the beach is well protected from the prevailing north winds, and the southeastern end has restaurants, beach clubs, hotels, shops, and useful summer bus service from Naxos Town.
Walk northwest toward the little church and the beach gets quieter. This combination of excellent swimming and easy services makes Agios Prokopios especially good for families and travelers who want a classic beach holiday without renting a car.
Choose Agios Prokopios over Agia Anna if swimming and beach space matter most. Choose Agia Anna if you prefer a smaller village and tavernas directly beside the sand.
Best for: swimming, families, beach restaurants, sunbeds, no-car stays, and classic beach holidays.
Recommended Agios Prokopios Beach Hotels:
- Virtu Suites (luxury)
- 18 Grapes Hotel (luxury, but not near the beach)
- Melidron Hotel & Suites (families)
- Liana Beach Hotel & Spa (beachfront)
3. Agia Anna Beach
Agia Anna is my favorite beach village on Naxos. It sits immediately south of Agios Prokopios and combines clear water with tavernas along the sand, a small fishing pier, beach clubs, and a more intimate atmosphere.
The beach is smaller than Agios Prokopios, but that is part of its appeal. The main section around the port and Iria Beach Art Hotel is particularly good for swimming. Continue south beyond the little church and rocky point and you reach quieter stretches on the way toward Plaka, including an unofficial clothing-optional area.
Choose Agia Anna over Agios Prokopios if atmosphere and beachfront dining matter more than having the largest possible beach.
Best for: couples, families, beachfront tavernas, swimming, beach bars, and no-car stays.
Recommended Agia Anna Beach Hotels:
- Iria Beach Art Hotel (luxury)
- Avgoustos Suites (couples)
4. Agios Georgios Beach (St. George Beach)
View of Agios Georgios Beach from Kalergis Studios.
Agios Georgios is the best family beach on Naxos and by far the easiest beach from Naxos Town. The northern end is only a few minutes’ walk from Chora, while tavernas, beach clubs, hotels, and watersports line the beach itself.
A sandy shelf extends well out from shore, keeping the water shallow and making it excellent for young children and beginning swimmers. This is the beach I recommend most for families staying four nights or less and for anyone who wants to walk into Naxos Town every evening.
The tradeoff is beach quality. The water is shallower and less dramatically blue than at Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, or Plaka. But no other beach combines swimming and Naxos Town convenience this well.
Best for: young kids, first-time visitors, value, no-car trips, and combining beach days with evenings in Naxos Town.
Recommended Agios Georgios Beach Hotels:
- Nissaki Beach Hotel (luxury)
- Naxos Resort (families)
- Kalergis Studios (value)
- Korali Boutique Hotel (midrange)
5. Alyko Beach
Alyko is my favorite beach area for nature and escaping the developed west coast. It sits beside a protected coastal juniper forest, commonly called the cedar forest, with dunes, rocky headlands, and several small sandy coves.
The beaches around the peninsula include the unofficial clothing-optional beach at the northwest end, long sandy Hawaii Beach, sheltered Mikrolimano, and smaller coves along the forest edge. An abandoned unfinished hotel above the coast has become an open-air gallery of colorful murals.
There are few services, which is exactly why Alyko feels special. Bring water and whatever you need for the day. A rental car is much easier than relying on the limited bus service.
Best for: nature, quiet, couples, swimming, photography, and travelers with a car.
Recommended Alyko Beach Hotel:
- Faros Villa (midrange)
6. Mikri Vigla Beach
Mikri Vigla is really two beaches separated by a rocky headland. The north-facing beach catches the summer meltemi and is one of Naxos’s main windsurfing and kitesurfing spots. If that is why you are coming, this is the best beach on the island.
The long south-facing beach, called Limanakia or Sahara, is a completely different experience. It is sheltered from the prevailing wind, with shallow water and good swimming for families.
There are several tavernas and places to rent sunbeds, but the area remains much quieter than Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, or northern Plaka.
Best for: windsurfing, kitesurfing, active travelers, quiet swimming on the south side, and travelers with a car.
Recommended Mikri Vigla Beach Hotels:
- Victoria Studios & Apartments (midrange)
- Oasis Studios (midrange)
7. Kastraki Beach
Kastraki is one of the best choices when you want a large, beautiful beach without the crowds and beach clubs of the main resort strip. It lies south of Mikri Vigla and has long stretches of pale sand, clear water, sunset views toward Paros, and enough space that it rarely feels busy.
The northern part has a handful of tavernas and small hotels. Farther south toward Glyfada, development fades and the landscape becomes dunes, juniper trees, and open beach. Wind can be stronger here than at Agios Prokopios or Agia Anna.
I prefer Kastraki for travelers with a rental car who want space and quiet but do not want to go quite as remote as Alyko or Pyrgaki.
Best for: quiet beach days, long walks, couples, sunsets, and travelers with a car.
8. Pyrgaki Beach
Pyrgaki is my favorite remote beach for families. The south-facing shoreline is relatively sheltered, with fine sand, shallow blue water, lots of space, and far fewer people than the beaches close to Naxos Town.
This is a quiet beach rather than a beach-club destination. There are tavernas nearby but little else, so come here because you want to stay put for several hours. A rental car is strongly recommended.
Best for: families, shallow swimming, quiet, space, and travelers with a car.
Recommended Pyrgaki Beach Hotel:
- Finikas Beach Hotel (upscale)
9. Orkos Beach
Orkos is one of my favorite quiet beaches on the west coast. It sits between Plaka and Mikri Vigla and is less a single organized beach than a string of sandy stretches and little coves separated by granite rocks.
Come here for clear water, fewer people, snorkeling, and a more natural setting than the main beach villages. There are very limited facilities, so bring what you need. A car also makes much more sense than trying to build the day around bus service.
Choose Orkos over Plaka if you want fewer people and don’t care about sunbeds or beach bars. Choose Alyko if you want an even wilder setting and do not mind driving farther south.
Best for: couples, quiet swimming, snorkeling, uncrowded beach days, and travelers with a car.
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