Naxos Greece

Size: 166 square miles (430 km2)
Population: approx 19,000 persons

In history, Naxos exported white marble from the Flerio quarry, and unfinished Kouros (statues) are still upon the island, laying prone, dating from the Archaic period (6th and 7th century BC).

Naxos is the largest of the Cyclades, and considered the most fertile for agriculture which is more important economically on the island than is tourism, an equation different from the situation on many islands, chiefly due to Naxos having a reliable supply of fresh water, something not found on many other islands.

All the same, tourism on Naxos is well developed and features Byzantine monasteries and Venetian era structures (in particular the "Kastro" or castle in Naxos Town) along with mountain villages and beaches. The Glezos Tower, called "the Krispi" in relation to the family Crispi which once owned it, has been undergoing restoration and development into a Byzantium-emphasis museum.

Map of Naxos

Related: Islands of Greece

The Acropolis in Athens Greece

The Acropolis - Parthenon and More

Advertisement: I am an Amazon affiliate

Fodor's Essential Greece: with the Best Islands (Full-color Travel Guide)