Naxos Villages I

There are around forty villages in Naxos — all of them in the island’s upper half, and a few of them largely unaltered architecturally during recent decades—something that cannot be said about villages in most of the Greek islands (or Greece in general). One will not find much tourist accommodation in the villages, though there are some rooms in Filoti, the largest village, and a few rooms scattered here and there in other places can be found if one asks around. Except in Apollonas, on the island’s north tip, hotels have not been built all over the island, which contributes strongly to its charm.

Travelling east from Hora/Naxos, one road forks off to the right to to the Tragea Valley passing through the village of Galinadho, with Glinadho closeby, both of these with much modern concrete construction, but the ride over the mountain is lovely, with some far views both towards the sea and inland. Before reaching Halki, one passes near the Sangri villages, which have some nice open countryside and dairy farms surrounding them, an area especially lovely in spring. Farther on, off to the right up a long entry road, is the village of Damarionas, with a mix of older and newer structures, but Halki stands out as one of villages with older architecture, much of it Venetian, with a high-walled ‘pyrgos’, some very lovely churches on the main street, and some fine Byzantine churches just out in the countryside beyond the town, which is surrounded by olive groves. On the little back streets of Halki, near Yianni’s taverna, one will find the wonderful old Vallindras store and distillery, where one can see how kitron, ouzo, and raki are made. The building that houses the store and tasting room is all wood, with a marvelous atmosphere; beyond it is the distillery. The Vallindras family has been in the business for many generations; kitron trees were once far more plentiful on the island than they are now.