5 days - naxos or paros

same ferry goes to both, so do some research & see which appeals to you most... we cannot advise you knowing nothing of your likes/dislikes, budget, etc.

To help you choose which island to visit, select "Things to Do" at the top of the forum pages for these islands on the Trip Advisor website.

I recommend buying a couple good guidebooks to help you decide such as lonely planet, Michelin green guides and rough guides.

We spent 4 nights on Naxos and loved it. Enjoyed exploring Naxos Old Town, mountain villages, fishing villages and eating delicious seafood.

Haven’t been to Paros but I am sure it’s very nice too.

We have been to Naxos 15 times and we still find things/places we have never seen before. If you liked Crete you will enjoy Naxos as it is sometimes called Mini Crete. It has a wonderful main town with a maze of back alleys leading to the Venetian era Kastro. It has a good town beach just a 10 minute stroll from the waterfront promenade. There are other good beachs 7km from town on the west coast.
There are antiquities, and mountain villages with good hiking.
Here are some images of Naxos.
Naxos 2022. https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72177720299940917/
Naxos town 2022 https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72177720299959098

Trip around Naxos https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157634605629689
Naxos sunsets https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157700728046481

I have not been to Naxos, but to Paros. What I was told was that Paros is more affordable than Naxos.

I loved it. It was a pleasant surprise after my visit to Santorini, which was scenic but too crowded. Paros was compact, but you should rent a car if you want to go to the more remote beaches. Also, take a ferry to Anti-paros, where Maddona, Tom Hanks, and others own their vacation homes. I have no interest in celebrities, but this smaller sister island is scenic.