Naxos or Mykonos? which guide book?

You'll love Naxos, it's one of Greece's nicest islands with something for everyone. Even mid-October should have nice weather and even good enough for a dip in the Aegean still warm from the summer heat.

Naxos Town or nearby St. George Beach would be your best options for where to stay since most everything is open there. As for beaches they should be deserted giving you more privacy and choice of where to put your blanket down.

I took the ferry from Piraeus to Naxos which at the time left mid-morning and arrived around 4+ hours later so not sure about the schedule you posted. Maybe routes have changed.

A great alternative would be to fly, less than 1 hour and probably better times. I've flown with Olympic/Aegean many times and it's rated one of the better airlines in Europe. Most planes will have propellers but don't let that worry you. You'll be fine.

As far as Mykonos, I took the Delos/Mykonos day trip and found Delos far more interesting and relaxing. It's one of Greece's best archeological sites. Mykonos while a pretty waterfront and town was too crowded and pricey for me but it was worth it just for the time on Delos.

I stayed at Studios Naxos on Naxos, about 10 meters (50 ft.) from the water. Basic studio but clean, safe and centrally located at St. George Beach. Ask for top floor for best few.

According to this website there are some early morning ferries:

https://www.gtp.gr/RoutesResults.asp?SchDay=17&SchMonth=10&SchYear=2019&CompanyID=0,2&SortType=1,2&AroundDate=0&Origin=EGR1AP70PIRTZE,166,8&Destination=EGRSKY56,11943,6

I'm pretty sure I'd like to spend the better part of a day on Delos.

Chani, We highly recommend doing just that. It is an amazing site, well preserved, not at all crowded, and easy to get to via local boats from the main waterfront. On Mykonos itself there are windmills that are very interesting and will take up very little time to do them justice. There are also several places to get a drink or bite to eat that overlook the water.

Thank you both. I've decided that Naxos is my choice.

I did find one company, Naxos Tours, that still has day tours to Delos/Mykonos (about 3 hours on each). I'd probably be happy with more time on Delos and less on Mykonos, but this seems better than not seeing it at all. October does seem to be off-season for Delos. A google search didn't come up with options to ferry to from Delos whenever I want, even if I spent a night on Mykonos.

Tommy, I checked the ferry schedules over and over and checked your link too. Those are the all the ferries there are. One more sign that October is off-season. So I'm going to fly. I don't want to spend a full day getting to Athens and I certainly don't want to get to Piraeus at midnight and still have to get to Syntagma and check in at my hotel. Prop planes don't worry me, but thanks for the heads-up. I saw you wrote on another thread that 45 minutes lead time is enough for a flight from Naxos, making it even more palatable. Is that enough, do you think, with a checked bag?

I didn't fly to/from Naxos so can't say about the time needed to be at the airport before the flight on Naxos

I have, however, flown from other islands to Athens and for the most part it's usually about 1 hour before the flight which many of my accommodation's owners told me. Since Naxos and other Greek Island airports are small there is usually very quick check in & security times and you'll be flying mid-October and shouldn't be that crowded at the airport.

I don't believe there are any ferries to Delos from Naxos or Mykonos. All are part of a tour.

I went from Naxos to Delos/Mykonos early October and hopefully by mid-October the tour will still be running. It's certainly worth going to Delos and just consider Mykonos an opportunity to see it without spending a lot of money for accommodations and dealing with crowds on a regular basis.

Hi, Chani. I think you are aware, but just in case: Rick's guidebook is focused on Athens and the Peloponnese, but also covers Santorini, Mykonos, and Delos. Not Naxos or other Cyclades islands, however.

Remember that Lonely Planet will also sell single chapters in PDF format for less the cost of a whole book on Kindle.

Tommy - did you use Naxos Tours for Delos/Mykonos?

Laura - LOL, I've got the RS guide open on my desk, using it for my last 3 days in Athens. It never occurred to me to look at the table of contents, duh. Thank you.

I believe I did use Naxos Tours but can't say for sure.

Some of my favorite guide books for Greek Islands is The Blue Guide to the Aegean Islands (Aegean Islands only) and Lonely Planet (all of Greece also). Greek Island Hopping (Thomas Cook Publishing) is more tourist oriented and is adequate and has a decent section on Athens.

Rick Steves Guide to Athens & the Peloponnese has an excellent section on Athens with a nice map with a walking tour for the city.

Excellent website is https://www.greecetravel.com/

For the most part very good, might need some updating and I have had different opinions on his reviews but overall is fully comprehensive about Greece.

I do have the Blue Guide. I bought it in 2016 before my RS Athens/Peloponnese tour and only much later realized that I bought the islands book instead of the mainland book :-) It's from 2010, guess they don't update it very often, so not much use for food and rooms, but very good for the "old" stuff, especially Delos.

I filled out the Naxos Tours "contact form" on their site, haven't heard back. I may phone them tomorrow.

And a new question about ferries . . .
From Heraklion to Santorini, I have two choices, Sea Jets Champion 2 or Minoan Santorini Palace. The times and prices are almost the same. Is there any reason not to choose Minoan Santorini Palace? It leaves an hour later, so less rush in the morning

Chani — on Naxos we stayed at Studios Kalergis, right on the beach at St George. Our ground floor room had a private patio, just a few steps from our room to the sand. Yet very affordable. Even if it’s too cold to swim, it’s a long, lovely beach for walking.

Yes, the Blue Guide to the Aegean Islands is just that . . . the Aegean Islands. I have enough books with Athens info so just wanted a more detailed guide for the Aegean and it is one the best for those islands. Unfortunately it doesn't cover Crete or the Ionian Islands but so far my interests have been on the Aegean Islands. I've been to Crete and it's beautiful. Largest of the Greek Islands and deserving of weeks of exploring.

Maybe I'll get back to Crete but I want to visit as many other islands and parts of the mainland before I start a "repeat performance" of any places I've been before.

So many islands and parts of the mainland to go to . . . not enough money to do more than a 2 week trip each year. I guess that's still good!

We are lucky to have you on the forum, Tommy.

I know I'm lucky to be so close to Greece, which is why I can't understand why it's taken me so many years to "discover" it. It's a high tourists destination from here in October, so I'm paying top prices for flights (about $630). Normally it's less than half that. Which is why I'm not trying to see/do too much on a single trip.

You asked about arrival at Naxos airport. I just wanted to tell you that we had a ride to the airport in Naxos so that we would arrive about an hour and half before the flight. The staff at the hotel told us that was too soon but we couldn't be persuaded.

So we stand in a fairly long line in a very small building for maybe 20 minutes and check in our luggage. But then we cannot go to the gate. There is only space in the waiting area for the next plane to leave! We end up sitting outside and watching the planes come in. When our plane arrives, we go through security (which was very minimal by the way) and then wait for our plane.

We could see other islands from the plane and it was very beautiful. Then you arrive and take a bus to the terminal.

Flying out of Naxos was part of the experience of being on the island!

Charlene I'm staying a place very close to where you were. Now that I've finally booked all my hotels and flights, I'm soliciting ideas and tips for my time on Naxos.

Beth Thank you for the info. It's always good to know what to expect. And I welcome any advice you have for Naxos.

Re: We are lucky to have you on the forum, Tommy.

Some others may not agree . . . can't please everyone though!

We loved Naxos. We stayed four nights but would have loved at least one more night.

We rented a car for a couple days which I would recommend. But be careful to a lot enough time to the old town. The last night we were there felt like we should have had more time to explore Naxos town.

We stayed in st George beach which worked out really well. But I thought some of the other beaches were prettier for swimming.

There are some lovely hikes. We hiked to top of mt Zeus but there are less strenuous hikes as well.