Years ago my husband and I went to Santorini and absolutely loved it. Now I'm researching our next trip and trying to decide between Naxos and Nafplio.

We're first and foremost big foodies. We know we can't expect the jaw-dropping views of Santorini, but we like to wander and sightsee. Not overly into history/architecture, but we did find Akortiri interesting and don't mind visiting some historical sites. Beaches aren't important for this trip.

We're planning for mid-October and are flexible with the number of days (thinking about 3 days).

I was leaning towards Naxos but my biggest hesitation is not having a non-stop flight (we're flying from within Europe). Nafplio came up as an option since we'd have to go through Athens anyway.

Thoughts?

IMO, either would be an excellent choice! My only concern, mostly about Naxos, would be whether it would be closing up before you would get there. I honestly don't know and hope others might chime in, but I think it's still "open." Assuming each is an option:

Naxos has two wonderful ruins -- the Portara (in town) and the Temple of Dimitras, outside of town. AND from Naxos, you can take a ferry to the extraordinary ruins of Delos ... and I think those ferries run through the end of October. I found it a delightful place to roam and I ate very well there. Three or perhaps four days there would seem perfect to me.

To my knowledge, Nafplio doesn't have any "classic" Greek ruins right in town, but it is a great base for exploring some wonderful ancient sites ... and other places, too! Depending on your interests, Napflio could provide a great option for anywhere from 3 to 7 days, depending on your approach to day trips.

You might find some useful information in my trip report, which describes hotels and meals and activites. The section on Naxos begins with post # 109; the section on Nafplio begins with post # 137.
With Gratitude for a Glorious Solo Month in Greece

You'll have a great time either way!

We stayed on Hydra and in Chania (Crete) for about the first 10 days of October one year. Some shops and restaurants were closed for the season but we still had a good choice of where to eat. It seemed quiet and the waiters were bored with fewer customers. The weather was lovely, sunny but not hot.

Why not Rhodos,with direct flights from every somewhat important Euopean airport.

My choice would be Nafplion. A lovely town, within driving distance of several magnificent Unesco world heritage sites. I could spend a week there and still not see everything.

It really depends on what you are after you’ve mentioned first and foremost that you’re a big foodie - there are other places in Greece I’d recommend for this criteria including Paros or Sifnos, or even the Athens Riviera.

Naxos has some good food and restaurants in the town but it just depends what type of food you are looking for - it also traditional food you can experience in the villages.

Nafplio has good traditional food including fresh seafood

kja Actually, I already read your trip report multiple times during my research! I'm glad to get your input since you've been to both places. Good point about how much will be open on Naxos at that time of year. More for me to think about ...

I'm glad to know you thought my TR helpful enough to consult! I did check the hotel in which I stayed in Naxos (the wonderful Hotel Grotta) and found that it seems to be taking reservations through at least the end of October, so I suspect it would be OK -- particularly if the ferries to Delos run through that time. But I'm no expert!

My husband and I were in Naxos in early October 2011 and it was definitely slowing down by then. While Naxos (the town) was mostly open the smaller towns that we drove to were much quieter. In addition. Our plan to visit Delos was canceled because high winds meant that the ferries were canceled.

We recently stayed in Nafplio (early May 2024) and loved it. It’s certainly easier to get there and back and there’s plenty to see within the region. We really enjoyed the town itself, too. It’s a beautiful small town and a great base for the area.

progol That makes sense about the smaller towns. I took a look at all of your trip reports and both places sound great. It's not going to be an easy decision for me.

Either choice could be wonderful! Personally, I choose trip destinations in part on how well they match the time I have. IMO, 3 or 4 days is a better match for Naxos. Nafplio lends itself to a week.YMMV.

And BTW, the smaller towns on Naxos are, I think, not particularly busy at ANY time of year. ;-0

Can't go wrong with either option. Both great, We also stayed in Hotel Grotta in Naxos and loved it. The warmth of the staff is like no other. In Naflio we stayed in the Aetoma Hotel, also pretty great. Both family hotels run by wonderful, attentive people.

I think we'll go with Nafplio. I don't want to take chances with Naxos with too much being closed or deal with the hassle of connecting flights. Since there's plenty to see in the Peloponnese, now I'm wondering if we should do more than 3 days. Lol!
Thanks everyone for your responses.

As already noted, there is a LOT to do in / around Nafplio, and I suspect you'll need time to get to / from Athens ... so yes, adding days makes sense if you can.

I wonder ... would it be worth contacting someone at the Hotel Grotta to get a better sense of what is likely to be open in October and how likely it would be that the ferry to Delos would be cancelled?

Yeah, I could do that. That should be easy to contact them.

The hassles regarding the connecting flights worry me the most since I tend to focus on worst-case scenarios. One example: our flights in/out of Athens would be on Aegean but inter-island is Olympic. I'm not a light packer, so what if we check in luggage in Naxos but somehow it doesn't make it to Athens on time for our connection?

Just seems like it would be a more relaxed trip if we stick to the mainland.

Clearly, a consideration! If you can put your Olympic and Aegean flights on the same ticket, that should help ... I don't know if that's an option. Perhaps most importantly, Nafplio is a wonderful place to visit (as several of us have affirmed).

Aegean and Olympic are essentially the same airline, and you can book both flights from the Aegean website. Years ago Aegean bought the old Olympic Airlines and renamed it Olympic Air. Olympic Air is the domestic arm of Aegean Airlines.

I think you’ll be happy sticking to the mainland. Nafplio is delightful and October should be a wonderful time there. I don’t know how much will be closed in Naxos at that time, but again, we were there in early October (2011) for 4 nights and the wind forced the cancellation of ferries to Delos for the entire time we were there.

Heimdall Thanks for the tip about the airlines. I'm going to contact them and see what they say about my luggage questions.
progol and others - Yes, it sounds like I won't be compromising anything no matter which I choose!

Globetrotterxyz, another tip: if you are flying into Athens on Aegean Airlines, there should be a Connections Ambassador at the arrivals gate to help you get to the connecting flight:
https://en.aegeanair.com/travel-info...ng-passengers/

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...a06841cc531ba6

If you are checking luggage at Naxos, there is only one destination from there: Athens. I have heard that on rare occasions, due to weather conditions, they are forced to leave luggage behind to meet takeoff weight restrictions. Naxos is extending their very short runway from 900 metres to 1200 metres, and that should solve the problem. Construction is already underway, but I don’t recall when it will be completed.