Solaris30

Hello friends!

I'll be flying to Greece this June for the first time with my partner, for two weeks. We'll be going to Athens, Delphi, Naxos, Santorini, Thessaloniki and Meteora and i am quite exited

While in Naxos, we planned to see old town, Apollo Temple and hike around mount Zeus. Our accommodations will be close to Agios Georgios Naxos. We wanted to enjoy the beach at least one day, and I was wondering if any of you have good recommendations for snorkelling. Interesting sites easy to reach or an excursion, perhaps? Nothing fancy, I was hoping for coral reefs (or maybe a shipwreck) close to the coast. I did notice a few decent diving schools, but we don't have our PADI certification (this is actually a project for another trip because I fear it would be too time consuming for our limited time in Greece). I might also be interested by a boat trip, if there are interesting things to see (I am not the type to just chill on a catamaran, I'd prefer to see a cave, or other natural beauties while I'm at it).

Anyways, if you have any recommendations i would be thrilled! Thanks in advance

travelerjan

A little research about the Mediterranean/Aegean will show you that Unfortunately for your plans, these seas do not have coral. In addition -- unlike the vast Atlantic & Pacific, where u may be snorkeling around islands -- these 2 shallower ancient seas, while beautiful and beloved, have been VERY overfished (it's a long story, involving starving populations during & after WW II, and the use of munitions by hungry people in need of protein). There are small fishes, but not large tuna, grouper etc, and none of the colorful varieties that live in/around coral. As for shipwrecks, any ancient ones are safeguarded due to looting for classical artifacts in the past.

Nonetheless, thare are some underwater sights of interest. I'm not a snorkeler, but I've often wished I could go just off the causeway in Naxos to see the "drowned village" from prehistoric times. I blieve there are also some interesting underwater sites just off Crete. If you'd like to see some unusual formations, a perfect excursion is a day boat trip around the edges of MILOS -- there were volcanoes there in prehisotric era, leaving weird rock formations, and caves at water's edge... on these boat trips you can take rubber boats which go (a very short way) into such caves.

Heimdall

You won’t see much of anything snorkelling at the Agios Georgios beach, except maybe at the far end where there are some rocks for the fish to shelter. I always bring my snorkel & mask, but never got much use for them on Naxos.

The Nima Dive Center at Agia Anna has introductory dives for beginners, the first dive from the shore, and the second off a boat at depths of up to 12 metres. If you can do both dives in one day it might be worth the effort.
https://naxosdivingcenter.gr/learn-to-scuba-dive/

For the potential of what you can see on a dive in the Cyclades, have a look at the Blue Island Divers video:
https://blueisland-divers.gr/

Solaris30

@travelerjan: Yeah I wasn't expecting Caribbean level of corals or anything, but I did read about some decent reefs in the Cyclade, with some shipwrecks accessible to divers (though most seem max a few decades old). Though if fishes are rare, that might be why I seem to find more activities targeted for divers rather than snorkelers (shipwrecks and ruins wouldn't be too close from the surface, i guess). I'll take a look at this excursion you are talking about around Milos.

@Heimdall: Yes, I wasn't expecting much of Agios Georgios in terms of snorkelling. I just want to enjoy the beach, while still being close to Naxos town! Though this thread is talking about snorkelling, my priority is to marvel in the historical sights of Greece. If I get to see something interesting underwater, it will be a bonus. I'll definitely check that diving centre you talked about.

Thanks to you both for the tips