We are well aware that the journey to Naxos, Greece, for many of our guests is a long journey. Our goal is to provide lots of information for our guests so that they feel prepared and confident along the way!

Step 1: Getting to Athens

If you are traveling from the U.S., the first step is to book your flight to Athens International Airport, "Eleftherios Venizelos." Most U.S. airports do not offer direct flights to Athens, so you will likely need to book a flight with a layover. This layover can be strategic if you'd like to explore other parts of Europe, or it can be brief to minimize travel time. Katia and Odysseas prefer to book flights through Turkish Airlines, with a layover in Istanbul. If you need any assistance with this process, please let us know!

Guests can then choose to stay in Athens for a few nights and explore the city, or they can just go to Naxos (see Step 2).

Transportation:

Driving in Athens is notoriously challenging as the style of driving is aggressive. You can use Uber or FREENOW (the latter is more popular, likely has smaller wait times).

Step 2: Getting to Naxos.

Naxos is a Greek island in the South Aegean, the largest of the Cyclades island group. It has mountainous regions, ancient ruins as well as long stretches of beach.

You can get to Naxos from Athens in two ways:

Option 1: Take the ferry!

https://www.ferryhopper.com/ is the best option to book your tickets. You can also use https://www.ferryscanner.com/en/ferry.

The ferry is a great option! You should book your ferry trip from the port of Pireaus to the Port of Naxos (tip: do this as early as possible). The trip takes somewhere between 3 and a half to 5 hours depending on the boat you choose.

If you decided to go straight to the port from the Athens airport, there are various ways to get there. This website, https://sunnyathens.com/athens-to-piraeus-port-and-vice-versa, covers all of them in detail.

Option 2: Take a plane!

Naxos has an aiport, so you can time your arrival in Athens and catch another plane to Naxos. The official flight time is 45 minutes but it usually takes less than that. skyscanner.com is one of the best tools to find all available flights from Athens to Naxos.

Step 3: Arrival in Naxos + Planning your stay!

Finally, you have arrived in Naxos! Time to relax and enjoy.

Accommodation:

The wedding venue as well as the church are located in Agia Anna (see picture below) which has great access to the entire coastline and a ton of accommodation options. It's a good place to stay at if you want to be within walking distance to all wedding related events. That said, it is also usually a bit more crowded.

There is a plethora of cities/places to stay at in Naxos, all with their own pros and cons. Airbnb and Booking work great in Naxos for all types of accommodations.

airbnb.com

booking.com

For villas, please also check:

https://www.mygreek-villa.com/

https://allgreekvillas.com/naxos-villas

Before you book your accommodation, we do recommend guests to reach out to Odysseas via email (omasmanidis@gmail.com). Please include links of the hotel/room/villa you want to book. We can reaching out to establishments and possibly cut fees. This is most successful if one can do cash.

Transportation:

Option 1: Rent a car.

Renting a car is a good option since Naxos is a fairly large island. There are a ton of car rentals around the island (e.g Escape Rental Cars, Hertz Rental Cars, Naxian Cars). Keep in mind that car rental places arrange pick-up and drop-off services at the port, so you can rent a car from any car rental in Naxos (it doesn't have to be near the port).

Option 2: Taxi.

You may also use taxis to get around (no Uber or FREENOW in Naxos) that you can arrange through your hotel. Otherwise, you may call the Greek numbers we have listed below, which are all essentially part of a taxi concierge (they all speak English). You can also call them in advance to schedule rides.

Tip: If you get a cab, try and befriend your driver, ask them if they have WhatsApp so that you can just schedule rides directly with them. Feel free to ask your driver questions about anything; taxi drivers are considered somewhat of a Greek Wikipedia.

+30 2285022444 - Naxian association of taxi drivers

+30 2285024331 - Union of Naxian taxi drivers

Option 3: Bus.

Naxos Bus Lines and Schedules . You may also use public charter buses to get around Naxos. Fares vary, ranging from 1.80€ to 6.20€ per trip, but are usually under 3€. You can simply buy tickets when you board the bus.