Best Time to Visit Paros and Naxos

Geographical location

Paros and Naxos are Greek islands in the Aegean Sea and belong to the popular Cyclades archipelago.

Both islands have less than 20000 inhabitants, Paros lies west of Naxos and is about half as big. The two Cyclades islands are only separated by a narrow strip of sea. In the middle of the island Paros there are two peaks with about 750 meters height.

Naxos is the largest island of the Cyclades. The Greek word kýklos means circle and describes the circular arrangement of the archipelago, which, depending on definition and interpretation, consists of 12 to 20 islands. The islands outside are appropriately grouped together as “scattered islands” (sporades).

Along with Paros and Naxos, Mykonos, Santorini, Amorgos, Ios and Koufonissi are the most important”pearls of the Cyclades”. Island hopping, i.e. the combination of several Greek islands, is not only possible in this region, but one of the preferred types of travel.

Climate on Paros and Naxos

The climate in the Cyclades can be described as entirely Mediterranean. The summers on the islands in the Aegean Sea are usually very hot and very dry, while the winter is rather rainy with mild temperatures. Compared to other regions of Greece, the winter in the Aegean is very mild at around 15 °C, but heavy precipitation can occur.

Paros, Naxos and the other Cyclades islands are particularly affected by the Meltémi wind in the summer, which sets in during June after the almost windless month of May and can provide a stiff breeze especially in the afternoon between July and August. For bathing holiday-makers these north winds make the stay very pleasant, since the strong heat is pleasantly softened.

Windsurfers and sailors love these weather conditions especially. Already from the middle of April the day temperatures regularly crack the 20 °C mark, it is mostly cloudless and sunny. But it is not until June that the average values reach 26 °C a day and more. The Aegean reaches wonderful water temperatures between 22 °C to 25 °C between the beginning of June and the end of October.

After sunset it can become fresher in the evening at any time of the year, but in midsummer the night temperatures of around 22 °C are perceived as very pleasant. Most precipitation falls between December and March, between June and September you have to expect almost no rain on the Cyclades. Detailed climate tables are also available separately for Santorini and Mykonos.