Naxos Yacht Anchorages: The Complete Guide

Naxos sits in the Cyclades.

The Cyclades are dominated by the summer Meltemi (Etesian) northerly, strongest mid-July to mid-August (around Force 5 to 7, gusting higher in open water).

Plan south legs downwind and overnight on lee and south coasts.

May, June and September are calmer.

This guide covers the island's main anchorages with the practical detail charterers and captains actually use: depth where a published cruising source documents it, holding, and shelter direction.

Where a figure was not documented we say so rather than guess.

Ashore: Chora old town and its Venetian Kastro (seat of the Duchy of Naxos, 1207 to 1537) and the Portara, the great marble gate of an unfinished Temple of Apollo.

Plaka and Agios Prokopios are among the finest Cycladic beaches.

Naxos is the hub of the central Cyclades and the pivot of the week: 12 nautical miles from Paros on our distance table, 30 from Mykonos, 30 from Ios, 55 from Santorini and 100 from Alimos, with the Small Cyclades a morning to the south-east.

The three records are honest about the island: Chora harbour, four to seven metres, gives Meltemi shelter in its north-east corner and gets uncomfortable in a strong blow; Ormos Kalando on the south-east coast, three to six metres over sand, is one of the best Meltemi lees on the island; the west-coast roadsteads at Agios Prokopios and Agia Anna are fair-weather day stops off the finest beaches in the Cyclades.

The yachts that carry the Cyclades wind comfortably are the 20 metre and larger catamarans and the 26 metre and larger motor yachts: on the Greek Charter Index 2026 a 20 to 22 metre sailing catamaran runs EUR 31,500 to 43,500 a week, a 23 to 24 metre EUR 54,900 to 90,000, a 26 to 31 metre motor yacht EUR 35,900 to 75,000, per yacht before VAT and APA.

Where can a yacht anchor at Naxos?

Naxos has 3 anchorages in this guide: Chora harbour (Naxos Town), Ormos Kalando (Kalantos), SE coast, West-coast roadsteads (Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna). Each entry below gives depth, holding, shelter direction and what is ashore.

Which Naxos anchorages are sheltered from the meltemi, the summer north wind?

Ormos Kalando (Kalantos), SE coast: One of the best Meltemi lees on the southeast coast.

How deep are the anchorages at Naxos?

Chora harbour (Naxos Town) 4-7m; Ormos Kalando (Kalantos), SE coast 3-6m. Depths are typical sand-bottom anchoring depths; the captain drops on current chart data.

What is the holding like at Naxos?

Ormos Kalando (Kalantos), SE coast: Sand. West-coast roadsteads (Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna): Sand.

When is the best time to anchor at Naxos?

The Cyclades are dominated by the summer Meltemi, the northerly that blows hardest from mid-July to mid-August, around Force 5 to 7 and gusting higher in open water, and Naxos sits in the middle of it: Chora becomes uncomfortable, Kalando on the south-east coast is the lee, and the west-coast beaches are for the calm mornings. July and August fill the town quay with the ferry traffic and the charter fleets; June and September are the months the island is itself, and on the Greek Charter Index the shoulder months price 15 to 25% below peak on the same rate card with three to four months of lead time rather than a year.

What does the captain plan around at Naxos?

Chora for the town and the provisioning, in the north-east corner of the breakwater anchorage, four to seven metres, and only when the forecast is moderate; Kalando, three to six metres over sand near the head of the crescent bay, for the Meltemi night; Agios Prokopios and Plaka in the morning calm, depth confirmed on the chart, for the swim off the beach. The passages are short, Paros 12 miles, Ios 30, Mykonos 30, and the Small Cyclades, Koufonisia, Schoinoussa and Iraklia, are a morning south-east and worth two nights of the week. Depths and holding here follow published cruising sources; the captain confirms the anchor drop against current charts on arrival.

Cyclades

Saronic

Ionian

Sporades

Dodecanese

Crete