Santorini may be the most popular island in Greece’s Cyclades island group, but it’s got serious competition in Naxos. Naxos is the largest of the Cyclades (about five times bigger than Santorini) with a slightly less dramatic topography, but what Naxos lacks in steep cliffs, it gains in miles upon miles of soft white sand beaches that ring the island. On the east side of the island, Orkos Beach is one of the best, with gentle waves, shocking clearly water, and shaded beach chais to rent for as little as 10 euros per pair.
And set just above this beautiful beach (a 90-second drive or an 8-10 minute walk up a steep hill), the Apricot & Sea Luxury Villas offer stunning sea and sunset views, and close proximity to the best of the island.
Nikolas, the hotel manager, was in touch before we even arrived to ask if we needed any special arrangements. I took him up on that, asking for some wine and cheese to be in the room when we arrived. “No problem,” he said. And that was pretty much his answer for everything we asked throughout our five day stay. A taxi into town? No problem. In fact, Nikolas was going that way, so he’d just drive us. A place to store our luggage after check out? No problem. In fact, no one else was checking in that day so we could just use the room as long as we wanted.
There are seven suites, masionettes, and studios across the property, and each can sleep anywhere from two to ten people. There’s one large pool with a view, as well as a second semi-private pool shared between two of the villas—including the one my husband and I stayed in, the Naxos Eye, a two-story masionette.
On the ground floor of our room, we had a fully equipped kitchen with an oven and stovetop, full-size refrigerator, microwave, dishwasher, coffee machine, food processor, and a washing machine. There was a bar with seating for four plus a large sitting area with two comfortable couches and a TV. The room was cozy, incredibly clean, and the thick walls kept it cool for most of the day.
Upstairs, there was a small bathroom with a shower and vanity, two bunk beds, and then a separate bedroom with a queen bed, armoire, dresser, and two small bedside tables. While the room wasn’t overly large, it fit our needs, and we found plenty of room for our two week’s worth of clothes and luggage (with some overspill onto the unused bunk beds) in the adjoining room.
The best part though, was the view of whitewashed Cycladic buildings against the backdrop of the bright blue sea. Each morning, we made breakfast in our kitchen and brought it upstairs to eat at our patio table. And each evening, we sat up there with a glass of wine to watch the sunset.
During the hottest part of the day, we would turn on the room’s air conditioner, but at night we opened up the French doors for a cool breeze. The door featured a pull-down screen which meant we could keep the doors open all night and not worry about bugs—a small touch that was greatly appreciated.
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Our room included access to a semi-private pool shared with one other villa, but we were there so early in the season (the beginning of May) that we were the only guests, so we ended up having it to ourselves. It was nice to have an alternative to the beach, but with a perfect beach so close, we still spent more of our time on the sand instead.
When we wanted to explore a little farther, Naxos Chora, the main town, was about 15 minutes away by car, and mountain villages like Halki were only about 25 minutes. While we opted to cook a few nights, we were also happy to be less than five minutes by car from several restaurants in the town of Mikri Vigla, just to the south of the hotel.
My husband and I were celebrating our 15th anniversary on the trip and while we wanted a memorable, luxurious stay, we didn’t want to go wild on the budget. Apricot & Sea fit the bill perfectly. Our maisionette was cozy and private and having our own private pool made it feel even more exclusive. We loved that we could cook some meals at home, but having Nikolas there to help arrange things made us glad we didn’t book a completely independent accommodation. But best of all, it was close to everything we wanted to do while still feeling tucked away, and the views of the sea made it all the better.
If you go: Room rates start at around $120 per night for studios and $150 per night to maisonettes. You can compare rates on Booking.com or Expedia and make your reservation for the villas there as well.
