Náoussa sits on the northern coast of Paros, a twenty-minute drive or local bus ride from the main ferry port at Parikia. The village is known for its sunken Venetian harbour fortress, whitewashed alleys, and fishing caiques tied alongside dockside taverna tables. Náoussa is worth visiting if you want fresh gouna mackerel and Monemvasia wine served metres from the evening tide. Look elsewhere if you want quiet isolation in peak summer or large-scale cultural museums.
Last updated 17 Sept 2026
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Life in Náoussa revolves around the crescent of its old fishing port, where morning net-mending yields to afternoon glasses of souma and evening dining. The flat marble labyrinth of the centre keeps cars out, making foot travel effortless between quiet backstreets and the lively water's edge. It suits travellers who enjoy early morning swims followed by long, unhurried meals of charcoal-grilled fish beside gently knocking boat hulls.
Start with coffee and a sesame koulouri on the port, then walk out along the sea-splashed stone wall to the Venetian fort. Take a ten-minute caique boat to Kolymbithres for a swim among sculpted rocks. Return by late afternoon for Moraitis wines, finishing with charred octopus and gouna under the harbour lights. Select 1 Day above to see it.
Devote day two to the northern peninsula at Paros Park, walking the rocky loop to Korakas lighthouse before swimming at Monastiri. In the evening, trade the waterfront for an inland table in the whitewashed maze, ordering clay-pot revithada chickpeas and local xinomyzithra cheese with warm village bread. Choose 2 Days to expand the plan.
A third day allows an easy excursion south into the mountain spine. Take the morning bus to Lefkes, walk the old marble Byzantine trail down to Prodromos, and stop for roasted lamb in Marpissa before heading back to Náoussa for a final sunset swim at Piperi beach.
Order sun-dried mackerel called gouna, grilled octopus tentacles charred over charcoal, and fried red mullet with local caper leaves at the old port.
Taste dry white Monemvasia and robust red Mandilaria at family cellars like Moraitis Winery, operating just behind the town beach since 1910.
Walk the narrow sea wall out to the half-submerged fifteenth-century Venetian fortress guarding the inner harbour from Aegean corsairs.
Take the marked coastal trail through Paros Park to the 1887 Korakas lighthouse, wrapping past sea caves and wind-carved granite headlands.
Catch a morning water taxi from the port to Kolymbithres for smooth granite coves, or head east to the sandy stretch of Santa Maria.
Seek out spicy xinomyzithra cheese, pickled wild samphire, sun-ripened Parian figs, and dried chickpeas slow-baked in earthenware pots.
Visit the blue-domed church of the Assumption on the highest ridge and the whitewashed chapel of Agios Nikolaos right on the fishing quay.
Sit for chickpea revithada braised for twelve hours, stuffed zucchini blossoms, and grilled local sausages seasoned with wild fennel seed.
Ride the inland bus to the marble-paved mountain village of Lefkes, then hike the historic Byzantine footpath down to Prodromos.
Harness northern Meltemi winds for kitesurfing and windsurfing along the wide, shallow waters of Santa Maria and Plastira Bay.
Browse small workshops tucked into the kastro alleys for handwoven linen textiles, olive wood bowls, and hand-thrown ceramic tableware.
Catch live sousta and syrtos tunes played on the tsambouna bagpipe and island violin during late-summer harbour feast days.