Naxos  Resort

Portara is probably one of the first things that your eyes will see once you step for the first time on the island. Standing high and tall on the northern side of the port, on top of a small island, since the 7^th century B.C. and it’s the gate of a temple dedicated to Apollo, the Sun god that was getting built at this spot, but was never finished.

Until 100 years ago the island was separated from the mainland of Naxos and it could only be reached by boat or swimming, until a bridge road was built and now everyone can visit it just by walking there. There are a lot of myths and stories about Portara and how it survived standing up all these centuries, going through earthquakes, bad weather, wars, pirate raids, etc.

Even the small island is connected with the myth of Ariadne, saying that this was the place where god Dionysus kept her as a prisoner after her kidnap. Visited by thousands of people each year, it’s definitely worth a bit of your time so you can see it up close too.