# Paros or Naxos with kids?

Written 2026-10-10 by Play Day. Naxos and Paros are a short ferry ride apart in the Cyclades. We'd pick Naxos for the beaches and a toddler, and Paros for the villages, the restaurants and older kids, plus the beaches, the hotels and how to do both.

On Naxos the beaches are long and the water stays shallow for ages, with family hotels right on the sand. Paros has Kolymbithres, with calm water among the boulders, and Naoussa, a harbor town with the better restaurants. We'd take a child under five to Naxos, and older kids (or anyone who cares about the evenings) to Paros.

Naxos is bigger, with mountain villages to drive up to, and Paros is smaller and more polished.

## Naxos, for the beaches

Agios Georgios, Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna and Plaka run one after the other down the west coast.

### [Agios Georgios Beach](https://ourplayday.com/places/agios-georgios-beach-naxos)

Island: Naxos

This is the town beach, with cafés and tavernas along the shore and Naxos Town's lanes and the Portara a walk away. A toddler can wade out a long way before it gets deep.

### [Plaka Beach](https://ourplayday.com/places/plaka-beach-naxos)

Island: Naxos

Plaka is four kilometers of sand backed by dunes, with juniper shade in places. It gets quieter with every step south, from sunbeds and cafés at the north end to nothing at all at the other. The water is clear and shallow, and most of the island's family apartment hotels sit behind it.

### [Aqua Fun Water Park](https://ourplayday.com/places/aqua-fun-water-park-naxos)

Island: Naxos

A small water park near Agios Prokopios, with plenty for a school-age kid's afternoon. There are slides and a kids' pool with its own slide, and sunbeds are included.

### [Stella Naxos Island](https://ourplayday.com/places/stella-naxos-island-naxos)

Island: Naxos

The ground-floor apartments open onto the garden and the playground, Plaka beach is across the road, and kids and adults have separate pools. There are more like it in our Naxos family hotel guide.

- Cribs: Yes
- Pool: Yes

## Paros, for the towns and the evenings

### [Kolymbithres Beach](https://ourplayday.com/places/kolymbithres-beach-paros)

Island: Paros

Small coves sit among granite boulders, and we think it's the best beach on Paros for a small child, because the rocks make pools of still water with sand between them. Tavernas are nearby, and a water taxi runs across the bay to Naoussa.

### [Butterflies Nature Reserve](https://ourplayday.com/places/butterflies-nature-reserve-paros)

Island: Paros

Butterflies fill a shaded valley of dense vegetation, and there's a small playground by the café.

### [Petra Farm](https://ourplayday.com/places/petra-farm-paros)

Island: Paros

The goats and chickens are free-range on this organic farm. A kid who'd rather see goats than dig in the sand can do the 40-minute walk and finish with a tasting or a meal. Paros also has a horse-riding center.

### [Astir of Paros](https://ourplayday.com/places/astir-of-paros-paros)

Island: Paros

Astir is across the road from Kolymbithres, with Naoussa a water taxi away. Its junior suites take two adults and two kids, and there's a kids' pool. Our Paros family hotel guide covers the rest of the island.

- Pool: Yes

Page: https://ourplayday.com/guides/greece/paros/paros-or-naxos-with-kids