Agia Anna or Agiassos: which beach wins in Naxos
Published 2026-08-28. Conditions described are typical and never guaranteed.
Here is the short version. If you want calm shallow swimming close to Naxos Town with tavernas, a fishing port and a sociable evening on the sand, choose Agia Anna. If you want a wide unspoiled bay where the water stays gentle even when the wind is punishing the famous beaches, and you are happy to drive a dirt road to earn it, choose Agiassos. Both are sheltered, both are shallow, both suit supervised children. The gap between them is not beauty or bathing. It is distance, effort and the kind of day you are after.
These two beaches sit at opposite ends of the same southern coast in spirit. Agia Anna is the lively, easy, well served stretch just beyond the headline sand. Agiassos is the far southern hideaway that most visitors never reach. Pick the one that matches your mood and your hire car agreement, not the one with the better photograph, because on a still day they both deliver clear calm water.
Who Agia Anna is for
Agia Anna is the sociable choice. It runs on from Agios Prokopios to a small fishing port at its southern end, and it is smaller and cosier than its big neighbour. The sand is soft and pale, the water is clear, shallow and kept gentle by the beach's sheltered position, and that combination makes it one of the easier family swims near town. You get organised sunbed and umbrella sections, a run of bars and tavernas, rooms behind the sand, and a working port where you can wander among the boats and sit down to a fish lunch.
The best place to settle is the middle of the bay, where the water is calmest and the loungers are easiest to reach. The port at the south end is the landmark and the reason to stay past the swim. This is the liveliest stretch of the Naxos coast: Santana Beach Club runs DJ sets and beach parties, and relaxed bars such as Banana and Island Bar sit along the sand. These are easygoing beach bars rather than a glossy daybed operation, and you can usually take a lounger when you arrive, with lounger hire set locally and to be confirmed. The free public sand sits right beside them.
Getting there is simple, which is half the appeal. Agia Anna lies about six kilometres south of Naxos Town, roughly ten to fifteen minutes by car or scooter, and the frequent number one bus runs there through the day from the port. There is parking behind the sand that fills in peak season, so arriving earlier helps. If you are the kind of traveller who wants water sports and a walkable town base instead, the calm lagoon at Agios Georgios on the edge of Chora is worth a look, but for a proper beach day with a fishing port character, Agia Anna is the pick.
Know this about Agia Anna: it is the lively stretch, not a hideaway. Come for calm water with a relaxed scene, and step to Plaka next door when you want real quiet.
Who Agiassos is for
Agiassos is the quiet choice, and it asks something of you in return. This is a wide curve of around 750 metres of fine soft sand in a bay in the far south of the island, one of the last and most unspoiled beaches on this side of Naxos. The water is clear, shallow and calm, and it stays cool and gentle even when the north wind blows hard elsewhere. That single fact is the real reason to make the trip. The best spot is the sheltered middle of the bay, where the calm holds on a day the Meltemi is troubling the famous beaches.
What you will not find is a serviced beach. Agiassos is free and largely unorganised, so you choose your own patch on open sand. There are a handful of well regarded fish tavernas set back near the shore, which is rare for a beach this remote, but any sunbeds and the tavernas' opening hours are seasonal and to be confirmed. Treat a good lunch as a welcome bonus rather than a guarantee, and bring your own shade and water. There is no lifeguard on this quiet shore, so judge the sea for yourself and supervise children closely even in the calm shallow water.
The catch is the road. The sealed road runs as far as Pyrgaki, then the final approach is on a dirt track of roughly three kilometres. It is usually passable with care in a normal car driven slowly, but it can be rough and dusty, so take it gently, allow extra time, and check your hire agreement, since some exclude unsurfaced roads. Agiassos sits around twenty kilometres from Naxos Town, so this is a day trip you commit to, not a quick dip.
The head to head, point by point
Sand
Agiassos wins on scale and seclusion. Its long fine curve is far wider and emptier than Agia Anna's cosier stretch. Agia Anna wins on setting: soft pale sand with a fishing port at one end and a proper run of tavernas behind it. If your idea of a great beach is space and silence, Agiassos. If it is soft sand with life around it, Agia Anna.
Water
This is closer than you might expect, because both are sheltered and shallow. Agia Anna's calm is what makes it one of the easier family swims near town. Agiassos matches that calm and adds resilience: it stays gentle when the wind is up. On a still day the two are neck and neck. On a windy day, Agiassos pulls ahead.
Facilities
No contest here. Agia Anna has organised sunbed sections, bars, tavernas, rooms and a port. Agiassos has a few fish tavernas and otherwise wild sand. If you want to arrive with nothing and have everything to hand, Agia Anna. If you are happy to pack a cooler and a parasol, Agiassos rewards you with room to breathe.
Crowd
Agia Anna is the busy, buzzy one, and it can fill and turn breezy on a high summer afternoon. Agiassos stays quiet because of how far out it sits, and it is at its most peaceful in the shoulder months. Neither has the polished feel of a daybed club, but their atmospheres are opposites: one social, one solitary.
When the other one wins
The answer flips on two things: the wind and your appetite for the drive.
- Windy afternoon in July or August: Agiassos wins outright. Its bay keeps calm cool water when the Meltemi is chopping up the exposed beaches, and that reliability is precisely why people make the effort.
- You have young children, no car, or limited time: Agia Anna wins. The bus runs frequently, the water is calm and shallow, and the tavernas and port mean nobody gets bored or hungry far from help.
- You want a sociable evening on the sand: Agia Anna wins, with its bars and easygoing beach scene.
- You want an unspoiled bay and a slow fish lunch away from crowds: Agiassos wins, provided your hire terms allow the dirt track.
For both, June and September are the sweet spot: warm clear water, lighter winds and more room than the August peak. If you are still weighing your dates, the island's seasonal guide is worth a read, and families comparing calm shallow options across the coast can scan the family beach roundup before committing to a car day south.
The honest overrated note
Neither of these is overrated, but expectations trip people up. Do not drive to Agiassos expecting sunbeds, showers and a beach club, because that is not what it is, and you will feel let down by a genuinely lovely bay. Equally, do not arrive at Agia Anna hoping for a hideaway, because it is the lively stretch and always will be. If you want dramatic scenery over calm convenience, skip both and head to the cedar coves of Alyko instead, or take the classic golden sweep at Agios Prokopios on a still morning. Matching the beach to the mood is the whole game here.
Planning a club day in Naxos
Neither Agia Anna nor Agiassos is a glossy daybed club in the destination sense, so if a reserved lounger, table service and a curated beach day is what you are picturing, plan it separately. Browse the options on our Naxos beach clubs page to compare what each venue offers and to enquire about booking a club day, then use these two sheltered bays for the calm, unhurried swimming they do so well.