Naxos seems almost like a continent compared with the surrounding islands. The biggest measures about 428 km² - huge for an island but only the half of the city area of Berlin. No other island features this variety of landscape: copios lowlands, cliffy mountains, silvery green olive groves, milelong golden sandy beaches, dunes like at the north sea. In the middle of the island ranges the high water content plateau Tragea, eastern towers an impressive mountain range, in the North and in the East of the island you find the lonesome, sparsely populated seaside. Almost the common South of the island is entirely unexploited. To go there with a jeep still resembles an adventure trip.

All of the Cyclades belong to the moderate, subtropical Mediterranean climate. In Naxos, hot and dry summers rotate with windy and rainy but gentle winters. The transition period in spring and autumn are rather short.

The Meltemi winds appear between June and September. Normally they start in the late forenoon, increase during the day up to 5 and 6 Beaufort and abate slowly until eve, if compensated by a northly land breeze. Sometimes they reach the marks of 7 and 8 Beaufort, after they stay mostly in the same strength all night long and also for the following days.

In acient world Aiolos, son of Poseidon and dominator of the winds, was made responsible for the Meltemi. Today the mystery is researched: The Meltemi is powered by the compensating stream betwenn the high pressure area over the Balkan and the low over the arabic desert. It blows from the Northeast clockwise into the North Agean, turns there around and storms the other way round over the cyclades. The Meltemi even could be called a Mini-Monsoon.

In contrast to most of the Cyclades Naxos is really green and divers. Rambling olive groves, densely Macchia and knee-high Phruganga plants define the view. In gorges and dales also cypresses are growing, near the sea Tamarisks and reed. In former time´s wide forests of oak trees pre-existed. But they had been nearly totally deforested - mainly by the Venetians - for the armada or as firewood. Big parts also fell victim to forest fires.

The typical residents of an Aegean island you can meet also on Naxos, namely lizards, snakes and innumerable insects. Besides you find of course farm-animals all over the island: goats, sheep, donkeys, poultry and even dairy cows. In the copious underwater world you will see a diverse sea life, mainly barbs, breams, calamari, squids and lobsters. They are fished all around the island.

Since the ancient world marble is abolished in great quantities, and still today it is one of the most important products for the export. The marble quarries are mainly situated near the villages Moni and Kinidaros.

In former times also emery was abolished, an extremely tough mineral, that was used to abrade. The emery from Naxos was widespread in the middle ages.

Godfather Zeus is supposed to have grown up on Naxos. Here he started his battle of conquest that let him come to the throne of the Gods. And even as sovereign of the Olymp he was closely connected to the island of his childhood. Later he fell in love with Semeli, the doughter of the king of Theben. However Semeli died after an exciting night of love with Zeus, because no non-eternal could survive the look at a God. Zeus took his that way procreated son Dionysus out of the dying body of Semeli and implanted him in is own thigh. Finally the God of wine was raised up on Naxos by three nymphs. Dionysus celebrated on Naxos (at that time called Dia, the island of wine) and his infamous bacchanals. The highest mountain of the island therefore is called Zeus.

The oldest fossil records are dated in the 4th century B.C. Many of these pieces have been found in the area of Grotta, in the north of the city of Naxos. Earlier also Thrakians from the mainland immigrated and brought the grape-wine to Naxos. After that the Karer settled on Naxos and the leader gave Naxos its name. Later the Phoenicians inhabited the island followed by the Minoans.

Onto the time of Konstantin the Great (280-337 A.D.) all the Cycladic islands were taken over by the Byzantine empire. It left its marks on the island, particularly with regard to churches and chapels. But during this time the people of Naxos suffered above all from permanently pirate aggressions.

In 1537 the Turkish corsair and admiral Chaireddin Barbarossa captured Naxos. The Cyclades became Turkish. The Turks weren't interested in the governance of the island but more in the taxes that Naxos had to raise every year. Therefore in fact the Venetians kept the political power.

Like nearly all of the Cycladic Islands Naxos took part in the Greek independence war against the Turks in 1821. In 1830 Naxos became part of the new nation state Greece.