Climate - Naxos (Greece)

In Naxos, an island of the Cyclades, the climate is Mediterranean, with mild, rainy winters and warm, sunny summers.
The island is windy, and in summer, it is cooled by a frequent wind which blows from the north. The wind has been exploited by windmills for centuries.
The daily average temperature ranges from 12 °C (53.5 °F) in January to 27 °C (80 °F) in August. Here are the average temperatures.

Precipitation follows the Mediterranean pattern, so it is concentrated from October to March, and it's not abundant, since it amounts to about 350 millimeters (13.8 inches) per year, which is confirmed by the aridity of the landscape. In summer, it practically never rains. Here is the average precipitation.

The interior of the island is occupied by hills, and also by a low mountain ridge, which culminates in Mount Zas (Zeus), 1,004 meters (3,294 feet) high.



Winter, from December to mid-March, is mild, quite rainy and windy. The wind, frequent and sometimes intense, intensifies the feeling of cold. Sometimes, cold air masses from the Balkan Peninsula can bring cold days, with highs below 10 °C (50 °F), and occasionally, even snow can fall.

Spring, from mid-March to May, is mild and sunny, and also quite windy. By mid-May, the Meltemi starts to blow: it is a persistent wind, cool and dry, which blows from the north for a few days in a row, especially in the daytime, but sometimes even at night.

Summer, from June to mid-September, is warm and sunny, but also windy. The Meltemi blows for long periods, especially in July and August, and it's stronger in the afternoon, but it can insist also in the evening. Thanks to this wind, the maximum temperature remains around 30 °C (86 °F), even though we can not be exclude periods with temperatures about 35/36 °C (95/97 °F), and very rarely, peaks of 40 °C (104 °F).

Autumn, from mid-September to November, is initially warm and sunny, but then, it gradually becomes cooler and rainier. Autumn too is windy: as long as the weather is nice, the Meltemi still blows, while later, the southern wind blows, brought by depressions coming from the Atlantic Ocean or the Mediterranean Sea.



The amount of sunshine in Naxos is excellent in summer, when clear skies prevail, while in winter, sunny periods alternate with others characterized by clouds and rain. Here are the average sunshine hours per day.

The temperature of the sea is never very high because the wind that blows in summer tends to keep it a bit low, however, it reaches a maximum of 23.5/24 °C (74/76 °F) from July to September; in June, it is still a bit cool. Here are the average sea temperatures.

Best Time

The best time to go to Naxos for a beach holiday is the summer, from June to mid-September.
It's better to bring a sweatshirt for cool evenings, which occur mainly in June, but given the intensity of the wind, those who are sensitive to cold may feel a bit cool even in July and August.
Spring, in April and May, is fine for visiting the towns, or for excursions in search of the remains of ancient Greece, but since it almost never gets very hot, you can usually stroll through the island also in summer, which we usually do not recommend in Mediterranean climates, and generally, in places where the summer can be hot.

Back to the Cyclades Islands.