Hotel Hara

A room with a sea view and shared terrace was a nice way to meet other travellers. Our neighbours were an older couple from Naxos and Athens, and we learned so much from them. It’s a perfect place to get your bearings when you first arrive in Naxos.

We only planned to spend one night in Naxos, but liked it here so much we changed our plans. The family who owns the hotel treated us like part of their family. When we arrived, they brought us freshly made lemonade and helped carry our luggage upstairs. Just note there’s no elevator. They speak limited English, but they’re very kind and do their best to communicate. I hope you’re not someone who expects fluent English from people in countries where English isn’t spoken. And if you’re impatient or expect everything at your own pace, this probably isn’t for you. It feels more like a home than a hotel, and the family deserves respectful, kind guests. At checkout they made us the best coffee of our lives. They let us sit in the lovely outdoor area for over an hour while we figured out the rest of our trip, and made the stressful planning easier by chatting with us and teaching us Greek over delicious coffee.

We had an AWFUL experience and the worst stay at this hotel. Check-in was from 2 to 8pm, and we arrived on the island at 4pm. After we’d waited half an hour, a woman told us our room wasn’t ready because she’d forgotten the reservation. She suggested we come back at 8pm, three hours after check-in ended. When I asked for a refund, she acted like she couldn’t understand English. We called Booking customer service, and fortunately they moved us to a different apartment. All the phone lines at Hara hotel were busy, and they couldn’t reach anyone there. Don’t stay here if you don’t want to lose the whole day and deal with rude people.

The location is amazing, but the rooms are very small. The prices are on par with 3 star hotels in other parts of the world, though these rooms don’t come close to resembling them. The photos make the place look much better, so the advertising felt largely false.