A whitewashed tumble of homes spills down from the fortified walls of Chora Castle, hilltop capital of rarely-seen Naxos. Creaking wooden doors bear Venetian emblems in the Old City, where the echoes of history hum along flagstone streets lined with pretty tavernas and medieval towers. Count the churches as you hike between mountain villages among a tapestry of cedar forests, olive groves and marble quarries hemmed by a ribbon of to-die-for beaches. Feast on Aegean seafood and pour a chilled glass of Assyrtiko as you ponder the statue of Aphrodite that leads to Apollo’s mighty marble doorway.