Paros Park (Agios Ioannis Detis), Cape Korakas Lighthouse and Island Hiking Trails

Protecting the entire 80-hectare (200-acre) rocky peninsula of Agios Ioannis Detis at the western entrance to Naoussa Bay (15 minutes from Naoussa by wooden water-taxi boat or car/bus, just past Kolymbithres Beach), the Environmental and Cultural Park of Paros (Paros Park) is a model ecological reserve that is 100% free and open to walkers 24 hours a day year-round.

1. The 16th-Century Monastery of St John Detis & The Russian Navy Headquarters (1770)

Right at the park entrance above the calm emerald waters of Monastiri Beach stands the gleaming whitewashed 16th-century Monastery of Agios Ioannis Detis (so named because locals believed the saint had the power to 'bind' or calm the malaria fevers and fierce northern gales). During the Russo-Turkish War of 1770 to 1774 (the Orlov Revolt), Count Alexei Orlov chose this deep, naturally sheltered bay as the naval headquarters of the Imperial Russian Aegean Fleet. Today, the restored monastery cells host summer exhibitions, an open-air cinema and the cliffside Archilochus Amphitheatre.

2. Walking the 3 Easy Coastal Trails (Allow 45 to 90 Minutes)

Three well-marked, gentle stone footpaths start right behind the monastery (wear trainers and bring water):

1. Trail 1 (The Cape Korakas Lighthouse Trail, 3.6 km Round-Trip, 50 Minutes, Easy): the most popular walk in the park. It winds past surreal, wind-hollowed granite rock formations that look like giant mushrooms and arches all the way to the northernmost tip of the peninsula, where the 10-metre square stone tower of the 1887 Cape Korakas Lighthouse looks straight out across the open Aegean toward Mykonos and Syros (an memorable spot for sunset).
2. Trail 2 & Trail 3 (Hidden Tourkou Ammos Beach & The Russian Naval Ruin Loop): branches east off the lighthouse path to drop down into Tourkou Ammos, a completely secluded, unorganized sandy cove accessible only on foot or by boat where you can swim in total solitude.