(+30) 6974303803
About us
Pension Chanioti & Marcello Country Houses are owned by the Chanioti family: they have operated them for 25 years now. We are proud of our Parian hospitality and our many returning guests bear witness to this lasting tradition.
Arsenia Chanioti is now the manager of the operation (her parents Nikos & Anna are now retired and part-time farmers). She will welcome you to Parikia in fluent English & Italian and make sure that you have everything you need for an enjoyable stay. She will also give you ‘insider’ tips on the island, and offer great advice on hiking and other sporting activities on the island. On the side, she is an avid hiker and guides eco-tours with ‘Paros Hikes’, as well as a traditional-byzantine icon painter and a photographer.
Our goal is to offer you a memorable holiday and an authentic Paros experience. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about your accommodation or the island of Paros.
Paros island
Area: 209 sq. km.
Distance from piraeus: 95 nautical miles.
Distance from Rafina: 82 nautical miles.
Paros, the third-largest of Cyclades after Naxos and Andros, has developed into an attractive tourist destination in recent years. Its location in the middle of Cyclades, its magnificent beaches, as well as its overall natural beauty, gives visitors a chance to enoy a typical Cycladic holiday and make it a great base for exploring the archipelago.
Distances to other islands:
Antiparos: 10 min
Naxos: 50 minr
Mykonos: 2 hour
Syros: 1h 30 min
Santorini: 2h 30 min
Landscape & Beaches
Gently rolling hills surround the centre and south - east of the island, which is predominantly agricultural and is occupied by endless vineyards, These hills hold within their bosoms the famous, translucent Parian marble, the raw material for many ancient sculpture masterpieces.
The coastline is lace-like, with numerous coves and small inlets and two large bays, that of Naoussa in the north and that of Parikia in the west, one of the best-protected natural anchorages in the Aegean Sea.
Paros has been inhabited since the prehistoric times, and was one of the centres of the Cycladic civilization 3000 years ago. Parikia, the island capital and port, stands on the site of an ancient city, the remains of which are still visible today. It also has the biggest traditional settlement in the Cyclades, with labyrinthine alleys, porticos and white-washed cube like houses mingling with neoclassical 19th c. building in the Old Market. There are also the impressive remains of a Venetian fort built with the spoils of ancient Greek temples. But what is probably the most striking feature are the courtyards of the town houses: all of them painted white, brimming with pots of basil and geraniums, with pergolas with overhanging bougainvilleas, jasmine and honeysuckle.
A broad stone-paved avenue leads to the church of Ekatondapiliani or Katapoliani, one of Greece’s most important byzantine monuments and one of the oldest and most legendary cathedrals in Christendom. It is dedicated to the Dormition of our Lady, and every 15th of August (on the relevant Orthodox Church holiday) there is a great celebration on the seafront with fireworks and live Greek island music and singing.
The chapels and the monasteries of Paros are famed for their picturesque fort-like buildings in isolated locations. Perhaps the most important ones are:
+ The monastery of St. Anargyri, overlooking Parikia bay
+ The monastery of St Arsenios (Christou tou Dasous), above Butterfly Valley
+ The monastery of Logovarda (visited only by men)
+ The monastery of St. Antonios on top of Kefalos Hill above Marpissa
+ The Monastery of Agios Georgios Langadas in Tzannes area near Dryos.
Half-way between Parikia and Lefkes, in the little village of Marathi, one can find the location and the caves of the ancient marble quarries. Here, in antiquity, hundreds of slaves and free men mined the famous Parian marble, the so-called ‘lychnite’. Unique in its transparency and purity, it was used for centuries in marble sculpture masterpieces made by artists such as as Fidias, Scopas and Praxiteles.
Famous statues made by Parian white marble include:
+ Venus de Milo- Louvre museum, Paris
+ Nike of Samothrace - Louvre museum, Paris.
+ Hermes of Praxiteles- Olympia museum, Greece
+ The Elgin Marbles of the Acropolis – The British Museum
But that’s not all! Paros has many a well-kept secrets and wonders waiting for you to discover!
Paroikia Paros / Cyclades / Greece / 84 440 / Tel.: +30 22840 22489 / Fax: +30 22840 22892 / Mob.: +6974303803
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