Paroikia - Old Market: Paroikia is built roughly midway down the western coast of Paros along the edge of a wide, sheltered bay. It's the capital of the island, its administrative seat and financial center as well as its main port. The town's name dates from Byzantine times when the church of Ekatontapyliani had a number of locals as crofters, or paroikous. These crofters settled the old town around the church and their settlement gradually became known as Paroikia. Today it's a lively town, with a developed infrastructure that includes branches of most major Greek banks, post office, health center, internet cafes, travel agencies, accommodations, and car rental offices. Accommodations include hotels, rental rooms, and organized camping grounds at Livadia, Krios, and Parasporos, which offer the visitor the opportunity of choice. There are also a number of tavernas, restaurants, and other eateries serving good food in the passages around Kastro (the Old Market) and along the coastal road.
Ekantotapiliani: The jewel in the island's crown, this sprawling churchs is one of the most important Early Christian monuments in Greece. It rises on the northeastern end of Paroikia, just a short distance from the port. The church was built in the fourth century on orders from Saint Eleni, mother of Constantine the Great, who landed on the island while traveling to the Holy Land In order to find the Holy Cross.Tradition holds that she prayed to find the Holy Cross and vowed to build a church where she had stood and prayed if successful in her quest. By another account, the church was built by Constantine at his mother's behest. Originally a cruciform basilica, it was destroyed (most likely by fire) and rebuilt under Justinian. The church was built by a pupil of the master craftsman who built Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. While the island was under Frankish and later Turkish rule, the church suffered extensive damage and was repeatedly pillaged, and suffered the worse damage in 1773 by a severe earthquake. The church's restoration was begun in 1959. Today the church has been restored to its initial design-a cruciform domed basilica. On the church's southern side is a fourth-century baptismal font, the oldest and best preserved in the entire Orthodox east.
Byzantine Museum: The collection features icons, wood carvings, other church religious relics and the woodcut epitaph of Ekatontapiliani. The exhibition also includes silverware and more relics, stored in the cells of the complex.
Archaeological Museum of Paros: The Archaeological Museum is located next to the public high school. Its collection includes Neolithic inds from the prehistoric settlement at Saliagos, including the marble "fat lady" figurine and exquisite pottery. One its prized holdings is a fifth-century-B.C. statue of Nike, depicted as a winged female form. Another important exhibit is a colossal statue of the goddess Artemis that stands 3.7 meters trall and was found at Dilio, a seated female deity, and the lower half of a statue of Athena-all dated to the fifth century B.C. The museum's collection includes the Parian chronicle, one of the most important monuments of Greek history. The chronicle is a marble tablet, dating from the third century B.C.m and engraved with 134 verses detailing a period spanning 1,318 years, from 1528 B.C. to 263 B.C. The largest piece of the chronicle is in the Oxford museum.
Kastro: Built by the Duke of Naxos, Marco Sanudo, in the 13th century. Within kastro's walls are a number of chapels, many built into the outer walls, such as Panayia Stavrou (1514), Ayia Anna, Agios Markos, Agios Stylianos, and the architecturally stunning church of Agios Konstantinos with its covered courtyard and view over the sea-one of the prettiest in the Aegean.
The ancient cemetery: Excavations in 1983 brought to light and important cemetery dated to the eight century B.C. and in use until the third century. The cemetery was uncovered near the Paroikia port, along the coastal road, and includes graves spanning several historical periods. Finds are displayed on site, alongside photographs of earlier excavations.
Asclepieio: To the south, the coastal road leads from Paroikia towards Agia Anna hill, where a sanctuary dedicated to the healing god Asclepios was found. The fourth-century-B.C. structure was an open air temple built around a spring. Traces of a temple dedicated to Apollo Pythios have been found nearby.
Anthemion: Created by persons whose sensitivity to and love for Parian and Cycladic history and culture have instilled in them clarity of purpose, willingness to work, and delight. The result is unique among cultural projects of the provinces. The collection, which is being expanded yearly, is exhibited in a tasteful and spacious building in the Cycladic style with wonderful open-air courts. Library witch includes 5,000 books, periodicals and other publications which mainly represent writers who come from or live on Paros and publications that give information on Paros, Antiparos and the Cyclades, as well as books of more general interest.
Dilio: Founded as a cult center in the fifth century B.C. on a hilltop facing towards Delos at the northern end of Paroikia bay. Apollo Delios was worshipped at the temple, which featured a peribolos and altar as well as an area for symposia. A Cycladic cemetery dated to the third millennium B.C. was found nearby.
Byzantine Museum of Naoussa: Housed in the 17t hcentury Moni Agiou Athanasiou, near the western approach to the village. Its collection numbers over 100 Byzantine icons dating from the 15th through the 19th century; most are works of Parian iconographers and artists.
Naoussa Folklore Museum: The museum features an impressive collection of traditional costumes from the island and around Greece.
Venetian Kastro of Naoussa: The sea-lashed Venetian castle that closes the port to the north of Naoussa, is the work of the Sommaripa dynasty (15 th century) and is a singular fortification project.
Folklore Museum of Marpissa: Five years ago, in collaboration with the community of Marpissa, the Association of Women in the region began implementing a Folk Museum, which displays the traditional island home, both in architectural terms and in terms of decoration and furniture. The Folklore Museum of Marpissa operates from October until the end of May every Sunday, while from June to September is open daily. The museum receives numerous visits from locals, but tourists and students for training purposes.
Kefalos Hill: Kefalos rises east of Marpissa and is capped by the Monastery of Agios Antonios, which was founded in the 17th century. The ascent from Marpissa takes roughly 30 minutes on foot and the route is one of the most interesting on the island. The monastery is only open in the morning during the summer months.
Cycladic Art Museum: Situated at "Scorpios" estate, near the airport, at Aliki of Paros. The Cycladic Art Museum of Mr. Benetos Skiadas is one of the most interesting museums in Greece. The Cycladic history depicted with large miniatures of ships and important buildings with unrivaled art and workmanship.
Petaloudes: A turn off the Paroikia-Alyki road, about 5 kilometers from Paroikia, leads to Psyhopiana and the Monastery of Chistos Dasousa. Slightly further west is the Valley of Butterflies, one of the most important habitats in Greece.
Museum of Folklore Culture of the Aegean: Located in the installations of Lefkes Village. The Museum approaches folklore culture of the Aegean residents through exhibits to daily life and view of traditional to discover a world through difficult conditions, still achieved a life in harmony with the environment, respecting nature and human beings. Relative thematic photographic exhibitions are presented each year at the Museum, while a rich library and a dvd Video archive supplement the journey into the culture of the Aegean.
Quarries: The Paroikia-Lefkes road passes by Marathi, a pretty village located east of the ancient marble quaries, source of the famed Parian stone noted for the clarity of its color and its near-transparency. Parian marble was used by the master sculptors of the Greek world-Pheidias, Agorakritos, Praxiteles, Scopas. The pure white stone can be seen in some of the masterpieces of the Greek world, including the Venus of Milo, Praxiteles' Hermes, the Kores of the Acropolis, the Delos Nike, the temple of Apollo and Siphnian treasury at Delphi, the temple of Zeus at Olympia, and the temple of Apollo on Delos. The marble was known as lychnitis, from the Greek for lamp, because lights were used to quarry the marble veins deep inside the mountain. Nowadays it is possible to visit two entrances. The operation of quarries ceased in the late 19 th century.