Paros readies to receive flights from non-Schengen countries, as island’s popularity surges

Paros, another pre-eminent Cyclades destination, after Mykonos and Santorini, wants to upgrade its airport to accept direct flights from non-Schengen pact countries, which place it squarely on the Mediterranean’s “A-list” of holiday choices.

The news arose with a visit to the island on Friday by Greece’s Citizens’ Protection Minister, Michalis Chrysochoidis, whose portfolio oversees law enforcement and civil protection, with the latter promising local authorities that procedures are moving quickly to transform the Paros Airport into an international facility able to accept the entry of passengers arriving from non-Schengen countries.

Such an upgrade would coincide with the airport’s expansion.

Paros has over recent years rivaled jet-setting Mykonos and iconic Mykonos in terms of both demand and price of holiday packages, with another nearby Cyclades isle, large Naxos, also increasingly “on the radar” of tour agencies, as well as domestic and foreign holiday-makers. The next logical step is for charter flights and even traditional carriers.

Paros was recently named as the top island of Europe for 2020 by Travel + Leisure magazine.