Abstract The ionization dynamics of Xe cluster was analyzed by extreme ultraviolet (EUV) pump-near infrared (NIR) probe experiments. The experiments were carried out for Xe clusters containing around 5000 atoms on average at the SPring-8 Compact SASE Source (SCSS) test accelerator in Japan. We recorded ion spectra emitted from Xe clusters as a function of the time delay between the EUV and NIR pulses. The ion yields up to highly-charged states were substantially enhanced when Xe clusters excited by the EUV pulses were illuminated by the NIR laser pulses at 1 to 2 ps after the pump pulse, providing a compelling evidence for nano-plasma formation and subsequent NIR absorption via surface plasma resonance. We also observed emergence of low kinetic energy Xe⁺ at long time delay, which can be attributed to the ionization of excited neutral atoms resulting from the electron-ion recombination in the expanding nano-plasma.