Posted by After Corfu, Zakynthos is the most famous Ionian island. It is about 400 km² in size and is fairly densely populated with around 40,000 inhabitants. The capital, Zakynthos Town, is a beautiful Venetian city that was unfortunately badly damaged in an earthquake in 1953. Most tourists on the island are package holidaymakers. They come for the beaches, the sun and the nightlife. Nevertheless, the island is not completely overcrowded. You can find quiet fishing or mountain villages as well as mass tourist resorts with nightlife until the morning on Zakynthos. Overall, the challenges of modern tourism have been better understood on Zakynthos than on many other Greek islands. Most tourists have fond memories of the island. One of the plus points is the clean sea. That’s why it’s understandable that there are so many diving schools and divers on Zakynthos.
On the large website Booking.com you will find an overview of well over 1,000 accommodations on the island.
Zakynthos Island: 4 great boat toursWe have selected the best boat trips on Zakynthos for you, which can be booked online on a well-known website: 1. Boat tour of the grotto and giant turtles (3 hours): More information and booking (very popular tour on Zakynthos) 2. Boat tour from Zakynthos Town: Blue Grotto, Navagio and shipwreck (8 hours): More information and booking (long tour) 3. Boat tour from Porto Vromi with shipwreck etc. (3 hours): More information and booking (from north-east Zakynthos) 4. Boat tour from Agios Nikolaos with shipwreck, grotto, Navagio beach etc. (3 hours): More information and booking (from north-west Zakynthos |
Good film for first-time visitors to the island (youtube)
Where is Zakynthos?
Zakynthos (or less commonly Zante) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea and belongs to the group of Ionian Islands. It is located:
West of the Greek peninsula of Peloponnese.
South of the island Kefalonia.
Northwest of the city of Patras, which is on the Greek mainland.
Zakynthos Town
Image: Argonautis – Fotolia.com
The island’s great capital has around 12,000 inhabitants. A third of Zakynthos’ inhabitants live here. Although the city, like large parts of the island, was almost completely destroyed in a catastrophic earthquake in August 1953, the city is worth seeing. A large part was rebuilt true to the original at great expense. Two museums are worth seeing: the Byzantine Museum and the Solonos Museum. The very well-known modern Greek poet Solonos (19th century) comes from Zakynthos. Among other things, he wrote the text for the Greek national anthem. The Venetian castle is also worth a visit. All three sights mentioned here cost around 5 to 8 euros each to enter.
Accommodation
There are several hundred hotels and guest houses. The majority of holidaymakers are package tourists. But there are also many individual tourists who look for a room on site or book accommodation in advance online. The majority of accommodations are not in Zakynthos Town, but on the large tourist beaches. Hotels in the town are usually more expensive. The Iniohos Zante Hotel is recommended near the town and the beach. A room with air conditioning, breakfast and free WiFi costs around 60 euros for 2 people in summer, for example. It is just under an hour’s walk to the center of Zakynthos Town.
On the large website Booking.com you will find an overview of well over 500 accommodations on the island.
Zakynthos east coast and beaches
Some of the most beautiful beaches in Greece are on Zakynthos. Most are in the eastern half of the island, north and south of the capital.
The best beach is perhaps Laganas (about 10 km south of Zakynthos town). However, you should be careful there, especially in August, of the large sea turtles of the Caretta-Caretta species, which bury their eggs in this beach at this time. This is why the area is a marine national park. Water sports and many other activities are prohibited. Because of the proximity to the airport, many package tourists come to Laganas, Argasi and the surrounding area. The beaches on the east coast of Zakynthos north of the capital, such as Tsilivi, are also highly developed for tourism. The further north you go, the quieter it becomes.
Interior, west and north
The interior of the island is still largely untouched by tourism in many parts. Here you can still find picturesque, original-looking mountain villages. Many hikers come here, especially in spring and autumn. In contrast to the tourist regions, agriculture is still the dominant economic sector here. It is a green island by Greek standards. Wine, olives and citrus fruits are grown.
The north and west are a wild landscape with cliffs, small, secluded bays and mountains. The highest mountain on Zakynthos is Vrachionas, which is about 750 metres high. Day trips by boat from the tourist centres in the east are particularly popular. The highlight is usually a well-known shipwreck lying on the beach in a secluded bay.
Image: Mirko Wilhelm – Fotolia.com
Visiting one of the many sea caves is an experience for holidaymakers. The most famous cave is the Blue Grotto.
Image: Mirko Wilhelm – Fotolia.com
Info
There are countless taverns and restaurants. If you’re fed up with Greek food, you’ll also find many restaurants serving international cuisine in the tourist areas. Paradise Camping is a well-maintained and modern campsite in Messo Gerakari, about 10 km from the port in the north of the island. The sea in Messo Gerakari is considered to be very clean and has received several awards from the EU. You can rent rooms anywhere from around 35 euros upwards. You can find accommodation in every price range, from simple holiday homes or private rooms to luxury hotels. Even in high season, with a little luck and a little more money, you can find a good room locally.
Zakynthos tours: If you don’t have a rental car but still want to see some of the island, you can book a bus tour. Click here
Zakynthos Island: 4 great boat tours
We have selected the best boat trips on Zakynthos for you, which can be booked online on a well-known website:
1. Boat tour of the grotto and giant turtles (3 hours): More information and booking (very popular tour on Zakynthos)
2. Boat tour from Zakynthos Town: Blue Grotto, Navagio and shipwreck (8 hours): More information and booking (long tour)
3. Boat tour from Porto Vromi with shipwreck etc. (3 hours): More information and booking (from north-east Zakynthos)
4. Boat tour from Agios Nikolaos with shipwreck, grotto, Navagio beach etc. (3 hours): More information and booking (from north-west Zakynthos
Plan Zakynthos (Greece)
The main town is in the east of the island. The airport is just outside Zakynthos Town. The road network on the tourist island is well developed. It is even closer to the airport. You can even walk there.The panorama from Oia on the crater is magnificent. |
Zakynthos Airport: The island has a fairly busy airport (Dionysos Solomos Airport). Many charter flights from Germany, Great Britain and other northern European countries with package tourists land here in the summer months. There are flights to Zakynthos from Athens (about twice a day) and the island Corfu (once a day).
Zakynthos Ferry: The island can be reached by ferry about 4 times a day from Kilini (also Kyllini or Killini) in the Peloponnese. You can also take cars with you for just under 30 euros.
There are also about two ferries a day to the large island Kefalonia, north of Zakynthos. A ticket costs about 9 euros per person.
There are direct buses from Athens and Patras that are coordinated with the ferry timetable from Kilini. It is about 300 km to Athens by bus (ferry ticket plus bus from Zakynthos town just under 20 euros). You can already buy bus tickets on Zakynthos.
Zakynthos Bus: The state bus company KTEL operates the buses. Buses run frequently, especially between the capital and the tourist resorts such as Tsivili, Laganas or Argasi. Unfortunately, there are only sparse bus connections to the north and east of the island. You have to rent a car or a moped to explore the whole island. As far as we know, there are also no buses to the airport.
Snakes and sharks Zakynthos
Although there are some species of poisonous snakes in Greece, snake bites are very rare. This also applies to Zakynthos. There are also sharks in the Mediterranean. But attacks on humans by sharks are rare. We have never heard of such an attack by a shark in Zakynthos.
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