Zakynthos or zante princess of the Ionian Islands, which never lost its charm, is the special homeland of great personalities such as Dionysios Solomos, Andreas Kalvos, Dionysios Romas and others.

The island is located in the southernmost point of the Ionian Islands and it’s the third largest. It combines excellent quality music and cultural heritage with some of the best Greek beaches, abundant greenery, the famous blue caves and its great hospitality.

You can access the island either by air as it has an airport or by road since it is about 300 km from Athens via Kyllini by boat. The journey takes 1 hour and 30 minutes and the routes are frequent.

The city of Zakynthos welcomes us and urges us to explore its Venetian past along with the delicious traditional aromas of nougats and the sea breeze.

Dionysiou Solomou square, Agios Markos square with the Catholic Church, the galleries or loggias, Rouga with the arches and the shops are worth seeing.

Higher we find the Venetian castle, a remnant of the time when the island was in Venetian hands and they had given it the name Fioro of Levante, meaning flower of the East. There is also the most picturesque district of the city, Bohali, with a wonderful and abundant view of the port, which is particularly impressive at night. The city has a rich variety of traditional taverns with delicacies made from local ingredients, luxury restaurants, fast food restaurants , cafes, bars and pubs until late at night.

At a short distance from Chora is the village of Argassi mainly tourist with a beautiful beach.

Laganas has the most vibrant nightlife on the island also one of the largest beaches with kilometers of fine sand and is fully equipped for the visitor.

The village of Volimes in the west of the island which we reach either by the coastal road or by the inland road through the wonderful countryside. The village is known for the production of olive oil and honey. Noted for Xygia beach whose water contains a large proportion of sulfur that comes from nearby caves. It is preferred by those suffering from leg pain and arthritis, it has easy access by car and parking.

Near the mountain village of Anafonitria we find the famous beach “Shipwreck” with crystal clear blue-green waters, white sand, impressive vertical rocks and of course the half-submerged trunk of the ship “PANAGIOTIS” which dates back  to 1983.

In the northern part of the island are the blue caves that are one of the most famous natural attractions. You can go either by your own boat or with an organized excursion. The peculiar geological formations have created an impressive series of caves along the northwest coast starting from the village of Agios Nikolaos to Cape Schinari. They owe their name to the reflections of the turquoise color of the sea . A small or medium boat can enter some caves to see the impressive waters while in others you can only swim. About in the middle of the road there are steps that lead to a small rocky beach where you can sunbathe or dive into the caves.

At a distance of about 20 km from the city of Zakynthos to the west is the village of Limni Keri with a wonderful beach and pine trees. Going up we find the mountain village of Keri and we can’t miss a visit to the lighthouse which has a wonderful view of the blue waters and the most photographed rocks Mitzithres.

The water park of Zakynthos ranges from Cape Marathia to the beach of Gerakas and the islets of Strofades. This whole protected area has the characteristics of the Mediterranean ecosystem with rich vegetation, sandy beaches, etc. It  was founded in 1999 with the aim of protecting the island’s fauna and especially the Caretta Caretta sea turtle and the Monachus Monachus seal. Turtles prefer the sandy south side of the island to breed and seals the caves on the west coast.

Zakynthian cuisine is famous for its wonderful and special cheeses such as Prenza, a goat cream cheese with a slightly sour taste that is also served as an appetizer. Zakynthos goat and sheep Ladotyri is what stands out from the rest because it has a strong peppery, spicy and salty taste, due to its long stay for maturation in Zakynthos olive oil from which the island has in abundance.

The black currant of Zakynthos is another product that the island is proud of. It is a seedless fleshy fruit with sweet taste . 95% of the production is exported but the rest is available in the shops of the island as is or with chocolate.

Zakynthos Ragou is a dish influenced by Italian cuisine that you should try. With thick spaghetti and red sauce with pork or beef in combination with vegetables that simmer for an hour.

The traditional Zakynthian pastel is a fragrant product with honey, sesame and almonds that you must try.

Zakynthos also produces the excellent Verdea wine, which takes its name from the Italian word “verde” which means green because in order to increase the acidity of the wine they use green almost unripe grapes during winemaking.

The bougainvillea is the Zakynthian Jasmine a wonderful white flower with an intense aroma that lasts and reminds of a Greek summer, which is why the people of Zakynthos “closed” it in a bottle.

Music is an integral part of life on the island. A local type of music is Arekies. Arekies are songs with the peculiarity that they are sung with only 4 voices in different tones without the accompaniment of musical instruments. Zakynthian chants or serenades that are heard everywhere on the island are old traditional songs with romantic love lyrics that are usually accompanied by guitar and mandolin.

The Zakynthos Carnival has nothing to envy from the rest. A teller goes all over the island and tells the program of events which includes dances, parades, masquerades and theatrical improvised comedies. At the end and after the procession of the carnival king, the events close with the funeral of the mask which is a funeral parody with a lot of laughter.

Easter in Zakynthos is different as the island has accepted over the centuries the influence of the Latins and this is reflected in church music, liturgies and some customs of Holy Week. From the Saturday of Lazarus, they start knitting with palm leaves the “vagi” which adorns the churches. On Holy Tuesday, the troparion of Cassiani can be heard from the choirs of the temples and after Holy Thursday, the bells do not ring again and people hang black banners on the balconies as a sign of mourning. On Good Friday the epitaphs are not decorated with flowers like in the rest of Greece because they are wood-carved with gold and velvet lining. At night the churches are dressed in the Resurrection red and in the city of Zakynthos the Resurrection takes place in the square of Agios Markos with a crowd of people and accompanied by the Philharmonic.

 

The island keeps the tradition by celebrating all the major religious holidays. In addition to Easter, on August 24, they celebrate the patron saint, Saint Dionysios with a procession and various artistic events. Also in Volimes on July 26 is the festival of Agia Paraskevi and on October 26 of Agios Dimitrios. In Keri on the second day of Easter is the festival of Panagia Keriotissa accompanied by cultural events

 

Zakynthos also produces the excellent Verdea wine, which takes its name from the Italian word “verde” which means green because in order to increase the acidity of the wine they use green almost unripe grapes during winemaking.