Zakynthos
We stayed at the Diana Place Hotel on an all-inclusive basis which was a first for me in Greece. I normally love to eat out and try different restaurants and bars so it was not my usual choice of accommodation. It turned out to be the best decision we made. The hotel is centrally located in the resort making it easy to visit the local shops, bars and restaurants if we chose. The food was excellent at the hotel, but we did eat out a couple of times too. The staff made the hotel as nothing was ever too much trouble and they were so friendly, treating us almost like long lost relatives!
We hired a car for the majority of the holiday and explored the gems of the island, from the famous Smugglers Cove to the beautiful Keri Bay. We sampled locally produced olive oil at a local factory where they gave us a free tour of the process.
We spent lazy days on peaceful, undisturbed beaches and couldn't resist the draw of Zante Town with its pavement cafes and ouzeri's where we could sit and watch the activity at the harbour.
One of our favourite spots was a little resort on the south coast of the island called Keri. We spent several days in this beautiful resort with its thin strip of sandy beach, crystal clear waters and inviting family run tavernas. You could also see Turtle Island from Keri which is where the native turtles, known as Caretta Caretta live and nest. Take a look at the photo, it even looks like a turtle swimming in the sea!
We ventured inland to an area called Volimes where you can buy all sorts of local produce as well as crafts. It was such a lovely little place and the prices of souvenirs were excellent. We treated ourselves to a painting of Smugglers Cove and some locally produced honey.
We also visited a place called Kampi, where a cross on the cliff top was erected in memory of the many that lost their lives during the occupation of the island during the last world war. There is a taverna here which has the most spectacular views and we spent several hours there enjoying a beautifully cooked meze and particularly enjoyed the sunset – it was pretty spectacular!
We did spend a lot of time in the resort of Argassi and love that it's a compact with everything you need pretty much on your doorstep. We're not particularly beach people so the fact that Argassi doesn't really have a beach didn't worry us. There is direct access to the sea and the swimming there is very safe and shallow. We did go to St Nicks Beach – there’s a free bus from Argassi. There were water sports, music and bars. We had a brilliant day (just too much sand for my liking!!). We did have to pay for the sunbeds and parasol but as it was free to get there, we didn’t mind.
All in all we had the most wonderful holiday and two weeks seemed to fly by. We are now counting down to when we can return to this special Greek Island - hopefully it won't be too long!
If you're interested in going to this fantastic island just get in touch - I can share my tips!