Zakynthos

Ever since seeing an Instagram post about Shipwreck beach on Instagram it had always been a destination of ours to visit. For a good majority of the year there are no direct flights to Zakynthos from London and we obviously wanted to go there when it would be hot and we could enjoy the good weather and beaches. Lucky for us a cheap deal came up in May for a return flight from London direct Zakynthos for about £40 each with Ryanair. Beginning of May is the just the start of tourist season so it is not yet crowded. We had our pick of places to stay for great prices. We knew that the purpose of this trip to Greece was to explore Shipwreck Beach also known as Navagio from above and down below, so we decided to stay at a hotel closer to Shipwreck Beach as opposed to Zakynthos town. We ended up staying at Mabeley Grand Hotel. It was about a 45 minute drive from the airport and only 10 minutes away from Navagio. Zakynthos town is located 30 minutes the opposite direction from the airport and would take over an hour to get to Shipwreck beach if we decided to stay there. Very last minute we booked a car rental from Hertz. It is a must to have a car in Zakynthos because the public transportation is unreliable and taxis are expensive. A taxi from the airport to Zakynthos town was approximately 40 Euros and the car rental for 3 days, 2 nights only cost less than 90 Euros so it is so worth it. The roads in Zakynthos are winding and there is only one road for both sides of traffic. It was not tourist season when we went the first week of May so there was hardly anyone on the road which was fantastic, however talking to locals it gets very crowded and lots of traffic occurs once you hit peak summer months.

Mabeley Grand Hotel was very beautiful. It is a mid size hotel with the feel of a small family run establishment. From the moment we got out of our car and made our way to the main entrance the bell boy was already walking towards us in the parking lot to help us with our one cabin size luggage. The reception people were so friendly and attentive. They have an option for room only with breakfast included, half board or full board. We chose to do a half board because we are usually not at the hotel during the day to eat lunch. Before even going to our room the Concierge came to us and talked about things to see and do in Zakynthos. Everytime we got out of our room we were greeted with smiles and hospitality. The food was good and different every night. Luckily on our first night the theme was Greek which is what we loved.

Day one consisted of making our way to Navagio to view the shipwreck from above. There are signs along the way to the panoramic view. Once there, there is a small parking lot. It takes you to the edge of the cliff and you have an option to go either left or right. We walked 15 minutes left then realised we went the wrong way so had to walk back. There was probably only a handful of tourists when we went so there was no clear direction where we should go. Once we went the right way there is a little look out that peeks over the cliff and you can get your first glimpse of Shipwreck Beach. It is pretty impressive; however to take better photos we walked another 10-15 minutes further down the edge of the cliff. It is pretty scary. There is no barrier that can catch you if you fall. We made sure to walk up further from the edge and only went closer to the edge to take a few photos. Make sure you wear comfortable shoes, if you decide to venture this way. I was so glad I wore my trusted espadrilles for the little jaunt on a cliffside. 

The next morning it was time to see Shipwreck Beach from the actual beach. There are a few ways to get there. We took the boat that was closest to where the viewpoint is. It is a shorter boat ride and I get very sea sick so the shorter the boat ride the better (for everyone involved). The boats run approximately every hour. The boat you take there, docks at Shipwreck for an hour so you can explore Shipwreck and take the same boat back in an hour or you can stay longer and catch a later boat. Since it was not peak tourist season we decided to stay longer since the captain told us that it would not be a problem catching a later boat. There was not many people on the beach. A lot of the larger boats like the pirate ship and other large tour boats were not yet operating at this time so it meant not a lot of people on the beach. It was so enjoyable to be able to not feel crowded on this tiny little piece of land and we managed to take a few photos on the beach and around the ship wreck itself. Bring plenty of water and snacks because there is nothing on Shipwreck to buy.

Our entire trip revolved around seeing Shipwreck Beach from above and below so after spending our days in both these places we felt like our little mini trip to Zakynthos was complete.