Day 6: Zakynthos Main Town
On day 6 of your ultimate itinerary for exploring Zakynthos in one week, I recommend spending the day at the Zakynthos main town. It’s the biggest town on the island, and there’s plenty to see and do here for a day.
I took a taxi from Kalamaki to Zakynthos main town. It was really easy to take a taxi. It only took about 10 minutes to drive, and generally costs 12-14 euros. There is a bus service that also runs between Kalamaki and Zakynthos town, but the hotel advised that a taxi was much better. The buses are very infrequent (there can be 3 hours or more between buses), and also can be very unreliable. So it’s much easier and more reliable to take a taxi from Kalamaki to Zakynthos main town.
Saint Dionysios Zakynthos Holy Orthodox Church
The first stop of the day was at the Saint Dionysios Church. It’s a really impressive church, with nice decoration on the outside as well.
It’s definitely worth going inside the church. Plus, it’s free entry, and the decoration inside is amazing. The gold is so impressive, and there’s some lovely artwork as well.
Walking along the seafront at Zakynthos main town
I then spent some time walking along the seafront of Zakynthos main town. It’s a really nice walk, with lovely views of the town as the path curves around.
There are lots of nice yachts and big boats moored along the edge as well. I really liked seeing all the fancy boats, and dreaming of owning one!
I walked out to small lighthouse on the edge of the harbour. It was all just a really nice area, with amazing views. It was a lovely place for a relaxing morning walk.
Solomos Square, lunch and shopping
Solomos Square is the main central square in Zakynthos town. It’s an impressive square, with lots of cafes and restaurants around. It’s also the centre of the town for shops. So if you want to do some souvenir shopping in Zakynthos main town, this is the best area for shopping.
The area around Solomos Square is the best place to get lunch in Zakynthos town. I went to a restaurant called Piatsa. It had nice outdoor seating, where you could sit and watch the people passing around. I had a Mythos Beer – the local beer on the island. And I also had a chicken gyros wrap. It was huge – a huge pita bread filled with chicken, chips, tzatziki and salad. Chicken gyros wraps are one of the most popular foods in Zakynthos, and it’s a great lunch option.
Venetian Castle of Bohali
After lunch, I decided to burn off some of the gyros calories with a long walk uphill. From Zakynthos main town, you can walk up to an amazing viewpoint over the town, and also the ruins of a Venetian Castle at the top.
The walk takes about 45 minutes from the centre of Zakynthos main town. It’s an uphill walk, but it isn’t too strenuous. The path follows the road, so it’s easy to find the way. And the views all the way up are really nice.
Towards the top, you get to the Panoramic View of Bohali, with the small cafe. It’s the place that the minibus tour stopped on my first day in Zakynthos. The view is nice, so it was nice to see it again.
If you keep walking a bit further, you get to the Venetian Castle of Bohali. It’s a large area with the ruins of a castle that was built by the Venetians in the 17th century. However, parts of the castle date back to the Byzantine times, and a lot of the castle was also modified by the British rules in the 19th century.
A lot of the castle is now in ruins – especially after several earthquakes in the area. But there’s enough here to still get an idea of how the castle would have looked, and what life might have been like here. You can see ruins of a church, and also ruins of military barracks.
The views from the castle are also great. From the high vantage point, you can see out across the green mountains of Zakynthos. You can also walk out to the flag and enjoy the views from here as well. I spent about an hour at the castle before walking back down to the town and getting a taxi back to Kalamaki.
Dinner in Kalamaki
Back in Kalamaki, I went back to the Kalamaki high street to try another restaurant for dinner. This time, I went to the restaurant called Zakanthi. I had chicken gryos again, but this time as a plate rather than a wrap. The chicken gyros plate was huge, but the flavours were amazing.
Day 7: Relax at the beach and the hotel pool
On my last day of my time in Zakynthos in one week, I finally let myself have a more relaxing day. My week in Zakynthos had been amazing, but quite busy with activities most days. So it was nice to have the final day as a more relaxing day before heading to the airport for a late evening flight home.
I spent time in the morning relaxing at the beach in Kalamaki. It’s a beautiful beach, with lovely views. And I loved being able to look out for turtles in the sea as well.
For lunch, I went to Kalamaki main street one last time. I went back to my favourite restaurant in Kalamaki, the restaurant called Artigiano. I had the feta wrapped in filo pastry – my favourite starter in Greece. And I also had the halloumi gyros wrap. It was amazing – I think I preferred the halloumi gyros to chicken. It was a great final meal in Kalamaki.
In the afternoon, I just relaxed at the hotel pool. Again, it was lovely to be able to relax and enjoy the beautiful sun. There’s just something so nice about laying in the sun, drinking a cocktail, with a good book. It was the perfect ending to an amazing time exploring Zakynthos in one week. Zakynthos really is an amazing island, and I definitely recommend spending a week in Zakynthos to enjoy this amazing place.
Hope you enjoyed my ultimate itinerary for Zakynthos in one week! Make sure you also check out my guide to the best Greek restaurants in Zakynthos, and also the top things to do in Zakynthos. If you’re looking for more adventures on beautiful Mediterranean islands, why not check out my guide to visiting Malta without a car, or my itinerary for one week in Sicily.
