The beach is never too far on Zakynthos. Wherever you are on the island, you will have a great choice of beaches, some only a short drive away. We have toured a good number of them in search for the perfect family beach. For us, that is clean sand (with few or no pebbles) and water, smooth self for a few meters and no motor sports or loud bars to spoil the atmosphere.

Here is a short review of of the beaches in Vasilikos and its surroundings, in the order of preference:

1. Gerakas beach: scores very high in terms of cleanliness of the water, smooth and sandy shelf for small kids, no buildings or bars bordering the beach and no motorsports as it is a natural park. The car park is not too far away either, so no need to haul everything for kilometres. You can rent two sun beds and an umbrella for 10 Euro (half day) but that is all the infrastructure available. Even that might be considered a bit too much considering that this area is a nesting ground for the Caretta caretta Turtles. A few staff from the conservation Center were present to make sure that the tourists do not disturb the nesting area. We did not mind the lack of facilities as we mostly sat on the sand and just enjoyed the water shallow self and scenery. It was just peaceful and perfect! The view is amazing and we found it did not get too crowded as there is still plenty of space after passing the umbrella area. All in all, a great beach for children and adults. A stop at the marine conservation Center is a must to find out more about the turtles. (Photos above)

2. Vasilikos / Mazaritis beach: a thin strip of sand, bordered by rocks and a few beach bars. A sandy, calm area especially in its Eastern most point (once the sun beds area ends). Very smooth self in the water for more than 20m, perfect for toddlers play. In September in the afternoon water was impossibly warm too! There are no water sports here but the occasional boat and inflatables from St Nicholas beach will often pass in the horizon. Still, that perfect sandy paddle area was perfect for our little dude.

3. Porto Azzurro beach and bar: upon recommendation by locals, we checked out this beach in our last day and it was a great decision. The setting is just beautiful, with a few rocks piercing from the water and plenty of nature all around. There is a beach bar and you can rent two sun beds and an umbrella for 7 Euro. The beach is mostly sandy but there are also a few small, flat pebbles at the water edge as well as for about two meters into the water. The water self has a smooth slope but not as smooth as Mazaritis or Gerakas beach. Good for snorkelling as fish gather around the rocks. No water sports and very nice food at the beach bar made this a close contender to no 2 if not for the less smooth shore.

4. Turtle island beach: top marks for clean sand and beautiful turquoise water. No construction as part of the turtle nesting area that is marked everywhere. You can reach it by boat from Keri beach and spend there a couple of hours splashing about. Good snorkelling as well. The less nice part: it gets crowded and boats drop of people and anchor on the shore which takes away from the beauty of the beach. Also, once in the water you have to watch out for approaching boats. It is worth the trip as it is the most beautiful water we have seen on the island.

5. Keri beach– left side from the road leading into the small harbour of Keri beach, there is a stretch of sand with a few trees providing natural shade. It is very peaceful and the trees give it a natural vibe. No sun beds either. We would have rated it higher if not for the rocks at the water edge as well as for 5 m into the water. With water shoes, this beach definitely deserves a longer visit.

6. Plaka beach, in front of Vrahos beach bar: this is a narrow strip of sand, mostly covered by sun beds. On the upside, you can use the sun beds in the grass if you order a drink from the bar. We found the beach clean and not too noisy. The entrance in the water is less smooth than the beaches on the top spots.

Less nice beaches that we visited include the Banana beach, St Nicholas beach and Tsilivi beach up the coast. For the first two, they are full with water sports enthusiasts and all sorts of loud beach bars. Not our idea of a relaxing beach stay. Banana beach in particular attracts a young crowd from all around the island (they organise free shuttles from the main tourist centres including Laganas). With all the boats and jet skis driving in and out of the water, neither the beach nor the water itself look very clean. Tsilivi beach borders the town with the same name, a bit further up the coast from Zante town. The beach was not too clean and the sun beds were really bundled together. It was a bit too crowded for us and the water was not very nice either. You can find better beaches East of Zante.

A beach that you should definitely consider if you have some time and s good rental car is Dafne beach. The drive is not for the faint hearted but apparently the setting is peaceful and water is beautiful as there are no boats allowed, being part of the same maritime park as Gerakas and also a turtle nesting ground. Our rental car has seen better days and after asking our landlord wether it is worth the hassle, he still believed Gerakas was a better choice.

And now, the question on everybody’s mind: is it worth the trip to Navagio or Shipwreck beach with the kids? In my experience, no. As with many spots that made the headlines, this beach suffers from over tourism. First, you would have to get to Porto Vromi, the starting point of the boats to Shipwreck beach. Then find a boat to take you there. This should not be a problem as there are boats dropping and picking up people from this beach almost every 5 minutes. Once there, you will share a small patch of sand and stones with hundreds of people and bathe between docking vessels that bring even more tourists. Also, the Shipwreck that gives the name of the place is now covered in graffiti. If you manage to be on the first boat out and still get a couple of hours before the crowds hit the beach and big vessels with loud music dock, you may still consider it. Otherwise, if you still fancy a boat trip, the water on Turtle island is cleaner and the beach a bit less crowded. A separate post will include a few great activities to do as a family in Zakynthos and our experience with chartering a boat to Keri caves and Turtle island. You can still catch a glimpse of the Navagio beach from the viewpoint on the Northwest of the island after a beautiful road trip to discover the villages of Zakynthos.

So here it is, the lowdown on Zante’s beaches and a selection of the best family splashing grounds.

If you have been to Zakynthos and have suggestions on more great family beaches, leave me a comment. Thank you for reading and happy travels!

CGK