Zakynthos Yacht Anchorages: The Complete Guide

Zakynthos sits in the Ionian.

The Ionian is mild in summer, with a northwesterly afternoon sea breeze (the Maistro) that builds in the afternoon and eases overnight; katabatic gusts can fall into some bays at night.

It is the gentlest of the Greek cruising grounds.

This guide covers the island's main anchorages with the practical detail charterers and captains actually use: depth where a published cruising source documents it, holding, and shelter direction.

Where a figure was not documented we say so rather than guess.

Zakynthos's headline sites are fair-weather day stops only, with poor overnight shelter and heavy tripper-boat traffic.

Ashore: Navagio (Shipwreck) Beach and the Blue Caves at Cape Skinari (boat access only), and the National Marine Park of Zakynthos, the first national park in the Mediterranean created for sea-turtle protection.

Zakynthos is the far end of the Ionian week and the island where honesty about shelter matters most.

Its headline sites, Navagio and the Blue Caves, are fair-weather day stops with no overnight shelter and heavy tripper-boat traffic; the yacht visits them in the morning and sleeps elsewhere.

Kefalonia is 35 nautical miles north on our distance table, so the usual shape is a night at Argostoli, eight to fifteen metres over mud with very good holding, or at Fiskardo, the morning run south, Navagio and the west coast before the boats arrive, and the night in the port of Zakynthos, which has the best shelter on the island, or back north.

A motor yacht makes that day comfortable: ALFA or M FIVE at 23 to 24 knots does the 35 miles in about ninety minutes, a catamaran at eight knots takes the morning.

On the Greek Charter Index 2026 a 26 to 31 metre motor yacht runs EUR 35,900 to 75,000 a week, a 22 to 25 metre EUR 21,000 to 47,500, per yacht before VAT and APA.

The Meltemi never reaches the Ionian.

Where can a yacht anchor at Zakynthos?

Zakynthos has 4 anchorages in this guide: Porto Vromi (west coast), Port of Zakynthos (Zakynthos Town), Agios Nikolaos (Skinari, NE), Navagio (Shipwreck Bay). Each entry below gives depth, holding, shelter direction and what is ashore.

How deep are the anchorages at Zakynthos?

Porto Vromi (west coast) 10-15m. Depths are typical sand-bottom anchoring depths; the captain drops on current chart data.

What is the holding like at Zakynthos?

Porto Vromi (west coast): Foul, sand, weed, rock and chains, use a tripline. Port of Zakynthos (Zakynthos Town): Mind the Dimitris reef east of the green light; the SW part is often too shallow. Agios Nikolaos (Skinari, NE): Good, but the seabed rises quickly, use plenty of chain.

When is the best time to anchor at Zakynthos?

Zakynthos is a summer island for the day and a shelter problem for the night. The north-westerly afternoon sea breeze, the Maistro, builds after midday and eases overnight, and the valleys above Agios Nikolaos at Skinari send strong late-afternoon gusts down; Porto Vromi on the west coast is one of the safer anchorages there but the bottom is foul and a tripline is essential. July and August bring the tripper boats to Navagio by mid-morning. May, June and September are the months to see the west coast quietly, and on the Greek Charter Index the shoulder months price 15 to 25% below peak on the same rate card with three to four months of lead time rather than a year. The National Marine Park protects the turtle beaches of the south; the captain keeps to its rules.

What does the captain plan around at Zakynthos?

Navagio is a morning, early, and the yacht leaves as soon as the wind picks up; it is not an anchorage to sleep in. Porto Vromi, ten to fifteen metres, takes a mooring buoy where one is free and a tripline where it is not, because the seabed carries chains and rock. Agios Nikolaos at Skinari is tenable in north-west to north-east winds with plenty of chain on a seabed that rises quickly, and uncomfortable in a northerly swell. The port of Zakynthos gives the best shelter on the island, minding the Dimitris reef east of the green light and the shallow south-west corner. Many captains prefer to make Zakynthos the day and Kefalonia the night, Argostoli or Fiskardo 35 miles north, and the week is better for it. Depths and holding here follow published cruising sources; the captain confirms the anchor drop against current charts on arrival.

Cyclades

Saronic

Ionian

Sporades

Dodecanese

Crete