When I heard that Easyjet might be starting flights to the Greek island of Zakynthos (also known as Zante) , I was jumping with joy. I was given the tip-off by my sister, who owns two hotels with her Greek husband on the island of Zakynthos and has an inside track on what’s happening in tourism there. But when I contacted Easyjet, who were showing nothing on their website, they told me that there were no plans to announce at present. 36 new flights have been announced for 2010 but Zakynthos is sadly not on the list. So perhaps the deal has not struck or perhaps it will be another year before any flights start.

The reason I was overjoyed at the thought, is that because Thomas Cook and Thomson have a monopoly on direct charter flights from my home town of Bristol to Zakynthos. With competition from XL Airways removed when they went bust last year, I normally find myself paying over £300 per return flight in school holidays. The “flight onlys” are priced high to make it more economic for visitors to book package holidays from these travel operators, and the lack of competition means there is little alternative, if I want to fly direct from Bristol.

I know that the big operators are still struggling to make money these days, but for the consumer and independent traveller, cheaper flights to the islands such as Zakynthos with Easyjet can only be a good thing. Hotel rooms are full in July and August with Greeks and Italians as well as Brits and Germans, but in the spring and autumn, when the weather is beautiful, many rooms are empty unless they have a good deal with a tour operator, which many don’t. I notice that low-cost airlines such as Ryanair are starting to make inroads into the traditional Package Holiday heartlands, such as Lanzarote and Gran Canaria.

We’ve enjoyed many a break on Zakynthos in May when the weather is warm and the spring flowers on the hillside are in bloom, or in October when the cyclamen are out and the olive groves are being pruned and there’s woodsmoke in the air. These are the times when you feel the real Greece on Zakynthos, while in August the package holiday makers eating their full English breaksfast seem to dominate.

On Zakynthos you can take a trip to Keri lighthouse, and enjoy some seafood on the harbour front there and swim from the pebbly beach, or visit the Turtle Information centre at the protected beach at Gerakas, where you can organise  a catamaran trip around the bay and hopefully spot some turtles. There’s an interesting old mansion in Zante town at Roma’s Mansion which gives you a sense of how the Greek aristocracy lived and you can take an evening drink or coffee with a fabulous view from one of the cafes on the terrace near the castle. These are my suggestions to enjoy the authentic Zakynthos rather than the package holiday Zakynthos. And if Easyjet do start flying there from Bristol, I’ll be first to snap up the early bargains.

Photos by Heatheronhertravels