Zakynthos: Keri to Marathonisi Coastal Walk

The walk from Keri village to the Keri Lighthouse viewpoint is a short but rewarding coastal route on the southern peninsula of Zakynthos, covering approximately 4 kilometres round trip with around 80 metres of elevation gain and taking one and a half to two hours. The walk offers striking views over Marathonisi (Turtle Island), one of the most important nesting grounds for the endangered loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) in the Mediterranean.

Keri is a quiet traditional village in the southwest of Zakynthos, sitting on a low ridge above the coast and largely bypassed by mass tourism. The trail begins from the village and follows easy footpaths through pine trees and low maquis scrubland on the peninsula's southern tip. The surface is well-maintained and mostly flat with modest undulations through the forest.

A short diversion near the village leads to the Keri pitch springs — natural asphalt seeps that have been documented since antiquity and were used historically for caulking boats. These springs are one of Zakynthos's most unusual geological features, documented by Herodotus and Pliny the Elder, and are easily combined with the lighthouse walk.

The Keri Lighthouse stands at the peninsula's southern tip and is one of the most picturesque lighthouses in the Ionian Islands. The viewpoint beside it looks south over the turquoise sea toward Marathonisi island, a low-lying islet protected as part of the Zakynthos National Marine Park. Loggerhead sea turtles can sometimes be observed from the viewpoint during the nesting season (May–August), and binoculars are useful for scanning the waters around the island.