Learning that I had won a week-long holiday to Zante via a competition in a magazine (click here for the back story) was a complete dream come true and I could not wait to get away! Finally, September arrived and it was time for my friend Katy and I to hop on board our plane in search of glorious sunshine, picturesque views lifted straight from a postcard and of course, legendary nightlife! Thankfully, we were not disappointed!

Can you imagine owning that mansion hidden away amongst the trees!?

Although Zante is renowned for its wild nightlife; attracting plane loads of young revellers each summer, it has so much more to offer. In order to see more of the island, Katy and I took an impressive eight-hour boat trip which stopped off at many beauty spots including Turtle Island, Shipwreck Island and various different caves along the way – there was even time for a spot of swimming in the vast turquoise sea.

Can you see why it’s named Turtle Island?

Zante’s water village was well worth a visit, boasting a range of fun-packed thrill rides including the superbowl which was our favourite, the giant black hole – a blackened out tower lit only by coloured ring lighting effects inside and finally, a scary looking free-fall extreme tower with a 25m almost vertical drop! In order to recover from the thrill rides, there was of course a long lazy river, where you could float along aimlessly whilst enjoying the sun… Ah, bliss!

On our even lazier days when we found it difficult to drag ourselves out of bed, we lounged around the pool area reading our books and listening to our iPods or headed for the beach at the end of the strip. Banana beach which is the longest beach on the island was only half an hour’s bus ride away from where we were staying in Laganas and was very popular with tourists thanks to its crystal clear water and suntrap location.

Laganas offered a variety of nice places to eat, most of which we found were located right on the beach front with beautiful views looking out over the sea. Cool Peppers and Balsamico were the two restaurants we frequented most and we were never left disappointed with the meals on offer. I have to recommend the bbq ribs from Cool Peppers – they are notorious and come on a huge platter with chips, salad and coleslaw… mm delicious!

Tasty!!

Nightfall saw Laganas really come to life. As you would expect, the strip was bursting with bars, pubs and nightclubs, even a shisha club; Medousa’s – there was so much choice! A favourite of ours was the ultimate cocktail bar called Cocktails and Dreams – not only did it play all the best dance music but it served up the most delicious cocktails and shots with rather witty names – perfect sex or a blowjob anyone?

They serve everything in Cocktails & Dreams …

The place to be!

First time shisha!

Katy loves a shisha!

Each night saw another event take place. The paint party hosted at Zero’s club was undoubtedly the highlight of our week and saw us amongst hundreds of other party-goes being covered in over 400 litres of UV – what a night! There were also frat parties, foam parties and full moon beach parties to experience too!

At the frat party!

Before the paint descended upon us …

Not even our drinks were left untouched by the UV paint!!

Zante was truly amazing; we had so much fun even though our livers are still recovering from the trauma! Along with meeting lots of lovely people, we had the chance to see the beautiful island and experience some unforgettable nightlife! Here’s to the next holiday!