ZTH-Spot1
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September 28, 2017Zakynthos Airport – Spotting Guide
- last modified on August 5, 2022
Zakynthos Airport Dionysios Solomos (ZTH/LGZA) is located 6 Km south of Zakynthos town and 1 km from the famous resort of Laganas on the south east coast of the Ionian island of Zakynthos, in Greece. With over 1.2 million passengers a year, the Airport is served by Olympic Airlines with frequent flights to Athens, as well as by other European low-cost airlines and seasonal charters. Planes are not permitted to land or depart during the night. This is due to the endangered loggerhead turtles or “caretta caretta” which lay their eggs on the beaches at night.
The airport has lot’s of flights, especially from the UK but also lots of airlines from the Netherlands. There are not a lot of flights from Germany, however Condor sends the 757-300.
Busiest days in terms of movements is friday (info from the airport), while the weakest traffic is on saturdays. A detailed timetable can be found on the official airport website.
Written by Cornelis Boersma, Markus Mainka, Werner Verbogt and Chabada György. Last update: July 2022 (Spot 4 and 9 added)
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| Airport Information | |
| Runways | |
| 16/34 | 2.228 m (7,310 ft) |
| Terminals | One for all operations |
| Spotting Information | |
| Ladder | Not needed. |
| Car/Public Transport | If you have a hotel near Kalamaki Beach you can easily walk for all runway 34 arrivals (mainly in use). But a car is absolutey needed in case of runway changes or if you like to visit other spots! |
| Restrooms | Plenty of hotels, restaurants and the airport itself around. |
| Drinks/Food | Plenty of hotels, restaurants and the airport itself around. |
| Hotels | Best to book a hotel near Kalamaki Beach at the 34 approach. |
| Season | Zakynthos is busy in summer (May till the end of September). In winter you might only see interisland traffic or the scheduled flights to/from Athens. |
| Runway Usage | |
| 16/34 | Runway 34 is mainly in use for all landing and departures. Runway 16 is in use occasionally. |
Due to “security concerns” the greek government told google to pixelize the satellite images of all airports in greece with military presence. That is why you don´t see all positions as clear as usual. A good alternative is Microsofts Bing Maps where the airports in Greece are still visible…
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Mound north - Rampshots + 34 movements
| WHERE | The spot is just next to the terminal were is a waste company located. Park your car before the dump where there is shade and other cars are parking. Walk up the hill, there is a white dirt path to the top. From here you have great views on the ramp, only the first parked aircraft unfortunately, but you can read of and photograph all landing and departing aircraft. |
| WHAT | Rampview, all runway actions. If they are using runway 34 most landing traffic will roll to this point and anything taking-off will just be airborne by here. If they are using runway 16 anything taking off will come close but landing traffic is a bit more difficult as there is a lot of thick vegetation at the top of the hill which prevents views to the west. Walk to the north side of the hill for runway 16 landing traffic but there may be better places. |
| TIME | From sunrise till 11.00. |
| MISC. | Bring your own drinks, there is nothing here. The hill is right next to a dump so it can be a bit unpleasant (smell/flies/rubbish)! Maybe a local dog will join you. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | ~50-200 mm. |
Rental car parking - 16/34 movements
| WHERE | This spot is in a car park area for rental cars (probably Enterprise should be located here as well) north of the terminal building or south of it in the airport car park. |
| WHAT | From here you can see all movements on the runway. |
| TIME | From sunrise till ~12.00. |
| MISC. | Food, drinks, restrooms inside the terminal building. Be aware of taking pictures of aircraft to/from Israel. People might ask you to delete your photo’s. Other aircraft is no problem. Be aware when there is an aircraft parked on the most northern parking spot, you can have APU exhaust as most aircraft use it during turn-around! There can be a lot of ground equipment in the way, plus the ramp which the passenger buses use to/from the terminal can get in the way. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | ~50-200mm |
Rental Car Park:
Airport Car Park:
Terminal airside - 16/34 movements + ramp
| WHERE | Inside the terminal, arrivals, or on departures (both airside) you can easily take pictures from inside the building, but it is behind glass. Now and then a bus will stop in front of you to pick-up or drop off passengers. |
| WHAT | Ramp and full runway view. |
| TIME | From sunrise till ~12.00. |
| MISC. | Food, drinks, restrooms inside the terminal building, but be aware of APU exhaust thus heat haze. Keep in mind, that you need a VALID BOARDING PASS to reach this spot, which is located AFTER SECURITY CHECK, so it’s AIRSIDE. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | ~50-200mm |
Abandoned House - 34 Movements
| WHERE | From Kalamaki Main Road drive northwards from the cafe along the 34 threshold. Stay as marked on the map, next to an abandoned house. |
| WHAT | Good for 34 arrivals. 34 line-up if you climb on a raised plateau next to an abandoned house. |
| TIME | From sunrise till ~12.00. |
| MISC. | Nothing close but plenty of restaurants and supermarkets along the main road. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 738 = 90mm A321 = 80mm |
Airport café - 34 Movements
| WHERE | On the road from Kalamaki to Laganas. You can park your car directly at the cafe. It offers a terrace on the roof which can be reached via a disused airport stairs. Runway view is obstructed by trees and a neighboring house but there’s a small gap where you can take shots. |
| WHAT | Runway 34 arrivals and Line-ups/backtracks. |
| TIME | From sunrise till ~12.00. The hazy air making spotting to/on the ground impossible if it’s hot. |
| MISC. | Cold and hot drinks at reasonable prices inside the cafe. Please order something if you stay here for spotting! There is also some shadow available on the cafe’s terrace. From Macedonia hotel you have approximately the same views as from this spot. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | ~50-400mm E190 arrival = 100mm / Aircraft on runway = 400mm |
Beachfront - 34 Arrivals
| WHERE | Relax at the Kalamaki Beach and take your photos! You can park your park on the side road (next to spot 6) or you can drive up to the beach (Kalamaki Beach Taverna) where lots of parking places are available. The further you walk down the beach, the better the angle becomes and you can get the mountains as a background. |
| WHAT | Runway 34 arrivals only. |
| TIME | Actually all day: you can start at sunrise and just walk yourself into the spot you like all the way till sunset. |
| MISC. | Some hotels offer facilities. In morning you are close to the hotles, but for the afternoon/evening its easy to bring water/food so you don’t have to walk all the time. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | Depends on your angle and postion, but 24-200mm should cover everything |
Roadside south - 34 Arrivals
| WHERE | This spot is located by the roadside of the street leading from Kalamaki to Laganas. You can park your car along the road or by the roadside and just spot from here directly. |
| WHAT | Runway 34 arrivals only. |
| TIME | Light conditions are good from noon, but best from 15.00 till sunset. |
| MISC. | There is a small van, selling cold drinks, small bites, icecream. You can relax in the shade as well. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 50-200mm |
Mound south - 34 Arrivals
| WHERE | The location can be reached by car from the Kalamaki main road, or a 15-20 mins of walk from Kalamaki beach. Turn right/left at the signs to Agrilia Αγριλιά and continue on the smaller road till a huge 180 degree turn. There is no dedicated parking place. Cars can be parked next to the road. No ladder needed as the fence is not that high and maybe the small hills made of construction waste will remain there for a while. |
| WHAT | RWY34 arrivals with a nice background and RWY16 rotations. |
| TIME | From afternoon till sunset |
| MISC. | Most probably the hills won’t be there permanently, but taking photos are possible without them. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 18-135mm for 34 arrivals and 70-300mm for 16 departures |
Farm Road - 16 arrivals
| WHERE | Drive into the small farm road from the Zakinthou Keriou road, next to the LIDL supermarket. Drive till the end to the airport fence and stay there. |
| WHAT | Best for 16 arrivals. You’re not able to photograph 16 departures due to the fence. |
| TIME | Light conditions in the summer are perfect from noon until late evening |
| MISC. | You can park your car at the LIDL’s parking lot where you can buy food. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | A320 sideshot = 90mm |
Lidl - 34 departures
| WHERE | Park your car at the Lidl supermarket north of the airport at Zakinthou Keriou Road and start spotting. |
| WHAT | Departures from runway 34. 16 arrivals can be seen but the sight is partially blocked by trees, power lines and houses. |
| TIME | Light conditions in the summer are perfect from noon until late evening |
| MISC. | You can park your car at the LIDL’s parking lot where you can buy food. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | ~100-200mm. |
I would recommend a (better) spot for runway 16 arrivals in the afternoon. It’s just to the southeast of spot 1, on a road leading to the fence. Note: you’re not able to photograph departures due to the fence.
Location: https://goo.gl/maps/QcgNKtPbxFGowG2WA
Next to that one, I also found an other good spot just north of spot 6 where you are able to photograph runway 34 arrivals in the morning till 13:00. You can also photograph departing traffic if you climb on a raised plateau next to an abandoned house.
Location:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/kgbYpbPdotKLksU98
I’ve been here last year and I’m planing to spend some time this year again. I would recommend a spotting location, not showed on the map. It is north from #7 at the threshold of RWY 34 on the afternoon side. Available by car. Last year I could find some small hills made of construction waste, but it’s also possible to take great shots from the ground level (in case it will be dissapearing in the future). From this location the hills are in the background just like this: https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/9028286
It’s also good to mention that busiest days in terms of movements is Friday (info from the airport), while the weakest traffic is on Saturdays (my own experience)
Hi György, are you able to provide us some pictures and more infos by use this blank please: https://www.spotterguide.net/missing-photos-location/
Thanks, Julian
Hi
Just returned from a 10 day family holiday on the island. Spot 2 is fantastic and I spent a few mornings there. If they are using runway 34 most landing traffic will roll to this point and anything taking-off will just be airborne by here. If they are using runway 16 anything taking off will come close but landing traffic is a bit more difficult as there is a lot of thick vegetation at the top of the hill which prevents views to the west. I walked to the north side of the hill for runway 16 landing traffic but there may be better places. Also it’s worth mentioning that the hill is right next to a dump so it can be a bit unpleasant (smell/flies/rubbish)! I drove here but parked before the dump where there is shade and other cars were parked. You may be able to drive up the hill but I wouldn’t recommend it.
I also visited spots 3+5 which were ok although there can be a lot of ground equipment in the way, plus the ramp which the passenger buses use to/from the terminal can get in the way.
Cheers
Alan
Thanks for the infos Alan, I have added it into the guide.
-Julian
Do you know any radio frequenties for Zakynthos airport?