Review: Is Porto Zante in Zakynthos the ultimate CEO retreat?
We have plenty of talented journalists at City AM to tackle foreign travel stories. But we only have one person qualified to discover if Porto Zante is, as claimed, the ultimate CEO retreat. As the only CEO available at the time of writing, the assignment fell to me.
So I dusted off my notebook, roped in my wife and seven-year-old daughter (two other daughters were left behind studying for exams) and set off for Zakynthos, wondering what exactly makes somewhere a C-Suite escape.
This was new territory for us. Our family holidays tend to be classic ‘we-live-in-west-London’ destinations: a week in Cornwall or a self-catering villa in France or Italy. We’ve never experienced a part-villa, part-hotel hybrid concept and I had no time to do any homework for this trip. Thankfully I received a personal itinerary: a nice touch, especially for someone entirely reliant on my executive assistant Linda.
The first sense of what Porto Zante has to offer comes as you drive through two monumental wooden gates, then pass a security chamber, before ferrying through a second set of 15ft doors. These open onto a courtyard filled with lush bougainvillea, swaying palms and a lineup of staff offering flutes of chilled champagne. It feels like walking into an episode of The Night Manager – I was half expecting Corky and Sandy to come round the corner yelling expletives at us.
Porto Zante – ‘This place is insane’
‘This place is insane’, I messaged our editor Steve Dinneen, a man who knows his way around a luxury resort. Even he agreed this looked next level.
The Night Manager was set on a private Mallorcan island, La Fortaleza, a sprawling complex of villas and pools in which the characters could lounge and plot. By contrast, Porto Zante’s villas are arranged amphitheatrically, each with its own pool, garden and uninterrupted Ionian sea views. It’s a masterpiece of privacy and precision, ensuring each villa is a sanctuary, albeit one with a world-class hotel quietly operating around you.
Strolling through communal areas broken up by stunning Turkish carpets, and mature gardens full of wildlife, we arrived at our villa. Perched just above the main restaurants, it has nearly 1,300 square feet of interior space flowing seamlessly into an outdoor living area. There’s a saltwater pool, sunken daybeds, a shaded dining terrace and drop-down privacy blinds. The details are extraordinary: MASA Italian linens, Christofle cutlery, Bulgari toiletries, Bernardaud porcelain, branded sunhats. Even the sun towels were satisfyingly weighty Ralph Lauren (so good I bought some to take home).
There was a Bose sound system, an iMac – a welcome respite from burying my head in a laptop during those unavoidable moments of work – and 34 different mini-bar options (I counted). My daughter received two plush teddy bears on arrival. The TV was tuned to the BBC on mute – a subtle nod to the British guests.
Porto Zante’s staff-to-guests ratio at high season is two-to-one but this was week two of the season so it was closer to three-to-one, a ratio that felt almost presidential. I’d met Porto Zante’s founder, John Sotirakos, a few weeks earlier in London. He told me how the resort was founded as a family project and evolved into Greece’s first true luxury-villa-with-hotel-services concept. It’s been part of the prestigious Small Luxury Hotels of the World portfolio since 2012 and last year it posted an occupancy of 95 per cent. Nearly 60 per cent of guests return within three years.
Any CEO would be envious of numbers like those. When I asked Sotirakos how he managed that, his answer was simple: “Warm hospitality, and a team crazy with the detail.” He wasn’t exaggerating. Within three hours, Porto Zante’s 70-strong team seemed like old friends. They spoke to us with an easy charm that never felt scripted or performative. They knew what we liked to drink, what time we’d take a family stroll, that my daughter loves chips with ketchup. When I met Sotirakos again in Zakynthos, I asked what it took to get a job at Porto Zante: “We are looking for great hearts – it’s easy to find staff, but hard to find the right ones”.
‘Dial 300 for anything’
Upon arrival we were briefed about The Hotline: “Dial 300 for anything you need”, from anywhere in the resort. The first time you call this line, it’s slightly embarrassing. But as a CEO who often relies on calling the aforementioned Linda, ‘dialling 300’ soon became remarkably easy. Late-breakfast, non-alcoholic beer, ham-and-cheese toasties, cocktails, dinner reservations, spa bookings, cash transfers – we soon overcame any anxiety.
After dialling 300, staff would often emerge through a hidden door that mysteriously opened in the garden. This felt less like The Night Manager and more the Ocean Club in the Bahamas from James Bond adventure Casino Royale.
Waiters appeared carrying drinks and plates of Greek meze. Cleaning staff would flit in and out without us catching sight of them. Fresh water, chocolates and an itinerary for the next day’s children’s activities would discreetly appear next to our beds. And talking of beds, as we walked to dinner on the first night, I remarked to my wife that it looked like we’d be sharing the double with our daughter. But lo and behold, when we returned from dinner, a bed had magically appeared, perfect for a little girl, her jim-jams neatly folded, teddy and book carefully placed on her pillow.
The Square Mile is full of quality restaurants and in my humble C-suite role, I am forced to dine out in many of them (I also spent time working for both M Restaurant and Boisdale). So I can confidently say that Porto Zante is providing a seriously high-end food and drink experience.
Breakfast was served in-villa each morning by a four-strong team: pastries, crepes, omelettes, fresh juices, croissants and plenty of Greek yoghurt – everything you’d expect, but elevated. Lunch and dinner options range from fresh sea bass to wagyu steak, bouillabaisse and perfectly crisp fries. The in-dining menu is available 24-hours a day and features lots of traditional Greek appetizers – kalamarakia, garides saganaki, ntakos, Greek salads, plus more substantial dishes including lobster and souvlaki skewers.
There are two restaurants: The Club House, offering refined Greek and Mediterranean dining; and Maya, a Japanese fusion experience offering an eight-course omakase menu. We were welcomed onto The Clubhouse terrace by Vasilis, the charming, knowledgeable and very funny restaurant manager (when asked how I should refer to him in this article, he quickly replied “the handsome one”).
We enjoyed gazpacho followed by beetroot salad, saffron risotto with scallops, and finally a magnificent profiterole dessert. The head chef even popped out seeking feedback on the gazpacho – excellent! – as it was the dish’s first outing, while bar manager Giorgos guided us through an impressive non-alcoholic cocktail list and an even more formidable top-shelf spirits selection.
Maya is a different beast altogether, an intimate restaurant whose dining room was overseen by Filipino designer Kenneth Cobonpue, known for his work with the Nobu franchise using natural materials.
The Ionian sea fills the vista from the Maya terrace and the menu is appropriately focused on the high quality fish available at Porto Zante’s front door. The omakase experience consists of eight dishes, the stand-out being the maya roll (tempura prawn, salmon, avocado, teriyaki and garlic mayo), which is the best sushi I’ve ever tasted. Vasilis even persuaded me to try an oyster: “Are you allergic or scared? Because if you are allergic, we take this away now – but if you are scared, there is no better place to try the freshest, most beautiful oyster you will ever have in your life.” He was right.
On our last night we remained in the confines of our villa for dinner for the taste of Greek meze menu, happily settling into our silver-service meal brought to us in our pyjamas. Seven courses followed, including Greek dips with fava, tyrokauteri, tzatziki and pitta, kolokythokeftedes (grated courgettes with cheese and eggs, shaped into balls with a lemon yogurt dip), feta saganaki, melitzanes papoutsakia (aubergine filled with feta and Béchamel) and finally loukoumades (deliciously fluffy pastry and honey balls). Greek balls won the night, both savoury and sweet.
The sea turtles of Zakynthos
One day we arranged a three hour boat charter. The Dione – goddess of love and fertility – arrived at the private jetty to propel us across waters as still as a millpond, with plenty of time to stop for lunch (prepared by the Porto Zante team, naturally) and a swim. The island is famous for its caretta-caretta, the sea turtles of Zakynthos. After some searching, one suddenly appeared, popping its head out of the water meters from the bow of the boat.
Given everything I’d experienced thus far, it would have been a surprise if there wasn’t an award winning spa. There is, of course, introduced in 2015 and offering a range of massages, treatments, pedicures, manicures and even catering for ‘Little Guests’, who could join in with a ‘cucumber eye hydration and scalp massage’.
Hailing from South Africa, spa manager Artemis is a reminder that Porto Zante hires the very best people for these specialist roles. My wife described her treatment as “heaven”, spending an hour in the glass-fronted spa overlooking the sea. Her treatment included the Porto Zante Signature Massage Experience, with some modifications (Artemis wanted to “check her energy” and presumably work around that). I was content to read a book and let them get on with it.
The kids’ club was run by Valentina and Marianna, two lovely ladies who scooped up our daughter every day – not all day! – to play games, make pottery and design T-Shirts. Each ‘Little Guests’ daily itinerary had its own theme and a series of activities. Super-Hero Wednesday included cape-making, code-names, superpowers and culminated in a ‘laser battle’.
My wife, a primary school teacher, was impressed by the ‘sequencing’ (a teacher term) and how interactive the sessions were. If you’re travelling with children, Porto Zante doesn’t just accommodate – it celebrates. When we left the villa, our daughter, entirely unprompted, ran straight across and gave the Kids Club team huge hugs. I almost lost it thinking about all the core memories this trip was giving her.
It would be remiss not to mention the private beach, where we spent a glorious morning trying out canoes, paddle boards and a mini jet-ski, which our daughter piloted around the beach-cove. But it’s the quieter moments that really define Porto Zante and make it a true CEO retreat.
Like many people tasked with running a company, I often find it hard to relax. But in just one day I found myself poolside, engrossed in a great book (The Shards by Bret Easton Ellis – highly recommended), sipping a grapefruit soda, without a care in the world. My wife – radiant after her spa treatment – said she’d never seen me so relaxed on a short break.
As Sotirakos puts it: “When you build a guest’s routine, that’s when they start relaxing.” Porto Zante seamlessly builds this rhythm. It pre-empts your needs, pampers without being pretentious, and leaves you feeling like you’re part of a very exclusive club.
For those who strive for excellence in their chosen field, it’s easy to recognise the same qualities in another team at the top of its game. And for high-performing execs in need of a genuine reset, Porto Zante isn’t just another 5-star resort: it’s the benchmark.
• Porto Zante offers 5-star luxury villas in Zakynthos with rates starting from £2,000 per night for a one-bedroom. All Villas come with private pools and prices are dependent upon season. For more info go to the website here
