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Can you hire buggies in Zante? Buggy, quad or jeep
Can you hire buggies in Zante? You can drive one for a day, behind a guide. Before you book, see how that compares with a quad on your own, a jeep where someone else drives, a 4x4 sunset run and a morning on horseback.
Check availabilityfrom $403 · free to cancel
Editorial team, buggyrentzakynthos.comUpdated October 19, 2026read in 6 minutes17 sources
Quick answer
- 01Buggy
- You drive a Polaris RZR behind a guide, 6 hours with lunch, rated 4.96.
- 03Jeep
- A driver takes up to 6 guests for 7 hours, from $76.
- 044x4 sunset
- 4 hours to Korakonisi and Porto Roxa with a meze dinner.
- 05Horses
- A 3-hour ride to a beach where you swim with the horses.
Three vehicles, three very different days
On Zakynthos the words buggy, quad and jeep get used as if they meant the same thing, and they do not. A buggy like the Polaris RZR has a steering wheel, seats side by side and a roll cage; a quad is ridden astride, like a motorbike; a jeep is a car built for rough roads. Each gives you a different relationship with the dirt, the dust and the risk.
The way you book them differs as much as the machines. The buggy day sold on GetYourGuide puts you at the wheel of your own Polaris RZR, following an experienced guide. On the jeep day you sit back while a guide drives a closed jeep and picks you up from your hotel. A quad, by contrast, is usually something you hire and ride alone.
So the real question behind can you hire buggies in Zante is how much of the day you want to control. Drive yourself with a guide in front, ride with a driver, or go entirely on your own: each step to the right gives you more freedom and leaves more of the risk, the route and the insurance in your hands.
The buggy: you drive, the guide leads
The buggy day is the one option here where you hold the wheel and someone else has done the planning. The group sets off at 8:30 behind the guide's buggy, and the off-road part begins about 20 minutes in, at Keri.3 From there the route links the Marathias forest, the Mizithres viewpoint, a swim at Korakonisi and lunch in Loucha.
It is also the best rated of the land days compared here, at 4.96 from 306 reviews, with full marks for the guide and for transportation. The price reflects that, from $403, but fuel, full liability insurance and lunch are part of it.
The catch is the rules. Drivers must be 18 and hold a full license, and the listing is not suitable for children under 6 or for pregnant women, while the operator's own terms set the line for children at 8.45 The operator says children may come along when an adult accompanies them, so a non-driver can still share the day; the rules page of this site goes through every age limit.6
Guest scores
Ratings of the land days on GetYourGuide
★
The options
Buggy, quad, jeep, 4x4 and horses compared
| Option | Who drives | Length | Food |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buggy day | You, behind a guide | 6 hours | Lunch included |
| Quad, hired | You, alone | Your choice | Your own |
| Jeep day | A guide | 7 hours | Lunch not included |
| 4x4 sunset | A guide | 4 hours | Meze dinner |
| Horse ride | You ride | 1 to 3 hours | Not stated |
Listings as GetYourGuide states them; the hired quad as UK travel advice describes hire.7
Three ways by land
Buggy, jeep or horses
Best rated
Hotel pickup
QuietestDecision helper
Buggy, quad, jeep or horses?
Choose the line that sounds most like you
If you are not experienced with driving quad bikes proceed with caution as you will be sharing the roads with larger and faster vehicles.
The quad: freedom, with the risk on you
A quad gives you the most freedom of all, and the UK government's travel advice for Greece is blunt about the cost of it. It warns that people suffer serious injury and even death in quad bike accidents every year, and it asks riders to get full instructions and training first.910
On the road you are a small vehicle among big ones. The same advice tells inexperienced riders to go carefully, because they share the roads with larger and faster vehicles.8 Greek rules, as the European Union summarizes them, require a safety helmet on light and heavy quadricycles, and the UK advice adds that drivers and passengers must both wear one.111
Then there is money. Quad biking is treated as an extreme sport and excluded on many travel insurance policies, and insurance sold by the hire company usually covers only third parties.27 None of this makes a quad a bad choice for an experienced rider, but it is a very different day from following a guide down a forest track.
Checklist
Whichever you choose
01
Before you book
- Check every rider's age against the listing
- Know who in the group holds a full license
- Read your travel insurance on off-road vehicles
02
On the day
- Hat, sunscreen and sunglasses
- Plenty of water
- Clothes that can get dusty
Video
Quads day out around Zante island (Porto Roxa, Shipwreck and more)
Nothing is fetched from YouTube until you press play.
The jeep: a day out with someone else driving
The jeep tour is the relaxed version. A guide drives a closed jeep, collects you from your hotel, and keeps the group small: the listing limits it to 6 participants. The route heads through mountain villages and off road to the Vrachionas range, the highest point of the island.
It is a long day, 7 hours, and lunch at a mountain taverna is not included. In the north, guests can add an optional boat to the Blue Caves or swim at a beach instead, and the last stop is an organic farm where local products can be tasted and bought.
The jeep suits anyone without a license and travelers who want to look at the views rather than the track ahead. It starts from $76 and is rated 4.37 from 113 reviews, with 4.5 for the guide. You lose the thrill of the wheel, but you also lose the dust in your face.
Two more ways by land: a 4x4 at sunset and horses
If evenings suit you better than early starts, a 4x4 sunset run takes up to 6 people per vehicle to Korakonisi, by Alitzerini Cave, and on to Porto Roxa for the sunset and a light dinner of meze platters with a glass of wine. It lasts 4 hours and needs at least 4 people to run.
Pickups for that run depend on the day of the week: the north-east on Monday and Friday, the south on Tuesday. With 6 reviews and a rating of 4.22, it has a short track record, so read the latest comments before you commit.
Horses are the slow, quiet alternative. A ride-and-swim tour from stables at Kato Gerakari spends about an hour riding to a small beach near Amoudi, an hour on the beach swimming with the horses, and an hour riding back. It is rated 4.79 from 194 reviews and starts from $58.
Who should pick which
Pick the buggy if you have a full license, enjoy driving, and want the island's back country without planning a single turn. Pick the jeep if anyone in your party is too young to drive, or if you would rather watch the views than the track. Pick the horses if your group includes a confident child of riding age and you want calm rather than engines.
The age limits decide a lot. The horse ride has a minimum age of 8 and turns away riders above 95 kg, while the buggy listing says not under 6 and the operator's terms not under 8.5 The jeep listing states no age limit in its record, so ask before you book if you travel with small children.
A quad makes sense only for experienced riders with insurance that covers it. If you have never ridden one, the UK advice on training and caution is worth taking seriously, and a guided buggy gives you much of the same fun with the route, the fuel and the insurance arranged.10
What all of them share: dust, sun and the protected coast
Whatever you choose, plan for heat and dust. The UK advice for outdoor days in Greece is to check the forecast, avoid the peak hours of sun, and carry a hat, sunscreen and plenty of water.12 On the buggy day the operator hands out ice-cold water throughout, and bandanas and eyewear against the dust.1314
None of these vehicles belongs on a turtle beach. The National Marine Park of Zakynthos does not allow cars, motorbikes, bicycles, horses or dogs on its nesting beaches.15 Its area covers Laganas Bay and the islets of Marathonisi and Pelouzo; the buggy day sees Turtle Island from the hills above it.16
In dry, windy weather, the forest tracks themselves can close. The operator explains that Greek Civil Protection may restrict access to some forest and mountain trails when the wildfire risk is high, and that it then drives alternative routes.17 A rented quad has no such plan B; a guided day does.
Your day off road
Drive the hills of Zakynthos yourself
Your own Polaris RZR, a local guide, a swim stop and a farmhouse lunch.
You ask,we answer.
Can I drive a buggy myself on Zakynthos?
Yes, on a guided day. You drive your own Polaris RZR off road, following an experienced guide.
Do I need a helmet on a quad?
Yes. UK travel advice says drivers and passengers must wear helmets on quad bikes.1
Is the jeep tour off road?
Partly. It drives through mountain villages and off road to the Vrachionas range.
Which option suits young children?
Check each listing. The buggy listing says not under 6, the operator's terms not under 8, and the horse ride has a minimum age of 8.5
Is lunch included on the jeep day?
No. Lunch at a mountain taverna is not included in the price.
Does my travel insurance cover quads?
Often not. Quad biking counts as an extreme sport and is excluded on many policies.2
How do guests rate the buggy day?
4.96 out of 5. That average comes from 306 reviews, with full marks for the guide.
Sources
What this text is based on
- 1UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 2UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 3Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Zante Off-Road Tour - Buggy Tours in Zante Zakynthos Greece↩
- 4Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Zante Off-Road Tour - Buggy Tours in Zante Zakynthos Greece↩
- 5Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Buggy Tours Zante: booking terms and conditions↩
- 6Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Zante Off-Road Tour - Buggy Tours in Zante Zakynthos Greece↩
- 7UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 8UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 9UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 10UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 11European Union (Your Europe)Road rules and safety - Greece↩
- 12UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeGreece travel advice: safety and security↩
- 13Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Zante Off-Road Tour - Buggy Tours in Zante Zakynthos Greece↩
- 14Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Zante Off-Road Tour - Buggy Tours in Zante Zakynthos Greece↩
- 15National Marine Park of ZakynthosProtection measures for the sea turtle nesting beaches↩
- 16National Marine Park of ZakynthosProtected Area↩
- 17Zante Off-Road Tour (the operator of tour 416357)Zante Off-Road Tour - Buggy Tours in Zante Zakynthos Greece↩
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