One of our goals during our September 2023 visit to Greece was to to find and explore the underwater sunken city of Olous at Elounda Crete. We had a general idea of where this ancient underwater city might be so we came prepared with our snorkeling gear. If you prefer, Viator has a guided tour for this sunken city and you can view and click on this here. Although we did not take this tour, we have used Viator in the past and have been happy with their tours.
All of our underwater photos were shot with the Olympus Tough TG-6 Underwater Camera. It also takes good regular photos, videos and is a very good addition to our photography items.
Location
The Sunken City of Olous was just a short drive from our hotel. Google map is marked for Archeologikos Chorus Olous. This was not the place we were looking for to snorkel at though. In fact, we had seen shows and photos of the underwater ruins and what we wanted to see was not marked. That being said, we looked around and ended up finding two places (marked with stars on the map) where we were able to get into the water, snorkel, and also view the ruins.
History
The ancient city of Olous in Elounda dates back 480 BC around the second time the Persians invaded Crete. There is not a lot known about this city but it was a large fortified city and is believed to have been a well to do port that connected Crete to other Greek and Mediterranean Islands through a large maritime network. It is theorized that the City of Olous became sunken when either a large earthquake erupted around 780 AD in Crete or possibly a landslide. In the city, ancient writings were found linking it to the well known City of Knossos and also to the Island of Rhodes. To read more on recent archeological activity in this area you can click here. In addition, to read more on the history of Olous you can click here.
The best way to find this area is to locate the Stone Windmills and continue past the windmills driving south on the dirt road. There is a taverna along this road and also a stone bridge over the water with many colorful boats parked. We parked in this area and continued on foot to the Basilica. The Basilica is no longer standing, but there is a beautiful mosaic floor at the site. Unfortunately, it was covered so all we could view was the nearby foundation stones.
Windmills, Christian Basilica, and Ascension Church
We remembered watching a show about Crete that included the sunken city of Olous in Elounda. In this particular show, it was stated that it was believed the ancient Christian Basilica (marked with a cross on above map) was once part of or connected to Ancient Olous by an ancient road. It had said you could find ruins under the sea straight out from the Basilica. As you can see on my map, the Basilica is just about straight out from where we found some ruins, (marked by a star on my map).
Ascension Church is also near the spot where we snorkeled at. We were just a bit east of this church.
Our First Exploration of the Sunken City Ruins
While walking along the shoreline, we looked closely for any sign of ruins and were rewarded as we could see what looked like a wall through the beautiful blue waters.
It was rocky in this area but we were determined to explore by snorkeling. Carefully walking on the rocks, snorkeling gear in hand, I was ready to go. Well, until Steve told me to be careful of the sea urchins. I was out. Done. Even though I had water shoes on and Steve pointed out to me what they looked like and where they were, I was still out. I don’t have near the experience snorkeling or swimming in the sea that he does so I was ok with just watching him. I watched as he swam around the area and as he took some pretty cool pictures. Definitely wish we had a better camera for underwater, but this did capture the area.
Our Second Exploration of the Sunken City Ruins
Our second place to snorkel came about by chance. We had been walking along the shoreline and saw what looked like possible ruins but it was amongst a very rocky shore and access was not possible for us. As we looked around we saw someone snorkeling close to shore a bit further along the coast line. We noticed this person was snorkeling almost in a line towards the area where we had been. Steve wondered out loud if that person was maybe following the ancient road or an ancient wall.
We continued along the shoreline until we came to a very small beach marked on my map with the other star. Thankfully we found a perfect place to access the water and we began to snorkel just off of the shore.
We were rewarded for our perseverance with what appeared to be an ancient cobblestone highway. Although not very clear in the photos, it was clear as day to us and extended towards where we were earlier. We also saw what looked like bricks from perhaps a wall or building. Totally amazing and exciting! All in all, this was definitely a major favorite adventure ever. I can’t begin to explain how much fun it was to be viewing this ancient city.
Conclusion
In Conclusion, snorkeling the sunken City of Olous in Elounda was one of our favorite activities in Crete. We found this to be more exciting and amazing than we had thought it would be. We are planning to return to Elounda in 2025 and hopefully will be able to explore even more of this amazing site.
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You can also read more of my posts from my Greece Trips by clicking on the following links!!
2023 Trip
Hike up Mt Oxia to Ancient Naxos in Crete-September 2023
Ancient City of Gournia & Sitia, Crete Greece-September 2023
Elounda Peninsula Hotel-Revised 2023
Hike to Agiofarago Beach-Sept 2023
Preveli Beach, the Easy Way-Sept 2023
Swim at Kourtaliotiko Falls-Sept 2023
Boating on the South Central Sea in Crete-Sept 2023
A Challenging hike Loutro to Marmara Beach, Crete-Sept 2023
Anopolis, Arradena Bridge and Lykos Beach in Southen Crete-Sept 2023
Aptera Crete, Closed on Tuesdays Sept 2023
Return to Chania, Crete September 2023
2022 Trip
Our Favorite Restaurants, Plaka and Athens 2022
Santorini by Dune Buggy Part 3 2022
Off the Beaten Path Tour Santorini, Sept 2022
Delfino Blu Hotel, Corfu, Sept 2022
Shopping in Old Town Corfu, Sept 2022
Exploring Old Town Corfu, Sept 2022
To the Top of Angelokastro, Sept 2022
NW Coast of Corfu by boat, Sept 2022
Exploring the Beaches of NW Corfu, Sept 2022
Hike to Giali Beach, Corfu Sept 2022
E-Bike Tour of Meteora, Greece Sept 2022
Hike to Ypapanti Monastery, Greece Sept 2022
Ancient Delphi, Greece Sept 2022
Crete 2021
Ancient City of Lato, Sept 2021
Aforesmenos Lighthouse, Crete, Sept 2021
Avli Lounge Hotel, Rethymno, Sept 2021
Matala Beach Caves, Crete, Sept 2021
Hike to Martsalos Beach, Sept 2021
The Chapel at Georgioupoli, Sept 2021
Koutalas Beach and Sea Cave, Sept 2021
A Walk Through Chania, Sept 2021
Crete 2019
Elounda Peninsula Hotel, Sept 2019
Knossos Palace, Crete Sept 2019
Seitan Limania Beach, Sept 2019
Katholiko Monastery, Sept 2019
Itineraries and more
14 great short hikes in Crete, 2019-2023
10 Day Greece Itinerary, Sept 2019
8 Day Greece Itinerary, Sept 2018
The Gen-X Travels recommendations for hotels, restaurants, activities or tour companies are based on our own experiences unless noted. We are not sponsored by any business or company and all trips are at our expense. All photos are by myself or my husband unless otherwise noted. We are affiliates of some companies such as Amazon,Viator, and others which we do receive a small commission from, at no cost to you if you buy or book through one of our links.