When we heard about the Sunken City of Epidaurus, Greece we knew we would be snorkeling out to explore it. There are a couple of different ways you can reach the Sunken City for snorkeling. We chose to just swim to the underwater ruins while snorkeling on the way there. If you prefer you can also kayak from shore to the sunken city and then snorkel. There are a few different kayak tours you can book. One way is to book is through Viator which you can take a look at by clicking here.
Location
Located about 16 km (10 miles) from the Archaeological Site of Ancient Epidaurus the Sunken City is one of the many unique sites in Greece.
History
The Sunken city of Epidaurus, also known as Palaia Epidavros is just off the shore in modern Epidaurus. Depending on the source the sunken ruins are possibly from a small village or a Roman Villa dating from 2nd century BC. I have also read it is believed to be part of the ancient city from 1200 BC. Another source states this had been a trade center in ancient times. Regardless, the city submerged due to forces of nature over time. Most likely it was buried in the sea from an earthquake causing water levels to rise over it. These ruins laid in the water virtually undisturbed until the 1970’s. A hot weather balloon was flying above the area and took photographs from above exposing the ancient ruins.
The Beach
The beach right before the Sunken City is easy to find. Just follow google maps. There is a small parking lot which was full so we parked along the road as many others had. There is also a taverna right before the beach. Once at the beach, we had no problem figuring out where the ruins were. We could see kayaks and snorkelers above them. We walked along the shore further away from the crowd and found a nice tree to lay our towels and belongings under.
Snorkeling at the Ruins
Swimming to the ruins was easy and not too far. We were able to wade quite a bit of the way. This made the swim less strenuous. The ruins seemed to appear out of nowhere while we were snorkeling, almost as if they were calling us to explore their secrets! Very amazing! We could see walls from long ago buildings. If only these walls could tell the stories of those who lived here so long ago. We also visualized the bottoms of large pitchers which was intriguing. It was a great feeling, being in this underwater world that felt like stepping back in time. I also loved swimming in the sea as the sunlight skimmed the water’s surface. Very mesmerizing. I always have a peaceful feeling when I swim in the sea. We spent about 2 hours here snorkeling and swimming.
All of our underwater photos were shot with the Olympus Tough TG-6 Underwater Camera. It also takes great regular photos, videos and is a very good addition to our photography items.
I would advise you to wear swim shoes since the bottom has rocks and there are sea urchins. We use Fitkicks water shoes, which come in various colors and styles. They are available in both men’s and women’s. When it comes to snorkels, we don’t use fancy ones. We use basic ones we bought on Amazon years ago, which work well everywhere we have snorkeled. You can find a similar set by clicking here.
Conclusion
The Sunken City of Epidaurus is a great spot in the Peloponnese Greece area for anyone that enjoys snorkeling and swimming. I highly recommend stopping here. As I mentioned above, if you prefer you can kayak to the ruins, Viator offers a kayak tour for this. Although we did not take this tour, we could see the kayakers who appeared to be having a great time.
Click on the links below to follow my 2024 Greek Travels and also my Past Greek Travels:
Argos Theatre and Agora-August 2024
Exploring the Larissa Castle of Argos,Greece-August 2024
Snorkeling the Sunken City of Epidaurus. August 2024
Ancient Epidaurus: Birthplace of Modern Medicne August 2024
Mycenaean Bridge and Acropolis of Kazarma-August 2024
Ancient Nemea Greece-August 2024
Ancient Mycenae Greece-August 2024
2 Weeks in Greece-Delphi, Meteora, Corfu, Santorini, Athens, Sept 2022
14 Days in Greece-Crete,Naxos, Santorini Sept 2021
10 Day Greece Itinerary-Crete, Santorini, Athens, September 2019
8 Day Greece Itinerary-Athens, Milos, Santorini, September/October 2018
14 Awesome Short Hikes in Crete
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.
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Such a fascinating spot to go snorkeling!
It was really fun!! Lori
I haven’t done much snorkeling in my life, but I would certainly do so for the Sunken City of Epidaurus! Very fascinating to find a world under water, a place that was once a flourishing city and now almost forgotten (if it weren’t for visitors like you)! Thanks for sharing your adventure exploring this underwater site 🙂
It is a lot of fun! The water was calm and not too deep so it was perfect for me!
Great information. Thank you!
Thanks for checking it out!
I imagine there’d be a spooky sense of history, snorkeling over those ruins.
I never replaced my underwater film camera (a Nikonos V) after the digital age hit, but I’ve always thought the TG-6 would be a good choice.
It wasn’t too bad but pretty weird to think that people used to live and walk around there! We like our camera, but we need to get better at learning how to take underwater pictures!
I’ve never heard of Sunken City of Epidaurus, but it sounds quite exciting as it is a wonder of the past. I can only imagine that swimming between these vestiges for the first time would feel almost surreal – a special experience that you won’t soon forget. Thanks for sharing, and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
We really did enjoy this. I do a lot of researching for trips for things that are out of the ordinary or perhaps things that we would really enjoy such as this. Otherwise, I would’ve never heard of it either either! Have a good weekend! Lori
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Looks like a great spot for snorkling
It was so much fun! Especially on such a hot day!
What a great opportunity. So nice to be able to see what can happen to a city over time. Thanks for sharing Lori. Allan
We loved it!
Very interesting! Thanks for the “SHARE!”
Thank you! It was a lot of fun!
Very interesting!
It was a lot of fun!
Certainly it was 🙂