Greece's first underwater museum is a fifth-century BC merchant ship off the islet of Peristera, opened to divers in 2020 inside the Alonnisos Marine Park. What divers see is the cargo: thousands of wine amphorae still stacked in a mound roughly 25 by 23 metres that traces the shape of the ship. Visits are guided, booked ahead and limited to fixed daily slots.
Also known as Peristera Shipwreck, Alonissos Underwater Museum, Alonissos Shipwreck.
Where it is and how deep
39.1800° N, 23.9700° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
Site maps published elsewhere
The dive
The site sits off the islet of Peristera, one nautical mile from Steni Vala bay, and every visit runs as a guided dive on a booked slot. Operators ask for excellent buoyancy and suggest a tune-up dive beforehand, because the whole point of the dive is to hang above a protected archaeological deposit without touching it. You descend to the deposit at around 24 metres, the average depth across the site.
What you swim over is a cargo field rather than a ship. Between three and four thousand amphorae lie where they were stowed, forming a mound about 25 by 23 metres that still traces the outline of the vessel. The deepest part of the dive reaches 28 metres and the monitored area runs down to 33 metres, and the operator plans about 35 minutes in the water, so the dive is a slow traverse rather than a swim.
The deposit is watched. Five submarine camera units cover it, and the monitoring system is trained to flag intrusions such as unauthorised night diving. If you cannot dive it, the museum's Information Center runs a virtual-reality walkthrough of the site built from a 3D map of the vessels, pots and amphorae on the seabed.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Classical Greek merchant vessel
- Type
- Merchant ship carrying wine amphorae
- Length
- 30 m (98 ft)
- Sunk
- 425 BC
- Cause
- Not established; the ship went down off Peristera with its cargo aboard
- Lies
- Cargo mound of 3,000-4,000 amphorae, 25 by 23 m, tracing the hull
The wreck was found off Peristera by the Alonissos fisherman and diver Dimitrios Mavrikis, and excavation began in 1992. It identified a cargo of wine amphorae from Mende and Skopelos dated to the last quarter of the fifth century BC, around 425 to 420 BC; the 3,000 to 4,000 pots made it the largest transport ship then known from its period, with a hull 30 metres long and 10 metres wide. It opened as the Alonissos Underwater Museum in 2020, the first underwater museum in Greece.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Off-season | Off-season |
Season follows Alonissos & the Peristera Wreck: The underwater museum and most operators run May–Oct only; meltemi winds can close the exposed Peristera site in midsummer.
Know before you go
- Depth is the main constraint: the deposit sits at about 24 metres and the dive reaches 28, so plan a conservative no-decompression profile and watch gas. Advanced Open Water is the enforced minimum.
- Buoyancy errors damage a protected archaeological site. Operators recommend a tune-up dive before the museum dive, and the deposit is under permanent camera surveillance.
Dive videos
Peristera shipwreck - Alonissos, Greece · Atlantis Consulting Partner on YouTube
Peristera Wreck, Alonissos - Greece · jp piov on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Peristera wreck?+
The deposit lies at an average depth of about 24 metres, with the deepest part of the dive at 28 metres and the monitored area extending to 33 metres. That puts it beyond entry-level limits, which is why Advanced Open Water is required.
What certification do I need for the Alonissos Underwater Museum?+
Advanced Open Water Diver, or an equivalent second-level certification qualified to 30 metres, is mandatory. Operators also ask for good buoyancy control and recommend a tune-up dive before the museum dive.
Can you dive the Peristera wreck without booking?+
No. Visits run in fixed slots each day through three licensed dive centres, and operators ask for bookings at least a week in advance. The museum is open to the public during the summer season.
Sources
- Peristera shipwreck — Wikipedia
- Peristera (island) — Wikipedia
- The Underwater Museum - About — Alonissos Underwater Museum
- Contact - licensed diving centers — Alonissos Underwater Museum
- Peristera Shipwreck dive site — Ikion Diving Alonissos
- Peristera's Ancient Ship Wreck monitoring project — NOUS
More dive sites in Alonissos & the Peristera Wreck
Wall from 8 m to 30 m, with rock running on to 50 m
The shallow half of the cove, with its best rock at 8 to 20 m
Reef
One of the area's dive highlights, and an ideal night dive
Wall to 20 metres, then into the most famous cave on Alonissos
Cave & cavern
A 70 m cave passage with its mouth between 22 and 34 m
A sharp drop to 50 m with openings and cracks in the face
A boulder-strewn plain further offshore than the West side
Often ends in a small cave full of young fish
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