For hundreds of years, Atlantis city is the most talked about among the underwater cities. These debates started after several buildings and monuments were discovered under the Atlantic ocean.
Though, it’s still a mystery whether Atlantis actually existed or is just folklore. According to some legends, the city lies under the Atlantic ocean and it sunk due to a massive earthquake around 11,000 years ago.
However, there are underwater cities in other parts of the world that are actually accessible to travelers. Let’s have a look at these 10 most fascinating underwater cities in the world that worth visiting at least once in a lifetime.
Top 10 Underwater Cities In The World That Are Worth Visiting
1. Baia, Italy
Also referred to as the Atlantis of Italy, Baia was an ancient city that existed during Roman Era. Due to a massive volcanic eruption, the city was destroyed and slowly dragged underwater.
Today, the underwater city serves as one of the top tourist attractions in Italy, especially for divers. The major highlights of Baia include the Nymphaeum of Emperor Claudius and Pisonian Villa.
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2. Simena, Turkey
Every year, a huge number of visitors come to kekova to explore the ancient ruins of Turkey’s sunken city “Simena”. Simena city dates back to the early 4th century that drowned due to a massive earthquake.
Most tourists came here during the summer season to explore the underwater ruins either by sailing or through boats. The region where Simena city lies was one of the most prominent regions during the Byzantine era.
3. Villa Epecuen, Argentina
Villa Epecuen was no less than a paradise until a dam broke down in 1985 that completely submerged half of the city. Though, the water level is now reduced after 25 years that making it accessible for everyone.
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4. Kalyazin, Russia
In 1940, the old city was flooded while the construction of Uglic hydroelectric power station was going on. The flood not destroyed the construction areas but also blown up the Trinity Kalyazinsky monastry.
Today, only the bell tower of Nicholas Cathedral can be seen above the water while the rest of the city is lies under water. Top prevent the tower from any further damage, a ground was constructed around the tower that tuned into an island.
The bell tower is not just center of attraction in Kalyazin but also one of the major highlights in Russia. Tourist from all over the world visit this island annually just to see the magnificent tower.
5. Saint Roma de Sau, Spain
Saint Roma De Sau is a thousand year old city that was a home to numerous Romanesque architectures. In 1960, a plan to develop a reservoir was made by the Cataloian government that forced villagers to leave their homes.
The entire region got flooded soon after the reservoir was created. Whenever the water level drops, the village emerges again including a three church. Whenever the water level increases, only the tip of the church can be visible.
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6. Port Royal, Jamaica
Port Royal is among the wickedest underwater cities in the world. It is also listed in category of catastrophic sites as it was destroyed due to natural disaster.
The city perfectly preserved some of the old buildings and monuments in the same they were before the earthquake. The ancient city witnessed an severe earthquake in the mid-1692 that lasted 20 minutes.
Today the sunken ruins include cemetery, several forts and a church. It first discovered inetween 1956 – 1959 and second excavation occurred between 1966 and 1968. A more extensive excavation was conducted from 1981 to 1990 Nautical Archaelogical Program of Texas University.
7. Pevlopetri, Greece
The oldest among the underwater cities is the Pavlopetri city. Greece. However, it was undiscovered until BBC visited this site in 2011.
Several other excavation tool place over the last century that revealed a residential town that contains buildings, squares and streets. According to researchers, the city exists since 2800 BC while buildings dates back to 1680 – 1180 BC.
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8. Lion City, China
Lion City is 1400 year old that was submerged 50 years ago. The city sits under the Qiando Lake in the Zhejiang Province.
Nearly 290,000 people were forced to relocate leaving behind more than 1300 villages and 10,000 acres farmland. The city completely drowned in 1959 after Qiando Lake was created.
Talking about city’s origin, is was originally built in 621 AD as Shi Cheng city according to some historians. It was as large as 60 football fields and featured more than 260 arches across the city.
9. Dwarka, India
According to legends and several folklores, Dwarka city was constructed 10,000 years ago. It is also referred to as India’s holiest city as it proves the occurrence of Mahabharat.
Also, Hindu God “Lord Krishna” built this kingdom in Gujarat region to escape the battle with Jarasandh. There were more than 900,000 silver palaces and embedded with crystals and emeralds.
The Marine Archaelogical Unit of India conducted an underwater excavation in 1988 that discovered various artefacts, jeweleris and ruins.
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10. Yonaguni Monument, Japan
Yonaguni Monument is one of the erriest submerged cities that submerged 2,000 years ago due to earth quake. The underwater city contains remains of more than 5,000 years old.
The city was first discovered in 1986 when a tour operator Kihachiro Aratake was diving underwater near Yonaguni Island. Since, then many things have been discovered still nobody is sure what is beneath the waters.