Ship ‘Resting’ at Zakynthos Navagio Beach Deteriorating

The shipwrecked MV Panagiotis “gracing” the world famous Navagio Beach on the Greek isle of Zakynthos is at risk, a team of experts visiting the site said last week.

In the past 36 years since the ship ran aground in the waters of the Ionian, its hull has suffered damage to building materials, corrosion, bends and cracks, said a team from the Department of Protection & Conservation of Cultural Heritage of the Ionian Islands’ Technological Educational Institute, which assessed the damage on the initiative of the Zakynthos Municipality.

Once transporting contraband cigarettes in the 80s’, the Panagiotis went off course in bad weather conditions and ran aground at a deserted beach on the northwestern side of Zakynthos known back then as Agios Georgios beach.  

Navagio (Shipwreck) Beach, Zakynthos.

The shipwreck raised fears among island professionals and authorities that it would contaminate the waters of the beach, but instead it attracted thousands of visitors from across the globe and Zakynthos’ inaccessible-by-land Navagio Beach (aka Smugglers Beach) became one of the most visited and repeatedly listed as one of the world’s best beaches.

Besides attracting thousands of holidaymakers, in the last few years, Navagio Beach has become a meeting point for BASE jumpers, who host the yearly Go Fast Games there.