One of the most beautiful islands in the Ionian Sea with emerald waters and lush nature is Zakynthos Island. Located on the west coast of Greece and being the third largest island in the Eptanisa complex, the "Flower of the East" as the Venetians used to call it, boasts amazing white sandy beaches, unique natural beauty and is also the prime nesting area for the endangered Caretta caretta sea turtles.
Favored with mid Mediterranean climate, the island is the ideal destination for summer holidays and attracts the nature and sea enthusiasts, as it provides a wide variety of outdoor and water sports activities. Nature lovers and volunteers from all over the world also visit Zakynthos during summer, in order to sail and dive around the island, observe and monitor the turtle populations.
With outstanding marine biodiversity, the island is a diving paradise and offers many exciting sites for everyone. The bay in Laganas village is a National Marine Park and offers some of the best diving spots on the island. Arc de Triomphe or else “the Arch” is among the most popular dives and took its name due to a big underwater natural arch formed by a rock.
As you swim through the arch, the rocks are covered with sponges and soft corals until you meet a huge limestone reef that turns into a wall and drops down at a maximum depth of 229.7 ft/70 m. There is a lot of underwater life to explore around the reef, such as seahorses and colorful jelly fishes along with plenty of fishes of various shapes and sizes.
Arc de Triomphe has everything a diver could wish for, as it combines deep walls, reefs and cavers. For the most experienced divers, there is also a cave called the Shrimp Cave that drops at least 30 m/98.4 ft down. Visibility is excellent and the best season for this dive is from May to September, when the sea temperature reaches up to 27 °C/ 80°F. If you are planing a visit on Zakynthos island, diving is certainly a must do activity that no one should miss!!!