Sights under water look like lost worlds, muffled up with secrets and mysteries. One can immediately recall Atlantis, adventure films or programs about wildlife. We prepared 5 really amazing places for underwater swimmers.

1. Christ of the Abyss, San Fruttuoso Bay, Italy

17-meter statue of Jesus Christ of the sculptor Guido Galletti is installed at a depth of 10 meters in the bay of San Fruttuoso near Genoa. Diver Duilio Marcante asked Galletti to install a monument to honor the Savior, as well as Dario Gonzatt, a diver who had tested a breathing apparatus and died underwater. The bronze statue is covered with shells and algae and it only makes the view more interesting.

The sculpture was installed in 1954, but once it was lifted to the surface. In 2003 an anchor of a vessel broke Savior's hand. Despite of depth, freedivers like to go down to the statue too. Because of the clear water and, consequently, good visibility, they do not have to dive too deep. There are diving clubs on the shore, so there's no need to worry about getting your scuba gear.

There are three replicas of Christ of the Abyss with the same name in the world: in Key Largo, Florida, USA; on the coast of St. Georges, as well as on St. Paul's Island in Malta.

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Divers love Mexico, especially the Yucatan Peninsula, which is rich in underwater caves –cenotes. This name came from Mayan mythology. Maya people believed that the cenote is an entrance to afterworld.

Large diving tours are organized in the Yucatan Peninsula, and some caves can even be descended without an instructor, if you have the PADI OPEN WATER DIVER certificate, which allows you to dive to a depth of 18 meters on your own with a partner with the same qualifications.

There are many diving clubs in Mexico, interesting places of varying complexity for scuba diving. The IMAX team shot here the film "A journey to the amazing caves", that film added popularity to these places.

The longest cenote Dos Ojos is, in fact, a system of caves (more than 20). In 2018, a 348-kilometer-long tunnel was discovered here, it connects Dos Ojos to another cave Sac Actun. Today it is the biggest underwater cave in the world. Dos Ojos is "two eyes" in Spanish. Here divers have two main routes: "Barby Line" and "Bat Cave". The depth does not exceed 12 meters, and in the cave you can see stalactites and stalagmites, bats and floating roots of trees.

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3. Underwater monument of Yonaguni, Japan

Since Japanese diver Kihatiro Aratake found stone terraces at a depth of 25 meters in 1986, Yonaguni Island became a place of many mysteries. The main one: is that place created by nature or by human? Some scientists suppose that the underwater city is contemporary of the Incas pyramids and draw parallels with Machu Picchu. The monument is more than 10,000 years old, and excavations are still ongoing.

Like any mysterious place, Yonaguni is surrounded with mystical theories. For example, some suppose that the city was founded by an extraterrestrial civilization. Others think that pyramids were constructed by disappeared nations. There are more proofs of a man-made creation of terraces, so more people support this idea. Despite differences of opinion, scientists agreed that Yonaguni is a "terra-formation", a place created by nature, but transformed by man.

You can get to the underwater buildings from the city of Naha and from the island of Ishigaki. The ruins are situated near the southern shore of Yonaguni Island. You can book a tour in local diving-club.

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If you haven't seen underwater sculptures on the Internet (check it out, it's creepy), then you should definitely find it, and you most likely will want to go there on your next trip. However, if you were going to spend your vacation somewhere next to white beaches of Cancun, you must visit this Underwater museum.

Even if the museum looks ancient, in fact it was opened in 2010. The idea belongs to British sculptor Jason Taylor. Despite high touristic interest, this place was created to begin a dialogue about the importance of conservation of environment. Full-size sculptures of people are symbols of man living in the kingdom of nature. Also, the statues are base for coral reefs that are home to marine organisms.

The sculptures in the museum are divided into several areas and they are situated in two galleries: one is 4 meters deep, another one – 8. You can visit the first one without aqualung if you take an excursion on transparent bottom boat. But you'll have to go deep to see the whole museum.

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This lake in Styria, at the foot of the mountain Hochschwab, is in fact, the park, which in late spring and the first half of summer goes under water. In May, when the meltwater comes down from the glaciers and peaks of mountains, the lake becomes full, the paths and trees are under water, and everything becomes surreal. If you have ever imagined how a submarine park in Atlantis would look like, then Green Lake is quite comparable with an underwater civilization.

The water reaches its peak in June, that time divers come here to see famous flooded green meadows. Because of the clear snow water, visibility can reach 20 meters, and even the tall trees are covered with water. From August to April, all the water goes away, leaving no hint that in the first months of summer everything here looks completely different.

It is important to know that only divers with a special ID card can dive into the lake. Near the lake you can rent equipment and book a tour, which includes accommodation and diving. Now diving in Green Lake is temporarily unavailable, so we advise you to save this article in order not to forget to check the information when you are ready to dive.


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