Liveaboard diving in

Zenobia Wreck

  • Diver level:

    Advanced

  • Depth max:

    42 m

  • Visibility:

    to 50m
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Must see
Wreck
Legendary wreck
Top-50 dive sites of the world

Zenobia Wreck is the most famous dive site on Cyprus and one of the best in the world. It was a Swedish ferry (172m/564ft long) that carried trucks and sank close to Larnaca (south-east of Cyprus) in June of 1980. More than 100 trucks were still shackled in place when the ship went down. Some of those trucks are still hanging on chains on the deck of the ship and are well preserved. The internal compartments of Zenobia are of particular interest. A large number of transitions and the interiors is still intact. It is still possible to sit in the cabs of trucks and the majority of the cargo remains is still recognizable. Zenobia is suitable for newly qualified divers (16m/52ft depth along the starboard side of the ship) as well as for experienced recreational divers who can swim around the wreck and make some gentle penetrations into the wreck in the light zone. Experienced technical divers can explore the ship's cargo decks and accommodation block right up to extremely adventurous dives within the lower car deck or the engine room (max depth of 42m/137ft). Another point of interest is the more easily accessible bridge and the mess hall just below.

When To Go Diving

The water temperatures vary throughout the year, with the low being around 16C/60 and the high around 30C/86F. The best diving conditions are from May to September when the water temperature ranges from 22C/71 to 32C/89F.

What to see

Large schools of conger eels, grouper, rainbow wrasse, bream, barracuda, moray eels along with many other species including large tuna, nudibranchs and scorpion fish made this ship their home.


Reviews about Zenobia Wreck

Diving in Cyprus and the Zenobia
Yes there are fish in Cyprus! We had heard a lot about this ship wreck in Cyprus as it is ranked in the “Top Ten Dive Sites in the World”. After some research, we quickly established that Alpha Divers were the experts for the Zenobia Ship Wreck so we contacted them directly. Chris, the owner of the dive center, was very helpful, providing us with all the information we required. Moreover, he arranged for us everything we needed including accommodation, car rental, pick up/drop off from the airport, tips and ideas on what to... Read more
do after diving! The dive center also has its own luxury apartments which are rented on a weekly basis (from what we heard at excellent rates).The dive center is in Larnaca, very close to loads of hotels, restaurants, bars, supermarkets and of course the beach. From the moment we stepped in we realized that the Alpha Divers team was very organized and professional! Impeccable, brand new diving equipment, if you didn’t have your own, is a big plus! What impressed us the most was that they use one of the best and most expensive regulators available on the market (Mares Abyss). Furthermore, they pay a lot of attention to health and safety and have very experienced staff! Thanks Sam for diving with us!! The dive centre has a big and spacious boat with which they go diving to the Zenobia daily but also to many other interesting dive sites in the surrounding areas. Cyprus has quite a few ship wrecks (the champagne yacht, the Alexandria, the HMS cricket) so it is paradise for wreck divers. Even if you don’t have the wreck diving specialty you can see a great deal at the Zenobia. It is one of the few wrecks still intact, with all its cargo untouched! Its cargo includes 104 lorries, industrial machinery, air conditions, toys, paint containers and egg cartons which are still there, intact and in great condition. Plus the Zen, as locals call it, still has its huge propellers which, rumor has it, are worth $250,000 each! Another thing that really impressed us was the marine life we saw around the Zen. We have not seen so much life and fish diversity in any other place in the Mediterranean. The wreck has become an artificial reef and is encrusted with sea life and numerous schools of local fish. Visibility is excellent which altogether makes it one of the best dive sites in the World
2015-04-04
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