Skip to content

Top Navigation

Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure
  • Trip Inspiration
  • Plan Your Trip
  • Travel Guides
  • World's Best
  • Destination of the Year
  • A-List Travel Advisors
  • Cruises
  • Travel Tips
  • News
  • Food + Drink
  • Travel Accessories
  • Check-In

Profile Menu

Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Travel + Leisure

Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure
  • Explore

    Explore

    • World's Best

      The greatest islands, cities, hotels, cruise lines, airports, and more — as voted by you. Read More Next
    • The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2021

      Whether you're traveling solo or planning a family vacation, here are the 50 best places to visit in 2021. Read More Next
    • Let's Go Together Podcast

      Start listening to T+L's brand new podcast, Let's Go Together! Hosted by Kellee Edwards. Read More Next
  • Trip Inspiration

    Trip Inspiration

    • Trip Ideas
    • Weekend Getaways
    • Spring Travel
    • Summer Travel
    • Fall Travel
    • Winter Travel
    • Solo Travel
    • Romantic Getaways
    • Luxury Travel
    • Beach Vacations
    • Adventure Travel
    • Road Trips
    • Family Travel
    • National Parks
    • Holiday Travel
    • Travel Photography
    • Photo of the Day
    • Culture and Design
  • Plan Your Trip

    Plan Your Trip

    • Travel Deals
    • Attractions
    • Amusement Parks
    • Festivals and Events
    • Bus and Trains
    • Flight Deals
    • Budget Travel
    • Hotels and Resorts
    • Disney Vacations
    • Airlines and Airports
    • Ground Transportation
  • Travel Guides
  • World's Best

    World's Best

    • Top Hotels
    • Top Cities
    • Top Islands
    • Domestic Airlines
    • International Airlines
    • Tours
    • Safaris
    • All World's Best
  • Destination of the Year
  • A-List Travel Advisors
  • Cruises

    Cruises

    • Find A Cruise
    • Caribbean Cruises
    • River Cruises
    • European Cruises
    • All-Inclusive Cruises
    • Family Cruises
    • Alaskan Cruises
    • Disney Cruises
    • See All Cruise Vacations
  • Travel Tips

    Travel Tips

    • Travel Trends
    • Packing Tips
    • Points + Miles
    • Budgeting + Currency
    • Customs + Immigration
    • Responsible Travel
    • Travel Etiquette
    • Travel Warnings
    • Weather
    • Mobile Apps
    • See All Travel Tips
  • News

    News

    • Wellness
    • Celebrity Travel
    • Animals
    • Jobs
    • Offbeat
    • See All News
  • Food + Drink

    Food + Drink

    • Restaurants
    • Wine
    • Beer
    • Cocktails + Spirits
    • Bars + Clubs
    • Celebrity Chefs
    • Cooking + Entertaining
    • Food Fairs + Festivals
    • World's Best Restaurants
    • See All Food + Drink
  • Travel Accessories

    Travel Accessories

    • Travel Bags
    • Shoes
    • Travel Tech
    • Shopping
    • Style
    • Gift Guides
    • See All Travel Accessories
  • Check-In

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home
  2. Adventure Travel
  3. 10 Incredibly Preserved Shipwrecks Around the World

10 Incredibly Preserved Shipwrecks Around the World

By Erika Owen
September 05, 2016
Skip gallery slides
Save Pin
Credit: Getty Images
If there’s one thing that will get both diving enthusiasts’ and historians’ hearts aflutter, it’s a good shipwreck. There are hundreds—and then some!—around the world, and that's only counting those that have been discovered. Some can be visited today with the safety of a diving suit and professional diving classes. Others can’t be explored in person, but are visible from the comfort and dry distance of a sandy shore. And some require a bit of faith in the words of historians and other divers. 

Trained diver or not, you’re going to want to know about these 10 shipwrecks. Some are paradises for adventurers seeking close encounters with local reef wildlife; a few were intentionally sent to a watery death to create artificial reefs for different marine species. If you’re into wartime supplies and artillery, there are even a few on this list that haven’t been touched since going under during World War II. And even if you’re just a fan of pretty underwater photos, you’re in the right place. 
Start Slideshow

1 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

SS President Coolidge, Vanuatu

Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Few divers are allowed to access this site, so be sure to book well in advance with a registered guide who is allowed on the private property where this shipwreck is located. In 1983, the local government declared that no artifacts or salvage attempts can be made on this site, making it a goldmine for divers who want to take in a bit of sunken (and mostly untouched) history.

1 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

General Hoyt S. Vanderburg, Key West

Credit: Florida FIsh and Wildlife/Flickr CC BY-ND 2.0

This shipwreck was completely planned. Once a member of a “Ghost Fleet"—decommissioned military ships left to rust—the General Hoyt S. Vanderburg was intentionally sunk near Key West in an effort to nurture and encourage the growth of a coral reef.

2 of 10

3 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Eduard Bohlen, Namibia Desert

Credit: UIG via Getty Images

Unlike most shipwrecks, the Eduard Bohlen is partially buried beneath sand, not water. Located in Namibia—less than a mile from the nearest water source, in fact—this ship is now part of the Namib Desert. After hitting a sand bank on a voyage in 1909, all passengers were able to escape unharmed, but the ship was left to watch the tide slowly recede.

3 of 10

Advertisement

4 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

“Russian Wreck, ” Zabagad Island

Credit: ullstein bild via Getty Images

Some believe the mysterious “Russian Wreck,” found off the coast of Zabagad Island in the South Egyptian Red Sea in 1988, was a spy ship. Why? Communication masts, batteries, and directional tools were discovered on-board. Of course, many others believe it was just a humble fishing vessel.

4 of 10

5 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Kittiwake Wreck, Grand Cayman

Credit: Getty Images

In its prime, the USS Kittiwake was a submarine rescue vessel. Today, it serves as the home of an artificial reef flourishing off the coast of Grand Cayman’s Seven Mile Beach. You can dive out to this one, but there are rules: no touching anything, no gloves, and no fishing allowed—with one exception. You are allowed to cull the area's invasive lionfish.

5 of 10

6 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Sea Tiger Wreck, Honolulu

Credit: Getty Images/Perspectives

Formerly a Chinese trading vessel, the Sea Tiger was seized in the early 90s for transporting nearly 100 illegal immigrants. Before the turn of the century, it was intentionally sent underwater, much to the diving community’s delight. With large populations of reef sharks, moray eels, white eagle rays, sea turtles, and more, it's hailed as one of the best places to view marine life.

6 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

The Sweepstakes, Ontario

Credit: Getty Images/All Canada Photos

The Sweepstakes sunk in 1885, after hitting a rock near Cove Island in Ontario. It was later relocated to the head of Big Tub Harbor in Fathom Five National Marine Park. You can still see the shipwreck right below the surface of the clear, blue waters—even the hull remains intact. Unfortunately, divers are no longer allowed to enter this site.

7 of 10

8 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

SS Yongala, Australia

Credit: Getty Images

This is Australia’s largest shipwreck, located off the shores of Cape Bowling Green. The SS Yongala sank in 1911 during a cyclone. No life rafts from the ship were found after the storm, despite a seven-day search. It took half a century before the wreck was discovered and identified in 1958.

8 of 10

9 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

The Umbria, Sudan

Credit: ullstein bild via Getty Images

You’ll find long-forgotten wartime supplies on this wreck (aerial bombs, detonators, electric cable), and, in surprising contradiction, Fiat 1100 Lunga motorcars. Because of its highly dangerous cargo, this shipwreck remains incredibly untouched and rests easy at the bottom of Wingate Reef in Sudan.

9 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 10

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

SS Thistlegorm, Egypt

Credit: Getty Images

You’ll find this wreck near Ras Muhammad National Park in the Red Sea. On a voyage to Alexandria with ammunition, Bedford trucks, two complete steam locomotives, and railway wagons (just to name a few pieces of cargo), twin bombs dropped by German aircrafts struck the ship, sending it to its watery gravesite.

10 of 10

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Erika Owen

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 10 SS President Coolidge, Vanuatu
2 of 10 General Hoyt S. Vanderburg, Key West
3 of 10 Eduard Bohlen, Namibia Desert
4 of 10 “Russian Wreck, ” Zabagad Island
5 of 10 Kittiwake Wreck, Grand Cayman
6 of 10 Sea Tiger Wreck, Honolulu
7 of 10 The Sweepstakes, Ontario
8 of 10 SS Yongala, Australia
9 of 10 The Umbria, Sudan
10 of 10 SS Thistlegorm, Egypt

Share options

Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message
Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap
  • Travel Guide Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletters
Other Travel + Leisure Sites
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
Travel + Leisure is part of the Travel + Leisure Group. Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. Travel + Leisure is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation Travel + Leisure Group All Rights Reserved, registered in the United States and other countries. Travel + Leisure may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.travelandleisure.com

View image

10 Incredibly Preserved Shipwrecks Around the World
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.