Navagio, Beach with limestone cliffs in Zakynthos, Greece

Navagio is a beach with light sand and blue water on the northwest coast of Zakynthos. Steep limestone cliffs surround the bay and rise more than 200 meters above the Ionian Sea.

The cove was first called Agios Georgios, after the monastery on the cliff above. On 5 October 1980 the coaster MV Panagiotis ran aground here in stormy weather while, according to court documents, carrying contraband cigarettes from Turkey to Italy; the crew abandoned ship to evade the pursuing coast guard. The wreck stayed in the limestone gravel and gave the beach its nickname. A cliff collapse closed the beach in 2018, and after a September 2022 landslide it was shut again from 2023.

Before the 1980 wreck the cove was called Agios Georgios, after the monastery on the cliff above. Local residents remember that for days afterwards cigarette packets from the hold washed up on the surrounding sea. The beach later appeared in the Korean drama Descendants of the Sun, drawing many Chinese and Korean visitors.

The beach can only be reached by boat as there are no roads to it. Trips start from nearby ports and usually last three to four hours.

The cove was first called Agios Georgios, after the monastery on the cliff above; Italian sources give the fuller name San Giorgio delle Rocce. Locals remember that for days after the grounding, cigarette packs from the hold washed up in the surrounding sea. Court documents later indicated the Panagiotis was carrying contraband cigarettes from Turkey toward Italy.