Epidaurus
UNESCO World Heritage Site: Sanctuary Of Asklepios At Epidaurus (1988) The Healing Sanctuary And Its Fourth Century BC Theatre, Famous For Its Acoustics And Still Used For Summer Drama · Lygourio, Peloponnese
Epidaurus was the most famous healing sanctuary of the ancient Greek world, the home of Asklepios, god of medicine, where the sick came from all over the Mediterranean to bathe, sacrifice and sleep in a sacred hall hoping the god would cure them in a dream. What most people come for today is its theatre, built in the late fourth century BC in the hills of the Argolid: a sweep of limestone seats for some 14,000 people, so well preserved and so finely proportioned that it is often called the most perfect theatre of antiquity. Its acoustics are real - a coin dropped or a whisper on the round orchestra floor carries to the top rows - and on summer evenings the Athens Epidaurus Festival still stages ancient tragedy and comedy here, as it has since the 1950s. Behind the theatre lie the ruins of the sanctuary, with the Tholos, the Abaton, the stadium and a small museum. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988. The honest caveat: the sanctuary is flat and faint beside the theatre, and when the coaches arrive the acoustic test becomes a chorus of claps.
Sanctuary of Asklepios and Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, near Lygourio, Argolida; about 30 km east of Nafplio, Lygourio, Peloponnese, Greece
A state archaeological site, open daily all year. Summer hours (roughly April to October) run from about 08:00 to 19:00 or 20:00, winter hours are much shorter, often about 08:00 to 15:30-17:00, and last entry is usually 15-30 minutes before closing. On festival performance days in July and August the theatre can close to day visitors earlier in the afternoon for rehearsals - confirm. Closed on 1 January, 25 March, 1 May, Easter Sunday and 25-26 December. It is about 2 hours by car from Athens via Corinth and about 40 minutes from Nafplio; KTEL Argolida buses run from Nafplio a few times a day (confirm times) and extra buses run on performance nights. Day tickets need no booking; festival seats should be booked weeks ahead.