Corinth Canal: Europe's 2,500 year old mini Suez Canal

The Corinth Canal is one of the engineering wonders of the world and stands comparison with any of the other man-made waterways such as the Suez and Panama canals. It is one of the oldest such canals in the world and a very important navigational route in the Greek archipelago connecting the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf.

The Corinth Canal cuts through the isthmus of Corinth in Greece, connecting the Ionian Sea with the Aegean.

Corinth is also an archaeological site with many ancient landmarks, such as the Apollo temple and the Acrocorinth, the Acropolis of ancient Corinth.

Spanning a distance of 6.3 kilometres, the Corinth Canal has a depth of 26 feet, and its width alters between a minimum of 69 feet and a maximum of 82 feet at the bottom and at the surface, respectively.

Surrounded by walls standing at a height of 170 feet, the canal helps ships to save a journey of 185 nautical miles.

The first person credited with the idea is Periander, one of the Seven Sages of ancient Greece and the ruler of Corinth in the late seventh century BCE.

Accounts from the time say his plan was abandoned after Pythia, the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi and the god’s mouthpiece, proclaimed that such an endeavor would incur “the Gods’ wrath”.

The canal was opened on July 25, 1893 amid much pomp and ceremony. It closed for maintenance work costing £27 million in 2021, before opening again in June 2022.

However, it again closed in October 2022 for further restoration works, before reopening in June 2023.

The Canal has attracted all kinds of visitors. Greek choreographer and dancer Katerina Soldatou is one such person. She performed above the Corinth Canal, as part of the Greece Has Soul project on May 30, 2017.

Swimming competitions have also been held in the canal. Here participants of a "swim across the canal" race swim through the 6,346-metre long Corinth canal in September 2017.