Epidaurus is best known for its healing sanctuary (asclepieion) and the Sanctuary of Asclepius, situated about five miles (8 km) from the town, with its theatre, which is still in use today. The cult of Asclepius at Epidaurus is attested in the 6th century BC, when the older hill-top sanctuary of Apollo Maleatas was no longer spacious enough. It was the most celebrated healing centre of the Classical world, the place where ill people went in the hope of being cured. To find out the right cure for their ailments, they spent a night in the enkoimeteria, a big sleeping hall. In their dreams, the god himself would advise them what they had to do to regain their health. Within the sanctuary there was a guest house (katagogion) with 160 guest rooms. There are also mineral springs in the vicinity, which may have been used in healing.
