Parco dell'Etna Travel Guide
-
Parco dell'Etna
by brendareed
-
-
-
Transportation
by brendareed
-
Things to Do
by brendareed
Explore Parco dell'Etna
Jeep Trip after the Cable Car?
rosata Says:
When you pay for the cable car there is the option to add on the jeep trip. If you pay for this too when you reach the top of the cable car you wait for the next jeep to fill up and the driver is then your guide. He gives information about the volcano and takes the...
Cable Car to the Next Level?
rosata Says:
You book and pay at the Funivia dell'Etna office and catch the next cable car. At the same time decide before you set off if you would like to pay for the jeep to take you further up after the cable car. There is a sign that people with heart conditions cannot travel.The...
Rifugio Sapienza - Etna Sud
rosata Says:
Rifugio Sapienza at about 1900 metres above sea level is the highest driveable level on Mount Etna. Here there is parking, a hotel, the cable car to take you higher, the jeep trip to take you higher still, cafes, souvenir shops.I have been here numerous times and each time...
Flora and Fauna
rosata Says:
PAGE UNDER CONSTRUCTIONIt is wonderful to see plants and trees and wildlife high on the lava slopes of Mount Etna.
Walks on Mount Etna
rosata Says:
There is a website given below with a list of 11 marked walks (sentieri in Italian) on Mount Etna.I will post more information as I walk them, so far so good.As with any of the walks it is a good idea to have a walking pole or two and don't forget the binoculars.
Silvestri Crater at Rifugio Sapienza
brendareed Says:
Close to the rather large parking lot at Rifugio Sapienza is one of the highlights for many people, but especially for those for whatever reason cannot go higher up on Mount Etna (accessible at this point only by the cableway or four-wheel-drive vehicles) – the Silvestri...
Lava fields near Piano Provenzano
brendareed Says:
This was the highlight of Hubby’s trip to Sicily. Having previously lived in Hawaii where we toured the volcanoes on the Big Island, and we have visited the Mount St. Helen’s volcano in Washington State, USA, so we were no stranger to lava flows and the devastation that can...
The top of the Tour (Pt3)
hquittner Says:
Off the bus the only places you can go are up or down. The terrain is unvarying but there are vistas.This is 2900m so do not run! (The buses go no further up).The time allotted allows for a climb to the nearby ridge(up;recommended for the able), or to the Torre del...
Ascent of Mt. Etna (Pt2)
hquittner Says:
Your bus lets you out at a level area with a slight decline. The path is over cool or slightly warm dry lava and ascends at less than 8 degrees for some 500 ft where you can look into the Valle del Bove and acroos the expanse. We did not go up but my son and his wife...
The present day tourist ascent of Mt. Etna (Pt.1)
hquittner Says:
Presently there are only 2(?) ways to ascend Mt. Etna. One is to be lodged at the hostel at Refugio Sapienza(el. 1900m)and be young, strong in good climbing condition, properly informed and dressed;get up early (it is a 4+ hr trek). The details on how you do this I do not...
Parking at Etna
brendareed Says:
Parking at the southern site Rifugio Sapienza and the Silvestri Crater was no problem at the end of November. There is a very large two level parking lot and we were the only car in it. Another area for buses had one bus in it. I imagine that in the middle of summer and...
Getting there
brendareed Says:
Getting to Mount Etna was the most problematic part of my trip planning since I could not find any really good advice for how to do this. Most of the sites online seem to be run by tour companies that gave me the impression that we had to take a tour bus. Well, this was not...
near Rifugio Sapienza: Souvenir Shops
rosata Says:
Quite a few cafes and restaurants and souvenir shops and the Rifugio Sapienza hotel selling food. At the top of the cable car there is a cafe and souvenir shop.Next to the car park there is a whole bank of shops selling post cards and gifts. A lot of the trinkets are made...
Shops and eateries: Shops and eateries
brendareed Says:
There are two locations with shops and cafés to eat in at Mount Etna that we came across. Because it was the end of the November, many of these shops were closed. Although we did find a wonderful little souvenir stand at Piano Provenzano that we enjoyed shopping in with...
Truck Stand: Citrus Scented Honey
hquittner Says:
This is an easy place to buy the world's most unusual flavored honey. It tastes just like the honey served for breakfast at our hotel nearby.They say it is shipped world-wide. It comes in orange and lemon (also lime?).The jars are of varying sizes for an easy...
Erupting Volcano
rosata Says:
Mount Etna volcano has been erupting frequently in 2013 and still continues. No towns have been affected by the lava. Some towns to the east and to the south east as far as the coast have been affected by ash. The airport at Catania has remained open until unfortunately...
Sicilian Hounds
brendareed Says:
We had read in our guide book about the cirneco, a breed of dog native to the Etna area. But we didn’t expect to meet one of these Sicilian hounds while there. However, as we were walking up to the Silvestri Crater, one of these dogs walked past us. Three more greeted us at...
Visit the Botanical Gardens
rosata Says:
Yes, there is a Botanical Garden named the 'Nuova Gussonea' created by the Forestry Commission and the University of Catania on the southern slope of Mount Etna at 1700 - 1750 metres above sea level. The significant plants of the area are grown to gain insight into the...
Monte Zoccolaro & Valle del Bove
rosata Says:
Descending the mountain from Rifugio Sapienza on the SP92 in the direction of Zafferana Etnea turn left at a junction marked Monte Pomiciaro. Last time we were there (September 2012) the road sign stated the road was closed but we went anyway and it was asphalted and fine to...
Run the Mount Etna Marathon!
Helpfulness
rosata 148 reviews
*15th June 2013 - the date for this year's marathon.
I saw this poster when I was at the Parco dell'Etna office last year (2012).
If anybody would like me to find information about it, please PM me.
Updated Apr 4, 2013
Website: http://www.supermaratonadelletna.tk/
Explore Deeper into Parco dell'Etna
Comments