Piano Provenzana is the perfect meeting point (map) for this side of the volcano, and specifically, you’ll be meeting the volcanological guide at 8:30am in front of the Etna Travel ticket stand.

The guide will take a moment to do a briefing and then the ascending will begin with the help of special 4×4 vehicles (ticket not included) that will lead you to 2950 m.

After taking some pictures of the landscape, we’ll start trekking on old and recent lava fields to reach the edge of the Summit Craters at 3330 m of altitude.

The trekking on the summit area will start and it will give you the opportunity of admiring the North-East crater, the South-East crater, the Bocca Nuova (New Mouth) and the Voragine (Abyss). The degassing activity with its copious fumaroles will make the scenery more suggestive and unique. Our trekking on the summit area might vary based on the volcanic activity of the moment.

We’ll start descending through volcanic sands to reach Piano delle Concazze: the breath-taking landscape will show us the Valle del Leone (Lion Valley) and the most famous Valle del Bove (Ox Valley), giving us an unforgettable and spectacular view.

The special 4×4 vehicles will lead us at the starting point.

In particular for this type of excursions, Etna Est guides have the authority to make changes to the excursions or stop the tour at any time if safety conditions are not good enough due to weather or possible volcanic hazards.

In order to avoid any risk, it is good to be fully aware of your health conditions and inform your guide about them. Here are some important notes regarding safety:

Pregnant women who have passed the third month of pregnancy are not allowed any kind of hiking activity.

For anyone with heart problems, asthma and dizziness, any type of hiking activity is not recommended, whether at lower or higher altitudes

For all hikes but especially those leading to the summit area, due to the continuous presence of windblown volcanic ash, the use of contact lenses is forbidden

The excursions may, at the guide’s discretion, be changed or interrupted if weather conditions, environmental causes, or possible volcanic risk pose any source of danger.

It is also at the guide’s discretion to stop the excursion for any reason that may compromise the safety and thus the physical integrity of an individual or the entire group.