Excursion to the north slope of Mount Etna

Description

ITINERARY  EXCURSION TO THE NORTH SLOPE OF MOUNT ETNA

The point of departure is Piano Provenzana, in the north slope of Etna, famous for having been destroyed by the eruption of 2002. You will be accompanied by licensed mountain or volcanologist guides.

• You will ride special 4X4 off-road vehicles along the scenic route that leads to the Volcano Observatory (located at an altitude of 2.850 meters). The first stop is Hotel delle Betulle: it was destroyed by the eruption of 2002 as the whole area around it, but is the only visible facility of those who were there.

• Then, you will reach the craters Umberto and Margherita (at an altitude of 2.380 meters), where we will trek around the edges.

• After that, you’ll go up with the off-road vehicles to the Volcano Observatory Pizzi Deneri (at an altitude of 2.818 meters). There, you will trek for about 15 minutes until we reach the top of the promontory at an altitude of 2.850 meters. You will be amazed at the breathtaking view: if weather conditions are good, you will see the Aeolian Island and the whole eastern coast from Taormina to Siracusa. You will also be able to see the summit craters and the magnificent Valle del Bove below, a huge u-shaped valley.

• Once you get back in the vehicles, you will reach the area destroyed in 2002 (at an altitude of 1.900 meters). From there, you will trek on the edges of the so-called “button panel” craters at an altitude of about 2.050 meters.

• At the end of the excursion you will get back to Piano Provenzana.

NOTES

Our excursion on Mount Etna lasts about two and a half hours. The difficulty level is quite low and accessible to children over 3 years (but is not recommended for people with cardiovascular or respiratory diseases).

You will be accompanied by licensed mountain or volcanologist guides who will guarantee your safety in every moment of the excursion. For this reason, they may modify the itinerary in case of adverse circumstances.