best etna tour from catania
best etna tour from catania
If youre wondering who Norma was, its actually the name of an opera written by Bellini. The main harvests are during September and October, when the pistachios, almonds, and olives are ready to reap. 3. A great experience with very knowledgable guides! Summer offers the most pleasant temperatures, stable mountain weather and the least chance of cloudy days. Sicily offers some of the most amazing cultural sites youve ever seen. On actual hikes, carry plenty of bottled water and stay hydrated. Tours from Taormina (best hotel deals via booking.com): Both tours are perfect if you stay in Taormina in the spring, summer, or fall: You will get picked up at or near your hotel. Always bring a layer of clothes and a jacket, The typical temperature difference in July: Rifugio (1900m) vs. The views are stunning. You can always go on your own and use the public tours at Etna South if you like: Its allowed up to 2900 m with cable car and jeep or by hiking. Its a lot quieter with fewer tourists than Etna Sud, especially more relaxing for a visit during the busy summer season. But it is the large complex of tombs and temples in Agrigento that most visitors want to see, including the famous Tempio di Concordiaone of the best-preserved Doric temples in existence. Skiing as well of course. Additionally, avoid weekends, its less busy during the week. It also has the best transit and travel connections. Fantastic volcano. From here the guide either takes you to the low craters (short trek, 2,900 m, 40 minutes) or the higher craters (long trek (3,300 m). That means you book a private Etna tour on the north (east) side, as its unforgettable with great guides and less touristy than Etna South. Youll find the Information Desk in Arrivals, and its open from 6 am to midnight. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. We visited the summit with a local guide and its worth the money. These are balls of creamy risotto rice breaded and deep-fried. Visits to Etna and even hiking tours are still possible. Most of the nightlife is found in the two largest cities of Catania and Palermo. Check our Tours Section for our recommended tours. Learn all about how it was formed and the fascinating features inside. This is the most comprehensive Etna visit youll find from Catania. Mount Etna is an active volcano, so the ground around the island isnt as stable as most other places. A challenging hike up to 2750 mt and back on a fun downhill of volcanic ashes. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. However, if you choose a guided tour to the very top, youll see the same craters and volcanic landscape at the summit area. Catania is a student city and a focal point for Sicilys nightlife. To avoid the heavy crowds its recommended to start early in the morning. For example, you can buy jewelry made from the local coral, ornaments made from volcanic rock from Mount Etna, and traditional marionette puppets as used in the traditional Opera dei Pupi (Sicilian puppet theater). Your adventure in Sicily begins right here! During this time, they built a grand cathedral in Monreale. Sicily has a well-developed public transport system, so its easy to get around by train or bus. After a safety briefing, youll ascend 8,000 feet up the slopes of Mount Etna in a cable car before transferring into a 44 bus. Summit Area (2,800 m, 3,300m): With the large jeep you reach the summit area: Torre del Filosofo. The easiest way is to choose a tour with pick-up service either from Taormina or Catania (depending on where youre staying). Catania has a small terminal with a good selection of food outlets and shops, including a post office and duty-free. Since Sicily is less than 2 miles away from mainland Italy, its also easy to get there by taking a short ferry crossing which costs around 13. To explore the Norman historic sites of Monreale and Palermo, find a hotel in the northwest. If your health condition allows it, choose a tour to the higher summit craters (3,300 m). 4WD excursions are organized from here, and hikers can take the 3-hours hikes from here to the cone of Etna. In the winter, a pre-booked tour (see below) is highly recommended instead of going up on your own. When packing, take a hat for shade, plenty of sunscreen, and well broken-in shoes. Private tours require pre-booking of course. Short trek 2,900 m and long trek 3,300 m: 1) Rifugio Sapienza (Funivia) > 2) Mountain Station (Jeep/44) > 3) Summit Area. It takes around 50 minutes and costs 6.50. The landscape is less volcanic-like but still fascinating and much less touristy. The temperatures range from a high of 640F to a low of 550F. The heaviest crowds are at Rifugio Sapienza (read more below). If you want to snorkel and enjoy the water, summer is great. You can even get to 2,900 m and experience great views without a longer hike by taking the public short trek (see above): From Rifugio Sapienza, you take the cable car (Funivia), then get into the jeep and at the summit area its a 40-minute walk to the closer craters. From Linguaglossa you access Piano Provenzana. Taormina on the other hand is more like a typical tourist resort, but the transit connections arent as good. One of the highlights of the tour is exploring a lava tunnel created by flowing lava. Youll typically find it with a thick topping of cheese, onions, and anchovies. Copyright 2022 | World Guides To Travel | All Rights Reserved. Sicily is the place Italians come to enjoy the beach in summer, so be ready for huge crowds. I warmly suggest to walk along the sentiero dellasino, the donkey pathway. Long Trek (1-3 up to 3,300m): Same transport to the summit area (Funivia + Jeep). Be prepared for snow. He was stranded on the northern coast of Honduras following Category 5 Hurricane Mitch. Find the Etna excursion that suits you best! Especially in July and August, its ridiculously crowded and accommodation prices are at their highest (read below on how to avoid the crowds). Torta Setteveli is a delicious, seven-layered chocolate and hazelnut cake. By taxi or book a tour with pick-up service: You can see snow atop Mount Etna again, but the fields remain green. For Etna North, your starting point is Piano Provenzana and then hike to the top without a guide or book a guided hiking tour. The first day should be on a private pre-booked tour with excellent guides on the north side of Etna (north/east flank). However, as soon as you get to the top and start hiking further with a guide, youll get away from the masses of tourists anyway. As an alternative to the standard long or short trek or even going on a self-guided hike, you may also book a guided private tour in advance. The airport near Palermo is a little better. Alternative (taxi): If youre traveling with a small group of 2-4 persons, you may also take a taxi to Rifugio Sapienza. They can be identified by an illuminated TAXI sign atop a yellow or white vehicle. That means there is no way of getting to the high craters (3,300 m) on your own. If you want to hike up and down mountains or to the many wonderful ruins, avoid the midsummer heat and go in spring or the fall. A particularly large one in the 17th century changed the shape of the Sicilian coast with a huge outpouring of lava. If youre planning to go Etna touring, I believe one of these Mount Etna tours will be perfect for you. The season starts, yet April temperatures are not pleasant enough for most visitors and there is a chance of new snow. Enjoy a guided trek across a surreal landscape of recent lava flows and ancient craters. Mount Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. First of all, we strongly suggest staying 3 days or at least 2 days. Then, following a lunch break, youll be taken on a guided tour around the historic town of Taormina. Palermo is the largest city and where youll find the most hotels. You need to dress for cold temperatures and even colder wind. As a result, the landscape changes steadily as lava hardens, craters collapse and sometimes even new craters are created. You buy the tickets at their Meeting Point at Rifugio Sapienza. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Before your visit, do a few practice hikes up and down hills near home to prepare your muscles. Strombolian Eruption Mount Etna by Robin Wylie, CC BY. Your knowledgeable guide will explain all the volcanic features you experience and answer any queries you may have regarding local geology and history as you tour Etna. An easy hike and a tour enriched by the extraordinary light of the sunset on Etna. All without the hassle of taking care of everything! Dress accordingly. The Funivia (cable car, see below), as well as the jeeps (or snow-cats), run every day in winter, even during Christmas. From Rifugio Sapienza, you can hike up to 2,900 m from Rifugio Sapienza without a guide. However, Sicilian sfincione pizza has an unusually thick base. Where can I see a lava cave? In order to get to the 3300 m area, you either need to choose the public standard long trek (see above) or any privately pre-booked tour for the south side or north side. For safety reasons and a much better experience, we highly recommend booking a tour! Long-distance ferries also link Sicily to more distant places, including Malta and Tunisia as well as major Italian seaports like Genoa and Naples. Using the A18 costs 3.70 and the A20 10.10. There is no direct (public) bus connection from Taormina to Rifugio Sapienza. In winter, snow tops its peak providing fun for skiers and a beautiful skyline. The Ancient Greek amphitheater in Taormina is still used for performances today. Both offer stunning views. The guides from this tour operator are exceptional. Which tour should you choose? Pasta con le sarde is the equivalent seafood dish, with sardines, anchovy fillets, raisin, pine nuts, and saffron made into a sauce and poured onto a kind of spaghetti called bucantini. You can find the photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kimbar/363806251/in/photolist-y9AVz-wrzWeE-vCUVUf-AkYM9/, Etna Park is beautiful for its eruptions, its lava flows and the unique environment surrounding it. On the contrary! Schedule: 9 AM 5:30 PM. Temperature-wise May is better than April as temperatures are rising. Some visitors only do this quick visit and dont go further. Youll also visit an organic farm that makes use of the fertile volcanic soil beneath the volcano to grow grapes for wine and flowers for honey production. Some say that the hike up itself at Etna South can be a little monotonous until you get to the top. You can stay as long as you like and take the next jeep down. There you can see the craters created during the 1892 eruption and evidence of the latest eruptions. Read on for our detailed tips and the ways to visit and get to the top (Three options: A, B, C > read more below.
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