Tour Program

• MEETING POINT > RIFUGIO SAPIENZA 1950 MT

  From our meeting point (or from your hotel) the guide will begin to illustrate the peculiarities of the Etna area. Along the roads that ascend to the volcano there are already many points of interest, from the lava flows to the "dagale", to the vegetation that has managed to adapt to particular environmental conditions. In about 30/50 minutes you will reach the famous Rif. Sapienza at an altitude of 1950 where you will leave our vehicle and continue with the Etna cableway.

• ASCENT BY CABLE CAR - UP TO 2500
  

  The first part of the ascent - from 1950 to 2510 meters - will therefore take place with the cable car. A pioneering ski lift project that has challenged the volcano since 1955. 5 times this tourist facility has been devoured by lava. The panorama of the Gulf of Catania and the slopes of the southern slope with recent and ancient tongues of lava will stand out higher and higher.

• UP TO 2900 MT BY SPECIAL OFFROAD TRACK
  

  From the Etna cableway station, where there is also the possibility of a short stop at the bathroom or for a coffee, we will board the special UNIMOG vehicles, unstoppable off-road vehicles with 28/30 seats. We will then cross the Piano del Lago, so called because of the presence in the past of a seasonal lake that was formed due to the melting of the snow. After the 2001 eruption it no longer exists and has been covered by a volcanic cone (the cone of the pond) about 80 meters high. In about 15 minutes you will reach the base of the summit craters in the area called Torre del Filosofo (about 2900 meters)

• TORRE DEL FILOSOFO - CRATERI BARBAGALLO 2900 MT
  

  Once at the former Torre del Filosofo (the refuge was submerged by lava in 2013!), A non-demanding walk will take place on the edge of the side craters that were the protagonists of the 2002 eruption (excursion suitable for everyone, not recommended due to the altitude only to newborns and heart patients). From these altitudes it will be possible to admire the panorama that sweeps from the nearby summit craters, located a few hundred meters in front of us, up to the Ionian Sea, Calabria and on clear days a good part of Sicily.

• VISIT INTO A LAVA TUBE
  

  Returning to the parking lot, the tour will continue with our guide for an interesting visit in a lava flow cave, adequately equipped with helmet and front light. Etna is very rich in volcanic caves, over 250 known ones, which were formed due to the thickening of the lava due to the solidification of the outer layer of the eruptive flow in contact with the air. Once the cooling is complete, the extraordinary morphologies connected to the passage of the fluid and incandescent lava remain visible: remelting stalactites, bubbles, shelves, rolls and more.