Etna: Trekking To The Summit Craters At 3,400 Meters

I wanted to go up Mount Etna and found this tour. I was expecting just to get driven most of the way to the top and then walk around a bit, but it was a lot more. The hiking was actually a bit of a challenge. We hiked for about 2 hours. A fair part of it was up steep inclines on a path made of volcanic ash, which is like pea gravel. Two steps up and one step back. We also had to climb across some lava rocks. They offered to rent us some boots at the start, and I am glad I did. The boots took all the damage that the volcano dealt out. I also got a hardhat, and a jacket, which I ended up not needing. Our guide was Sossio, who was awesome. While we were huffing and puffing up the mountain, he seemed to be out for a lovely stroll in a field. Some of the people in our group had heart rate monitors, and they reported 150, 160, even 170 beats per minute. Sossio looked at his watch and said "70." I guess he is used to the altitude. The view from the top was fantastic. We were above the clouds, and it was a clear day up there. We could see some smoke coming from the volcano, which had caused the airport to be closed a week prior. The rocks were stained yellow and green from the sulphur fumes. We even found ice buried just beneath the surface. BTW, it is super cold at the top, even on a warmish day, so bundle up (with layers). We didn't go to the tip-top, but we got pretty close. The fumes were pretty toxic. We tried to stay upwind of them, and mostly succeeded. Coming down, we had to sort of step-slide down a steep slope. Some people were just running down. It was a blast, but I didn't run. I could imagine doing a faceplant on that lava ash. Sossio entertained us with his in-depth knowledge about the mountain and its history. He even helped out when they filmed a scene from a Star Wars movie.

Driver Sossio was great but the guide didn’t offer much. The experience could have been replicated without the guide. I realistically paid for just the transport. It was a half day event so i still left seeing quite a bit of the volcano and landscape.

The experience was fantastic! Our driver, Sossio, was very friendly and professional, driving safely all the time. We had such an amazing time on our Etna excursion. We highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Sicily.

Highly recommend this Guide company (Sicilying: find your experience in Sicily): everything was well-organized, polite, positive and safety. We bought tour to Summit Etna 3400m and it worth that money and effort, we spent. Emotions are awesome. But this is not an easy tour, you should be really well-prepared physically. I want to admit separately our guid Djo - cool and professional guid, who took care about us and driver Sossio, who brought us to the meeting point and back (we ordered pick up from hotel, because we did not have car in Catania). Sossio drove us very accurately and safely, made a stop for us in a caffe for a breakfast with the best croissant I have ever eaten, with delicious coffee.

Sossio picked us up punctually and he’s very friendly. The view of etna was magnificent. Our guide Joe helped us a lot. It was tough but totally worth it

Well organised excursion with excellent communication regarding pick-up and changes to the itinerary due to Etna activity. Our driver Sossio was on time, friendly and a great driver. The excursion was well planned, equipment provided etc. We were able to hike from the cable car to 3000m, our guide was enthusiastic and took us to a crater rim and the lava cave and explained things well. Our only recommendation would be to perhaps group people by likely ability, ours was a very mixed group with some really struggling with the ascent/descent and frustrating those in the group who wanted more of a challenge and like us felt we could have gone farther and had more of an adventure if not limited. Our guide paced it well for the least fit but possibly needed to be firmer with those holding the group up to take constant photos and some who simply ignored the guides request to move on following the many regular stops

Fantastic, Sossio was prompt and courteous, and the volcano guide Emiliano was very informative and energetic

Well organised trip with great driver Sossio and very knowledgeable guide. We were looked after very well, Etna is a fascinating experience, I highly recommend this tour

The trip to Mount Etna was a wonderful experience from start to finish. Our driver, Sossio, was very friendly and drove us in a comfortable minivan. On the way to Etna, he stopped at a beautiful viewpoint so we could take some photos, and also stopped for a delicious breakfast. He was very communicative and helpful throughout the journey. Our volcanologist, Giuseppe, really made the excursion special. He has an excellent sense of humour and shared a huge amount of interesting information about Mount Etna. He was happy to answer all our questions and explained everything in a very engaging and easy-to-understand way. He also took some great photos for the whole group, which was a lovely bonus. Everything went smoothly and the entire excursion was relaxed, enjoyable and very well organised.

I had a blast. The work out was fun, view was amazing, guide Giuseppe was informative and very friendly. He kindly even offered us a lil snack. Driver Sossio was prompt, very friendly, and gave us a thrilling ride. He also made stops at a couple beautiful places to allow us to get breakfast and take pics. I very much appreciate that jackets and boots were provided because I didn't want to have to bring it from home. Overall, it was a very organized tour. Highly recommend!

This was an awesome day excursion from Catania. Our driver Sossio was great. He sent us messages in WhatsApp the day before to confirm all the pick up details and her arrived on time and was excellent. Our guide on Mt Etna was also amazing. If you are in Sicily, this is the one trip to book. Mt Etna is stunning and you will not be disappointed.

It was a unique experience, unfortunately they hav'nt said anything that the rail road in not included in our ticket so it was a disturbing situation when they said on the start of the volcano climb that we have to pay another 54 euro fee for the railroad. Otherwise everything was phenomenal, you need a bit of luck with the volcano to see these beautifull craters.

Sossio was the absolute boy. Super chill and great dude! Made the whole experience!

It was a very nice experience, from the transfer realised by Sossio, which arrived on time and drove us safe from Catania to Refuggio Sapienza and back, to the trekking part where the guide explained us in a detailed manner the mechanisms of the volcano. I recommend this experience for everyone who visits Catania.

Gabriele was our driver and introduced us to the volcanological guide in a very simple and professional way.

Fabulous, great guide, good food, excellent information on the city. Highly recommend

Amazing crew , amazing seilling. To do it it s just good time and fun. Tks to Poseidon and Carlota. If u go to Catania, just let s have a great moment on board

The tour was absolutely incredible! Our guide, Fabricio, was fantastic. He shared so much fascinating knowledge about Etna and ensured everyone was safe, making the experience truly unforgettable!! Walking there felt like stepping onto another planet. The most beautiful hike I have had so far! Highly recommend!

Captain Gioele and Mate Carlotta were so great. Carlotta was especially good at talking about the myths related to the Odysseus and the Cyclops. The snacks were quite refreshing, and the stop for swimming was fun.

It's been an amazing expierience to hike nearby the Etna with the Guys. From the very beginnig we felt very comfortable and taken care of. The guide himself was very expierienced, the tour was really informative. The pace of the hike was adjusted as per group needs. The views were simply amazing. Definitely worth it.

I had a great trip. Emmanuele and Joëlle were great company and had good stories to tell. There was plenty of time to swim, enjoy the views and the prosecco + snacks were nice.

Sail with these guys was amazing experience, we can trully recomended it to everyone who want to have experience like this. Big thanks to our cptn Joel and the curlly girl (I forgot the name sorry ;)

Joel and Jasmine had great energy and personality throughout this beautiful boat day. They had a bunch of knowledge of the views we passed and the light snacks and time for swimming was the perfect amount!

This was a very nice and relaxed experience with a nice crew on a clean boat. Good narrative along the way, nice low key snorkeling possible during stop at Aci Trezzi.

So nice break out of busy city. We got nice sailboat and saw wonderful views on the coast. Special thanks to our lovely hosts Giovanni and Jasmine ❤️

It was really great, Giovanni and Jasmine were really friendly and whole 4 hours were more than enough for this trip. Best Prosecco and snacks.

Giovanni and Roberto our crew were fantastic. The sailboat was nice, the small group was great. Would do the trip again.

Amazing crew and captain. The highlight of our trip. Had a group of 7 with some kids and Jasmine did a great job along with Capt David in making everyone feel welcome and safe.

Amazing experience , great swim and snorkel and enjoyed dolphins. Crew was lovely and giving a great service. Would definitely recommend

Friendly skipper and guide. A beautiful trip with snorkling - saw lots of fish. Delicious food and lots of information given about local food. Thank you Davide and Carlotta. A very peaceful and beautiful experience.

Just brilliant! Very relaxing but fun to, out on the sea with Francesco our skipper and Carolalina. Would recommend this trip.

I loved this experience. The captain and Sofia were great. This was a great experience and a good value I would do this again

Beautiful trip. Well taken care of BTW crew. Food good and trip back in the evening sun great. Sea temperature almost warm enough...

Lovely trip staff were knowledgeable and took time to provide information on the area and landmarks. Lovely lunch and drinks. Would highly recommend.

Great value and would highly recommend. The Lemoncello after aperitif was perfectly timed. We had an unexpected preview of air display as well.

Fantastic day! Serena was amazing, great understanding of English, sharing knowledge with us and us sharing English with her too! She was only ever a text away when at each stop and let us explore on our own. She was great as a driver who knew the roads, including the way others drive. 5 star service all day. Thank you for a fantastic trip!

We had the best day on Etna doing the adventure hike. Arrangements to pick us up were good and the driver was very courteous. Fabrizzio the guide made our day.... he was fun, knowledgeable, looked after the group really well and ensured everyone had a good experience. We feel very privileged to have been on this trip.

Wonderful morning with alot of food and good information about Catania city and where to go afterwards for seightseeing. Alessandra did a great job in making this tour rekaxing, interesting and fun.

Alexandria was an excellent guide. Very friendly. Always answered every question. Listened carefully to us. And gave us a great tour of Centro Catania. I highly recommend her.

Really lovely driver , very attentive, on time and pro active with communication! Shared great stories and information about Sicily. Would definitely recommend!

Amazing day! Special thanks for our tour guide, Fabrizio, who was very knowledgeable and experienced with the mountain. His English language skill is very good and all of the explanations were accurate. He gave as a lot of support for making the hiking possible. Our driver Marina was very professional, kind, with excellent driving skills, making our journey to be safe. We were picked up and dropped off at the specified address as it was planned. She was offering us extensive informations about the surroundings of the mountain.

Marina was our driver from Catania to Etna and she made sure we enjoyed our trip.She was very friendly and provided us with great recommendation for meals and must see places.

Incredible experience, the highlight of the trip was the tour of Etna! Sossio was responsible for picking us up and taking us back to the hotel, very nice and punctual, perfect service! Just like our trail guide, Tony!! Excellent guide!!

Fantastic day that started with our driver Sossio, who picked us up from our accommodation on time and accompanied us toward Mount Etna, even allowing us a short break for breakfast. Once we arrived at the Speranza station, we met Fabrizio, our guide for the whole day, who took us far and wide across the various summits of the mountain—a guide who explained everything to us in a clear and understandable way, conveying his passion and expertise.

Thanks Sissio for the ride :)

The trip was well organized. Although I had only registered a day in advance, the driver (Sossio) quickly contacted me regarding the pickup at my accommodation. The trip itself was also well organized, allowing us to get up Etna without hassle using the cable car. The guide (Emiliano) spoke good English and was very friendly and took the time to answer questions about the volcano. The landscape on the volcano was very varied and impressive.

Super cool experience to have, great explanation from our super guide Giuseppe. Recommendation!

Exceptional experience!!!👍

Did the tour with a girlfriend today, unfortunately it didn't go up to 3400m due to activity on Etna. We were picked up by driver Sossio near our hotel and dropped off at the same place, the communication was clear. The guide during the walk had a lot of information and knew how to present it in a fun way. The walk was good, although a bit shorter than expected. Still definitely worth it.