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Latest update: 23 May 2025
Etna is Europe’s most active volcano, and you can actually see it up close. So, if you’re in Sicily, you absolutely must reserve some time to see Etna. You can ski there, hike there, and drink wine. I’m happy to share my tips for visiting Etna, plus how I experienced my sunset Etna tour and wine tour.
Etna on Sicily
If you stay on the east side of Sicily, you’ll regularly be treated to a beautiful view of Etna. It’s not exactly a small volcano: we’re talking about an area of almost 1,200 km² (463 square miles)! The volcano can, therefore, be visited in different ways and from different sides.
Tours to the Etna volcano
If you start googling a bit, you’ll quickly discover that there are so many tours to Etna that choosing is almost impossible. You want the most fun tour for the best price, of course. But which one is that? I ultimately go for a sunset tour, this one. It’s a decent tour, but the guide is a terrible driver and is mainly busy trying to hit on a girl from the group.
Honestly, I think I could have visited this part of Etna perfectly on my own. There’s a large parking lot at the cable car (here), and from there, you can easily walk to the nearest craters. The cable car is 1,923 meters (6,309 feet) above sea level. Only at the top stop of the cable car are you not allowed to continue independently and must go with a guide. But oh well, I didn’t know all that when I booked.
One advantage of the tour is that we can change the program and start with a tasting at Enoteca dell’Etna (Google Maps location). It’s raining really hard, so this flexibility is very nice.
Crater landscape
The walk to the craters is easy, and the landscape extraordinary – how could it be otherwise? I’m walking on a volcano! Although there’s no beautiful sunset, the light does make the craters extra atmospheric. The temperature difference with Catania is noticeable. In Catania, I break out in a sweat with every step, and here, I’m pleased with my warm clothes. And with my high hiking boots, from which I later fish out a whole bunch of small black lava stones.
By the way, the landscape isn’t just black. Small and larger lava stones alternate with reddish-brown colors in the craters and even a bit of green. And between the lava, small plants even manage to grow.
Are you also planning to book a tour to Etna? Then, look carefully at the differences. Some go at sunset or sunrise; with one, the cable car is included, and with another, a long hike. And don’t be fooled: some tours claim to go to the top of Etna. That’s not even allowed. The top is around 3,300 meters (10,827 feet) high, and the cable car takes you to 2,500 meters (8,202 feet). Only with certified guides can you climb to 2,920 meters (9,580 feet).
How high is Etna really? If you google, you’ll find different numbers: 3,369 meters (11,053 feet), 3,403 meters (11,165 feet)… and they were all true at the time of writing. Etna grows! Due to eruptions, the highest point keeps getting higher.
Taking the cable car up Etna
The cable car near the craters I visited is certainly not cheap: €50 ($54) in 2024. At the top, you can explore the volcano further with a 4×4 bus. You can arrange it on the spot, but you can also buy tickets in advance. You do that here.
Wines of Etna
Did you know that a lot of wine is grown around Etna? The grapes grow on volcanic soil, which means they contain many minerals. And there’s no chardonnay or sauvignon growing here either. The grape varieties here are mainly Nerello Mascalese,
Nerello Cappuccio, and Carricante. I’ve never heard of them! So it seems cool to join a wine tour. I booked this tour.
I only recommend this specific tour if you simply want a nice day out. If you really want to learn more about Etna wines, then this isn’t the right tour. It’s all well and smoothly organized but has little substance.
Wine tour stops
The first stop is a mandatory tourist trap. At ORO d’Etna (Google Maps location), tourists are ‘dumped’ in a shop with honey, olive oil, and wines. You can taste some wine from mini plastic cups. The owner gives some explanation, but it’s minimal, and the stop lasts too long.
Fortunately, the second stop is much more fun because we also get to walk through the vineyard with the sommelier. And that’s very special because this vineyard is in an old crater. What stands out to me is that the vines grow vertically instead of horizontally. That’s because of the space with the different plateaus.
After taking all this in, we get to taste the wines of La Gelsomina (Google Maps location) in the tasting room. If you want to go here on your own, it’s best to call or email first. Or even better maybe: stay the night!
The last stop of the wine tour is Emilio Sciacca Etna Wine (Google Maps location). Here, we have an extensive lunch accompanied by natural wines (and I really don’t like natural wines, unfortunately). The food is delicious and ridiculously abundant—it’s impossible to finish it all. Because of that, lunch also takes a very long time, and unfortunately, we only get an explanation about the wines at the table. There’s no tour or anything.
So yeah, this isn’t really a promotional speech for this tour, is it? Right. I just had different expectations. Much more substance, much more vineyard. Too bad, but oh well.
The wine train!
There’s also a wine train that chugs over the volcano, by the way. The train runs from Riposo to Randazzo along the wine route Strada del Vino dell’Etna. The wine train only runs on Thursdays and Sundays, and you must reserve it in advance. You can do that here.
More Sicily travel inspiration
Useful links for your Sicily trip
- Accommodation. Always handy is Booking.com. Rather stay in a hostel? Try HostelWorld.
- Activities. Book the best tours and activities at GetYourGuide, Klook and Viator. Book “free” walking tours at Freetour or GuruWalk , and for bike tours, Baja Bikes.
- Attractions and museums. For 5% off museums and attractions, use discount code KIMOPREIS22 at Tiqets.
- Car rental. Compare prices and insurance coverage at DiscoverCars and Rentalcars.com.
- Flights. Compare all your options! Definitely Skyscanner, and Kiwi.
- Guide books. I love the practical guides by Lonely Planet, for sale at Bol.com and Amazon.
- Package deals. Rather go on a catered trip? Start your search at Expedia or CheapOair.
- SIM card. Beware of unexpectedly high phone and internet costs. Buy a local SIM card when you arrive, or arrange one online via Airalo.
- Yoga retreat. Or join a yoga retreat in Sicily.
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