Hiking Vesuvius: everything to know before you go

You can see Vesuvius from all over Naples, and up close it's something else. You climb a path of lapilli and ash, reach the rim of a crater a few hundred metres wide and almost three hundred deep, with the odd fumarole still puffing away, and below you lies the whole bay: Naples, Capri, the Sorrento peninsula, the islands. The last eruption was in 1944 and the volcano is considered active, which is why access is regulated, with tickets, opening hours and closures.

Here's everything you need to plan the climb up the Gran Cono: how to buy the ticket, which is online only, the opening hours month by month, how to get there without a car, what the path is like, what to pack and when it's better to give it a miss.

The Gran Cono: the path to the crater

The climb to the crater is trail number 5 of the Vesuvius National Park, called Il Gran Cono (the Great Cone). It starts from the car park at 1,000 metres, on the Ercolano side, and climbs to about 1,170 metres on the crater rim. In all it's about four kilometres there and back, on a wide dirt track of volcanic sand and gravel, with a steady gradient but nothing technical.

The park rates it as easy. In practice it's a thirty to forty-minute climb, steep enough to make you stop a couple of times to catch your breath, and a descent where the ground slides a little under your shoes. Allow two to two and a half hours in total, including time at the top. Families with children and people with no particular training do it, but it's not accessible by wheelchair or with a pushchair.

At the top you walk for a stretch along the crater rim, up to the point where the path is closed: the northern and eastern sections of the rim are off limits for safety. There are usually volcanology guides at the top, who give a short account of the volcano and its eruptions.

“You climb looking at your feet, then you reach the top, lift your head and understand why Neapolitans talk about Vesuvius as if it were one of the family.”

Tickets: online only

Tickets for the Gran Cono are sold only online, on the Vivaticket site linked to the park. There's no ticket office at the car park. Tickets are in your name and come with a time slot: each day there are 50 tickets every ten minutes, on sale up to thirty days ahead.

When it's sold out, the last-minute tickets are a lottery: on summer days and bank holiday weekends, don't count on them. Buy your ticket as soon as you've chosen the day.

Opening hours month by month

The closing time is the last entry: the visit has to be over within an hour. So in October, if you go in at 4pm, you need to be back at the car park by 5pm.

When not to go

The trail closes automatically when the Campania civil protection agency issues an orange or red weather warning. But even without a warning there are days when the climb isn't worth it.

On the morning itself, look at the summit from wherever you are: if it's clear, go. Check the park's pages for any closures too.

Getting there without a car

From Ercolano

This is the most common route. From Naples take the Circumvesuviana, the local train, on the Sorrento or Poggiomarino line, and get off at Ercolano Scavi: about twenty minutes from the station at piazza Garibaldi. Private shuttles leave from outside the station for the car park at 1,000 metres, such as Vesuvio Express, which runs every 40 minutes from 9.30am and takes about half an hour to get up. You pay for a return trip, and some deals include the crater ticket too: check carefully what you're buying so you don't pay for it twice.

From Pompei

From Pompei there are two options. The public EAV bus goes up from piazza Anfiteatro, stops at Pompei Villa dei Misteri station, passes through Torre del Greco and Ercolano and reaches the car park in about an hour; it costs a few euros, but there are only a few runs a day, so check the times on the EAV app before you set off. The second is the Busvia del Vesuvio, a private service with off-road vehicles that climbs the Strada Matrone on the southern slope, through the pine woods: it has a shuttle from Pompei Villa dei Misteri station and a higher price, with the crater ticket included.

By car

The road climbs from Ercolano up to the car park. When traffic is heavy the last stretch is controlled and you park lower down, at 800 metres, where a park shuttle takes you to the car park in a few minutes for €1 a ride. Parking is usually paid.

On an organised tour

If you don't want to juggle trains, shuttles and time slots, tours from Naples take care of everything. Vesuvius and Pompeii in a day leaves from piazza Garibaldi by coach, with park and Pompeii tickets already included and pizza between the two. For Pompeii on your own there's our guide Pompeii from Naples: how to get there.

What to pack

Walking poles aren't needed on the way up, but on the way down they help anyone with dodgy knees.

Beyond the Gran Cono

The Gran Cono is the busiest trail, not the only one. The park has a network of marked paths on both sides of the volcano and on Monte Somma: the Strada Matrone, climbing from the Boscotrecase side through the pines; the Valle dell'Inferno, between Vesuvius and Somma; the Riserva Tirone Alto Vesuvio, in the woods on the Ercolano side. These are longer routes, quiet and with no ticket, best tackled with an up-to-date map or a guide, and some sections close after fires or landslides: check the state of the trails on the park website before you set off.

Vesuvius isn't only about the crater. The slopes are covered in Lacryma Christi vineyards, and some people go up to eat and drink more than to walk: lunch at a winery on the slopes of Vesuvius takes you from Naples to a family winery, while an hour on horseback on the lava trails starts from Pompei Scavi. To pair the volcano with the cities it buried there's Pompeii and Herculaneum in a day with an archaeologist. Other trips out of town are in the Outdoor section.

The best time of year

Spring and early autumn are the right months: from April to June and from September to mid-October the air is clear, it's warm but not too hot and the days are long enough. In July and August you can still go, but only early in the morning, and tickets sell out sooner. In winter the trail opens with shorter hours, and on cold, clear January days the view is the sharpest of the year, sometimes with a little snow on the summit.

If you can, avoid August weekends and spring bank holidays, when coaches, shuttles and cars all arrive at the car park at once.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to book to climb Vesuvius?

Yes. Tickets for the Gran Cono are sold only online and come with a time slot. There's no ticket office on site: if it's sold out, all that's left is a handful of last-minute tickets released thirty minutes before each slot.

How much is the ticket to the crater?

A full ticket costs €10 plus the booking fee, around €11.70 in total. The reduced ticket for under-25s is €8 plus the fee, and under-6s go free.

How long does it take to climb to the crater?

From the car park at 1,000 metres it's a thirty to forty-minute climb. With the way up, the way down and time at the top, allow about two to two and a half hours.

How do I get to Vesuvius from Naples without a car?

Take the Circumvesuviana to Ercolano Scavi and then one of the shuttles up to the car park, or from Pompei take the EAV bus or the Busvia del Vesuvio. Otherwise, an organised tour with transport and tickets included.

Is the trail difficult? Can I do it with children?

It's a steady climb on a dirt track, with nothing difficult. Children do it too, with closed shoes and water. It can't be done with a pushchair or wheelchair.

Does Vesuvius close in bad weather?

Yes. The trail closes when the civil protection agency issues an orange or red weather warning, and it can also close for strong wind. Check the park's announcements on the morning itself.