A Guide to Hiking Stromboli Volcano in Sicily

Stromboli Island in Italy is the tip of a vast underwater volcano off the coast of Sicily.

Stromboli is Europe’s only permanently active volcano and one of the most active in the world. Watching it erupt at night is a spectacular sight.

You can view the eruption at a distance on a boat, but the best way to experience its power is to get up close on a Stromboli hike.

In this post, we share our experience hiking Stromboli, practical tips, how to get there, and where to stay.

Contents

• Stromboli Update
• Our Experience Hiking to the Stromboli Summit
• Climbing Stromboli Volcano: The Details
• Where to Stay on Stromboli Island
• How to Get to Stromboli Island
• Hiking Stromboli vs Mt Etna
• Stromboli Hike Summary
• More Sicily Posts

Stromboli Update

We climbed Stromboli before the major eruption in 2019. Since then, hikes to the craters at the summit, which we did, have been suspended.

The trail network has been reorganised and you can now hike Stromboli again, but the trail goes to a different viewpoint overlooking the Sciara del Fuoco (a blackened lava scar).

The highest observation point is at 400 metres and can only be reached with a guide. The 8km hike still involves a steep climb (500 metres elevation gain), but it’s not as long as the summit hike.

This Stromboli sunset hiking tour costs €30, departs two hours before sunset (usually leaving between 3-6pm), and lasts about five hours.

Even without reaching the summit, the new hike is still very much worth doing to watch the explosive show.

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Our Experience Hiking to the Stromboli Summit

We began our ascent at 4pm when the hot September Sicilian sun was beginning to subside.

We left the whitewashed town (population 400) and the long black sandy beaches behind as we walked slowly up.

First it was a gentle incline through caper plants and lush vegetation, then the path became steeper and bleaker, rocks strewn amongst the grey volcanic sand.

We’d been worried about the Stromboli hike, but it was easier than we expected, taking two hours to get to the summit with frequent breaks.

We were the first group to arrive at the three Stromboli craters, well before sunset and had plenty of time to observe their changing forms.

Clouds of smoke constantly emerged from the craters, a mass of hazy gases, at first tinted green, then orange. They made strange gushing, gurgling sounds, an ominous warning.

Part of our brains knew that waiting for a volcano to erupt so close to us was foolish, but that’s what we all craved, the chance to see the volcano showing its full power.

It tempted us with glimpses of its fiery red belly or a particularly menacing rumble, and one of the small craters expelled a cloud of black gases.

All were false starts and we continued to wait.

The sun sunk lower and the sky lit up in oranges, pinks and blues, reflected in the mirror-like sea.

Across the water we could see Calabria on Italy’s mainland, and Salina island where we’d eaten breakfast that morning, gazing over at this very peak.

As darkness fell we finally got what we’d been waiting for.

The largest Stromboli crater erupted in a sudden burst of orange and red, sparks flying like fireworks, the red of the flames echoing the colour of the sinking sun.

It was a brief but dramatic display of nature’s might.

We were hooked and wanted more. We watched in silence in the darkness, in awe of its power, on tenterhooks waiting for the next eruption.

Behind us the full moon glowed large and golden, creating a strong beam of light across the sea.

Just as we prepared to depart, we were rewarded with another mini eruption—a fiery red spray from the gurgling beast.

We could have stayed all night but it was time for our group to leave.

We descended the steep slope in darkness, our headlamps illuminating the path in front but all around was blackness.

We half walked, half slid through the deep black sand, our shoes filling up with volcanic ash that would take weeks to remove all traces of.

We fell into a rhythm, taking long strides, heels first, zoning out in the silent night. It felt strange to walk on solid ground again, our legs wobbled, confused by the resistant earth.

Back in town we were too tired for a celebratory beer and pizza—a hot shower and comfortable bed beckoned.

Sunset on top of an island, a full moon hike, a volcanic eruption—any one of these would have been incredible, but all together they created a magical experience that was definitely worth the climb.

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Climbing Stromboli Volcano: The Details

• You have to climb Stromboli volcano with a guide and most people join a group trek. We went with Magmatrek who charge €30 per person including helmets and an English speaking guide. There were 20 people in our group, so it’s not an intimate experience but all the groups were large. We were happy with the service and would go with them again.
• Ashara is another company who offer the same hike with availability on Get Your Guide. (We used them for our Etna hike).
• Booking in advance is essential. 
• Stromboli tour departure times vary from 3pm to 5.30pm depending on the season. In mid September we left at 4pm and were back at 9.20pm.
• Tours run from mid March until the end of October. I would avoid trekking in July and August, if possible, because of the heat. 
• Hiking shoes or boots and a torch (flashlight) are obligatory for hiking Stromboli. You can hire trekking gear from a few shops in town.
• It’s also a good idea to take snacks, water (at least 1.5 litres per person), warm clothes (it gets cold at the top), and a change of tshirt (you’ll sweat on the hot climb up). 
• It’s a steep climb so you need to be reasonably fit, but it wasn’t as difficult as we thought it would be. There are breaks every 30 minutes on the way up and at least 45 minutes rest at the crater.
• The Stromboli trek is not suitable for people with asthma, a heart condition, or vertigo. 
• Children must be aged over 10 years. 

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Where to Stay on Stromboli Island

We stayed in Residence Aquilone, which has simple bungalow rooms set in gardens.

Our small double room had a comfortable bed, private bathroom, fridge, and terrace and was just what we needed for our one night stay.

It’s one of the most affordable options on this expensive island. 

Search for more places to stay on Stromboli here. 

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How to Get to Stromboli Island

You can get to Stromboli by ferry or hydrofoil with Liberty Lines or Siremar from Milazzo on Sicily or from the other Aeolian islands. There’s also a ferry from Naples.

We arrived from Salina island on the Liberty Lines hydrofoil, which took an hour.

If you are staying on Lipari island and want to see the Stromboli eruption at night (without hiking), you could take this Vulcano, Panarea, and Stromboli boat tour.

From Milazzo, there’s also a Panarea and Stromboli boat trip by night where you can watch the eruption.

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Hiking Stromboli vs Mt Etna

We recently returned to Sicily and hiked another iconic volcano—Mt Etna. Like at Stromboli, volcanic activity means you can no longer hike to the summit, but we went as high as you can go (a guide is necessary).

We did this Etna summit hike from 2500 metres (the top of the cable car) to 2900 metres (the highest safe point).

Both are wonderful experiences, but here are our thoughts comparing Mt Etna to Stromboli:

• Mt Etna is easier to access from Catania airport (we visited on a day trip while staying in Taormina). There’s even a limited bus service from Catania city. No ferry required. It is a long, winding road up the mountain to Rifugio Sapienza (the most common access point), though.
• Mt Etna is much larger but feels less obviously a volcano.
• Etna has a higher elevation so it gets snow in winter! We hiked through the snow in late March. The weather is much more variable and tours can be cancelled. An Etna hike in summer will be cooler than Stromboli.
• Etna hikes take place during the day, not at sunset.
• You don’t see volcanic eruptions or lava fountains on Etna, but you do see steam and craters and feel heat from vents.
• The Etna tour is more expensive plus you have to pay for a cable car to the start of the hike.

Overall, we preferred the Stromboli volcano hike because you get to see lava (if you are lucky) and being up there at sunset was magical.

Mt Etna is easier to access on the Sicily mainland, though, and you can even skip the hike and just take a cable car and 4WD bus tour to get high up on the volcano.

Our Taormina travel guide has more details on our Etna hike.

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Stromboli Hike Summary

Hiking Stromboli volcano at night was one of our favourite ever travel experiences.

Even if you aren’t a super experienced hiker, we highly recommend you add it to your Sicily itinerary. It’s a magical evening. 

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More Sicily Posts

General

• What to Eat in Sicily: 21 Must Try Dishes

West Sicily and Aeolian Islands

• Exploring Peaceful Salina in Sicily’s Aeolian Islands
• 12 Best Places to Visit in West Sicily
• Exploring Palermo

East Sicily

• 18 Best Things to Do in Syracuse, Sicily
• The Perfect Eastern Sicily Itinerary
• 11 Wonderful Things to Do in Taormina, Sicily (including hiking Mt Etna).

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