A short, steep gravel path up the cone of the most famous volcano on earth, to the rim of a crater that last erupted in 1944. Below you lie Pompeii, Herculaneum, three million people and the whole curve of the Bay of Naples.
Vesuvius is not just a view: it is an active volcano under constant watch, and the reason Pompeii and Herculaneum were buried in AD 79. Since then it has erupted dozens of times, most recently in March 1944.
The walk starts at a car park at about 1,000 metres, where the shuttle buses stop. A wide gravel track zigzags up the cone through ash and lava fragments to the crater rim at about 1,170 metres. The path then runs part of the way round the rim, looking down into a great grey pit hundreds of metres across, with wisps of steam rising from the walls on some days.
Park guides at the rim explain the volcano's history and the monitoring that watches it. On a clear day the view takes in the Sorrento peninsula, Capri, the Campi Flegrei, Ischia and the city of Naples, with Pompeii laid out at the foot of the mountain.
The trail closes in high wind, storms or fire risk, and haze often hides the view in summer. April to June and September to October for air you can see through.
A single wide track, steep but never technical. The loose surface is tiring; take your time.
Approximate profile, one way. Return the same way.
Show your timed ticket at the gate above the car park. Toilets and a bar are at the bottom; there is little at the top.
The gravel track climbs in long switchbacks across the black and red slopes of the cone. Views open over the bay with every turn.
Reach the rim and follow the fenced path part way round, looking down into the crater. Stop at the guides' post to hear about the eruptions, then descend the same way.
Tickets are about €10 plus fees and sold only online for timed entry. Print or save them on your phone, since there is often no signal or sales at the top. Check closures on the day.
Take the Circumvesuviana train to Ercolano Scavi, then a shuttle bus up the mountain (about 30 minutes). Shuttles also run from Pompeii. Book shuttles to match your entry time.
Herculaneum is next to Ercolano Scavi station: do the ruins in the morning, the volcano in the afternoon.
Naples practical notes →
Bomerano to Nocelle, high above Positano.
Capri's wild west coast past three forts.
Ischia's summit and a loop round pastel Procida.
Beech woods and the highest peak of the Lattari.
A forest in a crater, and Europe's youngest mountain.
Wikimedia Commons photographs are used under their licences; Pexels photographs under the Pexels licence.
