Overview
The cone stands at about 1,280 metres inside the older caldera of Monte Somma, whose ridge is the wall you see behind it from Naples. Around seven hundred thousand people now live in the red zone the evacuation plan covers, which makes it the most dangerous volcano in the world by population at risk rather than by behaviour. The summit is a national park with a marked path around part of the crater rim.
Highlights
The road ends at about a thousand metres and the last stretch is a gravel path of some thirty minutes, steep and loose; proper shoes matter more than fitness. Tickets are timed and sold online only, and the mountain closes without warning in high wind or storm. Go early: cloud fills the crater by late morning on most days.