Mount Vesuvius

Gran Cono Trail (Path 5), Vesuvius National Park The volcano that buried Pompeii lets you walk to its rim on a 4-kilometer return path over volcanic ash and lapilli, about two and a half hours in all, and look into a crater that now measures up to 580 meters across. On a clear day the Bay of Naples spreads out below. Plan ahead: Gran Cono tickets are sold online only, and the park shuts ticketing and the trail automatically on days of an orange or higher weather alert. Opening hours change with the season, and every visit has to end within an hour of the last permitted entry, so a late start means a short look.