New safety rules introduced on Mount Etna in early January have sharply curtailed access to the volcano’s active lava flows, triggering rare walkouts and street protests by local guides who say their livelihoods and professional judgment are being undermined.

As Europe’s most active volcano continues a spectacular eruptive phase above Sicily, the clash between risk management and tourism demand is reshaping how visitors can experience one of Italy’s most dramatic natural attractions.

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New Ordinances Clamp Down On Lava-Front Excursions

The latest restrictions stem from emergency ordinances issued by authorities in Catania following a renewed phase of eruptions that began around Christmas Eve and have continued into January.

Under the new rules, commercial excursions toward the active lava fronts are suspended or heavily limited, particularly during the evening hours when the incandescent flows draw the largest crowds.

Officials have ordered that guided groups must now keep a minimum distance of roughly 200 meters from any active lava front, turning what were once close-up lava-viewing hikes into more distant observation stops. The ordinances also strictly enforce a cap of 10 people per group, including guides, and require that all hikes finish by dusk, effectively ending the popular nighttime outings that have long been a hallmark of Etna tourism.

The measures build on safety frameworks already in place across Etna’s municipalities and civil protection zones, where mayors can restrict access above specific altitudes or into designated high-risk areas when volcanic activity intensifies. But this latest round is widely regarded by guides as the toughest package of limits focused specifically on lava-viewing excursions in years.

Catania’s prefecture and local mayors argue that the cautious stance is justified by the volcano’s unpredictable behavior, recent crowding on narrow mountain roads and a series of rescue operations during previous eruptions, when inexperienced visitors ventured too close to unstable terrain or ignored perimeters set by authorities.

Guides Stage Walkouts, Claim Their Expertise Is Being Ignored

The response from Mount Etna’s licensed volcano and alpine guides has been unusually forceful. Within days of the new ordinances taking effect, dozens of guides staged a walkout and gathered near one of the main gates used to control access to the current lava flow sector. Many suspended organized tours to the affected zones, leaving visitors with limited options for structured excursions.

In statements released through their regional board, the guides accused authorities of sidelining professionals who have dedicated their careers to understanding the volcano’s risks and safely managing visitor flows. They argue that slow-moving, effusive lava fronts can be approached safely under expert supervision, as has been done during countless previous eruptions without serious incident.

The core of their grievance is that the blanket distance requirement and early cutoffs for tours, imposed from above, remove the nuanced, on-the-ground assessment that trained guides typically perform. Several have warned that if restrictive rules become the norm, their role could be reduced to shepherding visitors along low-risk trails far from the main attractions, with corresponding impacts on income and the appeal of their services.

Despite the protests, authorities have signaled that enforcement will continue, at least for now, citing the need for consistent rules that do not rely solely on individual judgment in rapidly changing volcanic conditions. For the guides, that stance has only deepened concerns that their professional autonomy is being eroded.

Tourists Face Cancellations, Shorter Itineraries And Less Lava

The dispute has immediate consequences for travelers arriving in Sicily in hopes of seeing Etna’s current eruption up close. Many tour operators report cancellations or last-minute reshaping of itineraries, with evening lava-viewing hikes either scrapped entirely or retooled as earlier, shorter walks that stop at safer vantage points far from the front of the flows.

Visitors who had booked premium experiences timed specifically for after dark, when the lava’s glow is at its most dramatic, are among the most disappointed. Some report being offered alternative daytime trekking routes across cooled lava fields, crater rims or forested slopes, while others have been shifted to panoramic overlooks accessible by road or cable car rather than to the active fronts themselves.

Travelers arriving without reservations in Catania, Taormina or the villages on Etna’s flanks are finding a more constrained menu of options. Informal attempts by some tourists to get closer to the flows independently have prompted additional patrols by forestry police and civil protection volunteers, who are checking vehicles and turning people back from restricted roads and paths.

Local tourism businesses that depend on the draw of Etna are watching nervously. While hotel and restaurant bookings remain solid due to the volcano’s ongoing activity and Sicily’s broader appeal, many fear that prolonged limits on the signature lava experiences could dampen demand in the crucial shoulder seasons when volcano tourism is a key driver.

Safety Officials Point To Past Chaos And Close Calls

Officials defending the new limits emphasize that volcanic tourism around Etna has been strained by surging visitor numbers and episodes of risky behavior during recent eruptions. During a particularly active spell in early 2025, thousands of people flocked to the volcano’s slopes, clogging narrow access roads with parked cars and, in some cases, blocking rescue vehicles from reaching those who needed help.

Civil protection leaders in Sicily have described a pattern in which social media and live images of lava fronts can trigger sudden waves of day-trippers, many with little mountain experience and minimal gear, determined to get as close as possible for photos. In some cases, people have wandered off marked trails, approached unstable lava fields or underestimated the dangers posed by ash, sudden weather shifts and night-time visibility.

Rescue reports from recent years document tourists suffering falls, disorientation and minor injuries, with mountain teams and firefighters frequently called to locate lost hikers after dark. Those operations are complicated by snow and ice at higher elevations, as well as by sudden changes in wind-blown ash and gas.

For civil protection planners, these incidents underscore the challenge of balancing individual risk tolerance with the need for rules that account for large crowds and worst-case scenarios. The new ordinances, they argue, are part of a broader effort to create predictable, enforceable boundaries that support both safety and the long-term sustainability of tourism around the volcano.

Etna’s Eruption: Spectacular But Not Currently Threatening Towns

The current eruptive phase on Etna is concentrated mainly at the Southeast Crater, one of the summit vents that has been the site of repeated activity in recent years. Since late December, volcanic observatories have reported episodic explosive bursts, fountains of incandescent material and effusive lava flows descending the volcano’s upper flanks.

Volcanologists stress that the present activity, while visually striking, has not posed a direct threat to populated areas. The lava is advancing slowly on high-altitude slopes far from towns and villages, and monitoring networks show typical fluctuations in tremor and gas output consistent with Etna’s frequent cycles of eruption and pause.

Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology maintains continuous surveillance of the volcano’s seismicity, deformation and gas emissions. Data from these networks feed directly into civil protection alert systems that allow authorities to adjust access levels in real time, raising or lowering restrictions on summit and lava-front zones as conditions evolve.

This scientific oversight is a critical element in the debate between guides and regulators. While guides argue that constant monitoring and their field experience justify a more flexible approach, officials contend that the same data can also support precautionary limits on how close visitors should be allowed to approach the most active areas.

Economic Stakes For Sicily’s Volcano Tourism Sector

Beyond the immediate inconvenience for travelers, the dispute over Etna’s new rules highlights the economic weight of volcano tourism for Sicily. Mount Etna is a centerpiece of the island’s global image, drawing hikers, photographers and adventure travelers from around the world who often combine summit or lava tours with broader itineraries across the region.

Licensed guides, many of whom operate as small businesses or cooperatives, rely heavily on the premium-priced lava-front and summit excursions that are now most affected by the ordinances. These outings typically require specialized equipment, training and insurance, with income from peak eruption periods helping to offset quieter months when activity is subdued.

Local tour agencies, transport providers and hospitality businesses also benefit from the high demand for these experiences. When access is curtailed, they face not only direct losses from canceled bookings but also reputational challenges as potential visitors reconsider whether a trip will deliver the dramatic Etna encounters heavily promoted in brochures and online imagery.

Regional authorities are keenly aware of these stakes. While reiterating that safety cannot be compromised, officials have signaled an openness to revisiting the rules as the eruption evolves and as they gather more feedback from the tourism sector, suggesting that some form of negotiated adjustment could emerge in the coming weeks or months.

Search For Compromise: Monitored Corridors And Tiered Access

Behind closed doors, discussions between guide associations, municipal leaders and civil protection coordinators are exploring potential compromises that might allow a partial easing of restrictions without abandoning the safety rationale behind them. One idea under consideration involves creating tightly controlled corridors that would permit small, pre-registered groups to approach somewhat closer to lava fronts under strict conditions.

Such corridors could involve fixed schedules, mandatory equipment checks, clear evacuation plans and direct communication lines between guides and monitoring centers. Authorities could also deploy drones and ground patrols not only to enforce perimeters but to support guides with up-to-the-minute information on lava advance and any sudden changes in volcanic behavior.

Another possibility is tiered access tied to official alert levels, with specific rules activating automatically based on the assessed state of the eruption. Under quieter conditions, distances and group-size limits might be relaxed slightly, while more severe or unpredictable activity would trigger the strictest version of the current ordinances.

For now, however, no formal revisions have been announced, and both sides remain publicly firm on their positions. Guides continue to press for recognition of their professional role in managing risk, while authorities maintain that public safety and orderly crowd control must come first in a landscape shaped by an active volcano.

FAQ

Q1. What exactly has changed for Mount Etna tours?
Authorities around Catania have suspended or severely restricted guided excursions to active lava fronts, imposed a minimum distance of about 200 meters from flowing lava, strictly enforced a 10-person group limit and ordered that tours end by dusk, effectively eliminating most nighttime lava-viewing hikes.

Q2. Why did Italian authorities introduce these new restrictions?
Officials cite safety concerns linked to Etna’s current eruption, previous incidents in which crowds blocked rescue vehicles and tourists got lost or injured after dark, and the need for clear, enforceable rules as visitor numbers rise during spectacular lava episodes.

Q3. Why are the guides protesting and walking out?
Licensed volcano and alpine guides argue that the blanket limits disregard their expertise, prevent them from offering close-up lava experiences that are central to their work and income, and reduce their role to leading less distinctive walks far from the most active areas.

Q4. Can tourists still visit Mount Etna under the new rules?
Yes, visitors can still access many parts of the volcano, including lower-altitude trails, viewpoints and some summit routes when conditions allow, but access to active lava fronts is now tightly controlled and many evening or night tours have been canceled or shortened.

Q5. Are the current eruptions dangerous for nearby towns?
Volcanologists report that the present activity, centered mainly at the Southeast Crater, is visually impressive but confined to high-altitude slopes; the slow-moving lava is not currently threatening towns or villages, though ash and minor fallout can affect downwind areas.

Q6. How are the new limits being enforced on the mountain?
Local police, forestry officers and civil protection teams are patrolling roads and trails, checking for unauthorized access, monitoring group sizes and, in some cases, using drones to watch activity near the lava fronts and ensure that perimeters are respected.

Q7. What should travelers do if they have an Etna tour booked soon?
Travelers are advised to contact their tour operators or guides before arrival to confirm whether itineraries are still possible, expect potential changes in timing and route, and be prepared for more distant viewing points rather than close-up lava-front experiences.

Q8. Is it allowed to approach the lava independently without a guide?
Under the current ordinances, access to the zones closest to active lava is strictly restricted, regardless of whether a visitor is accompanied by a guide or alone, and unauthorized attempts to reach these areas can lead to being turned back or fined by authorities.

Q9. Could the restrictions be eased later in the season?
Officials have indicated that the measures will be reviewed as volcanic activity and risk assessments evolve, so rules may be adjusted over time, particularly if the eruption stabilizes and consensus is reached with guide associations on controlled access solutions.

Q10. How can visitors still enjoy Etna while respecting the new rules?
Travelers can focus on daytime trekking across older lava fields, scenic routes around the craters and forests, cable car rides to higher viewpoints when open, and panoramic observation from surrounding towns and coastal areas, all while adhering to official guidance on restricted zones.