Where to visit to see a 'real' volcano?

[MoneySuperMeerkat]

8 yo DS would like to see a volcano - where would be good to visit? It would likely be next year so he would be 9. Flexible for time of year, would prefer short haul.

Until you get abroad, there's a dormant volcano in Edinburgh which you can climb, called Arthur's seat.

Plus dynamic earth right at the foot of it with lots of info and activities related to volcanos.

I would definitely go with a guide who knows the area. Also if you go in the summer, you need to be prepared - it can be hot on the beach and almost snowing at the summit.

Sounds like good advice. The idea of waking round volcano rims and peering over the edge sounds utterly terrifying 😆, but very exciting!

I visited Sicily and Stromboli a few years ago. I went in March which turned out to be bad timing for Stromboli. It wasn’t crowded, but the guided tours up the volcano didn’t run, as there wasn’t enough demand. You’re allowed to hike up to a certain point without a guide (unless that’s changed), so I did that one evening. I got one glimpse of some lava shooting up into the air.

On Sicily, I went on a guided tour of Mount Etna. I also went to Syracusa and Noto. Noto is supposed to have the best gelato in Italy, so it was worth a stop IMO.

The negatives I remember about Sicily and Stromboli are occasional sexual harassment, and there was some chaotic traffic on Sicily - be careful crossing the roads. But there is so much to see in the region, and the food is excellent!

Brilliant, thanks all - I will investigate these.

We are in the south so Edinburgh would probably take longer than Italy to get to but it's a great city and somewhere we could get the train to so maybe we will try to go this summer (if allowed).

Highly recommend Sicily. Fly to cantania. Taormina is lovely for a short break and travel independently but there's resort hotels close by too. If you rent a car make sure it's tiny, the roads and parking are difficult. The cable car then minibus with caterpillar tracks to the top is fun - take closed in boots that can get dusty and a fleece, I didn't!

Lanzarote has a great one you go on a coach ride around the volcano, see all the dried lava (sorry, forgotten any science terms!) And the at the top you can see the steam holes and watch branches catch fire from the heat. They then have a restaurant where they cook using the heat as well. I went once as a 10yr old and then in 2019 and enjoyed it both times (though in different ways haha)

Naples for Vesuvius. Handy for Pompeii and stay in Sorrento. Gorgeous.

Just to add though, if you go to Lanzarote and do a day trip to the volcano go EARLY. We got there for opening time and it was busy, by the time we left the queues were enormous.

Santorini or Nisyros are both active volcanos on Greek islands.

Oh and you need nerves of steel to drive I should add, it was the scariest roads I've seen despite having been to further afield. There's a train service to Syracuse - on catch up there's a worlds greatest rail journeys on it currently

Also Stromboli near Corsica It’s always got the ash cloud.

Not shorthaul but if you ever get the chance, going to see Kilauea on the Big Island of Hawaii is amazing. If you are there at night you can really see the lava glowing, and can hear it crackle and pop. You can walk through lava tubes in the rainforest, see steam coming out of the ground at the steam vents, and used to be able to swim in warm outdoor pools warmed by the volcano (although sadly these were covered over with the lava flow a couple of years ago). Have promised I'll take DD there for her tenth birthday!

Also Stromboli near Corsica It’s always got the ash cloud.

It's not near Corsica though!

Vesuvius combined with Pompeii. You can walk up to the rim and the story behind it is guaranteed to capture the imagination of any 8 year old.
I recommend a private guide because if you don't you will end up wandering around with no clue about anything.

@Sometimesonly

Also Stromboli near Corsica It’s always got the ash cloud.

It's not near Corsica though!

There probably is a quicker way to get there true. But when I went, I sailed from Corsica down Italy coast.

Definitely Etna. We stayed in Taormina and did a day trip from there.

I would say Vesuvius near Naples, as then you can visit Pompeii as well.

I absolutely LOVED the Lanzarote volcano as a kid. Timanfeya? Spelling will be wrong but something like that. Camel ride at the bottom, BBQ over a big hole at the top. Volcano cooked lunch was the best thing in the world to 8 year old me! (Still pretty cool to 38 year old me...)

You could also try the Azores

We did The Big Island in Hawaii. Unforgettable.

Iceland is fantastic. I took my kids for a summer holiday. Geysers, volcanoes, bathing in a geothermal river, glaciers, the blue lagoon, whale watching. And the sun didn't set!

I’d love to go to Stromboli. A friend did his fieldwork there for his undergrad and it looked amazing! Looked quite extreme though, or maybe that was just where he was allowed to go.

We did The Big Island in Hawaii. Unforgettable.

On my wish list! Lucky you!

Tenerife definitely

We did one on a Greek island, we were staying in Kos and it was a day trip.

Smelt awful and the kids were distinctly underwhelmed but I thought it was pretty interesting.