Skip-the-Line Crater Ticket · Timed Entry Handled
Vesuvius Entry Ticket
Entry to Vesuvius' Gran Cono crater trail is nominative, timed and sold online only — the walk-up window is gone. This skip-the-line ticket with a smart digital guide locks your slot, rated 4.2/5 by 3,459 verified visitors, with free cancellation while the volcano decides the weather.
- 4.2 / 5 3459+ Reviews
- €10 Official Gran Cono Fare
- Online Only Nominative Timed Entry
- Free Cancellation
How a Vesuvius Entry Actually Works
Four steps from the valley to the crater rim — and the two rules that catch walk-up visitors out.
Book Your Timed Slot — There Is No Ticket Window
Gran Cono entry is sold online only, nominative, and tied to an entry time. The official face price is €10 (€8 reduced, ~€11.68 with fees on Vivaticket); the skip-the-line version here adds a smart digital guide and free cancellation. Either way: no slot, no crater — the walk-up era is over.
Get to the 1,000 m Trailhead
Buses climb from Ercolano and Pompei to the crater car park at about 1,000 metres — the public EAV bus runs around €2.70 on board, with a local shuttle option near €3. Or skip the timetables entirely with a transfer-included package from Pompeii. Drivers park below the trailhead.
Walk the Gran Cono Trail
From the trailhead it is a steady gravel switchback to the rim — roughly 30 minutes up with the Gulf of Naples unfolding behind you. Crater visits must finish within an hour of the last permitted entry, so late slots mean a brisker walk. Real shoes beat sandals on the cinder path.
The Rim, the Fumaroles, and the Way Down
At the top: the crater of the volcano that buried Pompeii, still gently steaming, with a rim path and volcanological guides stationed along it. Budget 1.5–2 hours on the mountain. One rule to respect: on orange-alert weather days the trail closes automatically — which is exactly why a free-cancellation ticket is the right kind.
Photo Gallery
Vesuvius — Through the Lens
The Gran Cono trail, the crater rim, the steaming fumaroles and the Gulf of Naples spread out 1,200 metres below.


Book Your Experience
Check Availability & Prices
Select your preferred date and time. Instant confirmation — free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
Three Ways Onto the Crater
The bare official ticket, the skip-the-line version, or transfers included — priced honestly, with the official channel given its due.
| Feature | Official Vivaticket Fare | THE FLEXIBLE ONE Skip-the-Line Ticket + Digital Guide | Transfer Package from Pompeii |
|---|---|---|---|
| What You Pay | €10 face fare (€8 reduced), about €11.68 with fees — online only, no ticket window exists | A few euros more for slot handling, the smart digital guide and free cancellation — live price in the widget | About $75 per person with the mountain transfer and a guide included — rated 4.8/5 by 273 guests |
| Getting Up the Mountain | On you — EAV bus (~€2.70) or shuttle (~€3) from Ercolano/Pompei to the 1,000 m car park | Also on you — same buses; this ticket buys the crater slot, not the road | Handled door-to-trailhead from the Pompeii side; you climb only the final trail |
| Flexibility | Nominative and timed; changes live by Vivaticket's rules | Free cancellation up to 24 hours — the weather-alert insurance this mountain genuinely warrants | Free cancellation up to 24 hours, tour timing fixed by the operator |
| Who It Suits | Committed dates, reduced-fare eligibility, and travellers happy in the official flow | Independent visitors who want the slot locked and an exit clause if the volcano clouds over | Anyone who'd rather never open a Campania bus timetable |
| The Honest Note | The right choice more often than affiliate sites admit — the trail is self-guiding | Rated 4.2/5 by 3,459 visitors — the scale pick of the ticket options | Beware the cheapest bundles: the platform's bare ticket-plus-bus product rates just 3.2/5. Upgrade to value, not to price |
| Check Availability | See the Transfer Package |
More Options
Ticket Only, or Transfers Included
The bare timed ticket versus the packages that add the mountain shuttle from Pompeii — for visitors who'd rather not study bus timetables.
TRANSFER + GUIDEFrom Pompeii: Mount Vesuvius Guided Tour with Transfer
Hike to the crater of Mt. Vesuvius, peering into the mouth of the most famous volcano in the world. You will be picked up in a shared transportation from Pompeii …
SHUTTLE INCLUDEDFrom Naples: Pompeii and Vesuvius Shuttle w/ Priority Ticket
Begin your journey with pickup in Naples and relax during a comfortable transfer to Pompeii, one of the world’s most famous archaeological sites. Upon arrival, enjoy …
The Independent Guide
Getting Onto Vesuvius: Every Rule, Priced and Explained
The €10 trail that buried Pompeii's volcano behind an online booking form — timed slots, weather closures, the buses, and the honest ticket-versus-tour line.
The most surprising thing about visiting the volcano that buried Pompeii is how cheap the ticket is — and how easy it has become to be turned away with money in hand. Entry to the Gran Cono crater trail costs €10 and is sold online only, nominative, and tied to a time slot. There is no ticket window at the mountain. Everything else on this page follows from that one fact.
This is an independent guide: the official fares are Vivaticket’s, the bundles here are sold by GetYourGuide, and where the honest answer is “buy the official one,” we say so.
The ticket, in numbers
Face price €10 (€8 reduced), landing around €11.68 with booking fees on the authorized Vivaticket platform. Your ticket carries your name and an entry time, and the trail enforces both. Hours run seasonally — 9:00–15:00 in deep winter up to 9:00–18:00 in July–August — visits must wrap within an hour of the final entry, and the mountain closes automatically on orange-alert weather days. That last rule is why how you book matters: a slot you can’t move on a volcano that cancels itself is the worst €10 you’ll spend in Campania.
The skip-the-line ticket featured on this page — rated 4.2/5 by 3,459 verified visitors — wraps the timed slot with a smart digital guide and free cancellation up to 24 hours, which turns the weather rule from a gamble into a rebooking. The price page lays out every option side by side, official channel included.
Getting up there is the actual puzzle
The trail starts from a car park at roughly 1,000 metres, and no entry ticket includes the road. DIY visitors ride the buses from Ercolano or Pompei — the public EAV bus at about €2.70, a local shuttle near €3 — then walk the final ~30 minutes of gravel switchbacks to the rim; the DIY route guide covers the timetable realities. If bus-timetable roulette isn’t your holiday, the transfer package from Pompeii ($75, 4.8/5 from 273 guests) handles the mountain leg door-to-trailhead.
Ticket or tour — the honest line
For a fit, independent traveller, the ticket really is enough: the trail is self-guiding, volcanological guides stand at the rim, and the crater does its own talking — fumaroles, the AD 79 story, and the whole Gulf of Naples from 1,200 metres. Upgrade when you’re buying logistics or context, not access: transfers from the Pompeii side, or the full guided crater-plus-Pompeii days that our sibling site mountvesuviustour.com compares properly. One data point worth carrying into any upgrade decision: the platform’s cheapest bare ticket-plus-bus bundle rates just 3.2/5 from its few reviews — when you pay more than the €10, make sure it’s for transfers or guiding worth having, a theme the ticket-or-tour guide treats without mercy.
Timing the volcano
Morning slots, always — the clearest Gulf views, the coolest climb on a shadeless trail, and maximum rebooking room if the sky turns. The timed-entry guide walks the reservation rules, alert-day closures and the last-entry arithmetic in full. However you book, wear real shoes, carry water, and give the rim the 1.5–2 hours it deserves: it is, after all, the most famous volcano in the world, and it is still breathing.
Guest Reviews
What Visitors Say
Read all 3459 verified reviews
See All ReviewsLock Your Crater Slot Before the Day Decides
Gran Cono entry is timed, nominative and online-only — and it closes automatically on orange-alert weather days. The skip-the-line ticket featured here is rated 4.2/5 by 3,459 verified visitors, with free cancellation up to 24 hours. Book the slot, watch the sky, rebook free if the volcano clouds over.
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Vesuvius Entry Tickets — FAQ
The €10 official fare, the online-only timed entry, the buses up, and the honest line between ticket and tour.
The official Gran Cono crater ticket has a face price of €10 full / €8 reduced, sold exclusively online through the authorized Vivaticket platform — about €11.68 with booking fees. There is no ticket window at the mountain. The skip-the-line version featured here adds a smart digital guide and free cancellation, and is rated 4.2/5 by 3,459 verified visitors; the live widget shows today's price in your currency.
Yes — entry is nominative (your name on the ticket) and tied to an entry time, and the trail enforces it. Buying on the day from your phone works when slots remain, but summer mornings and weekends sell through. The other timing rule people miss: crater visits must finish within one hour of the last permitted entry, so a late-afternoon slot buys a brisker walk than a morning one.
Seasonal: the Gran Cono trail runs 9:00–15:00 in November–February, 9:00–16:00 in March and October, 9:00–17:00 in April–June and September, and 9:00–18:00 in July–August. Last entry is before closing, and the mountain closes automatically on days with orange-level or higher regional weather alerts — which is why a cancellable ticket is the sane way to book.
Buses climb from Ercolano and Pompei to the crater car park at roughly 1,000 m — the public EAV bus costs around €2.70 on board, and a local shuttle option runs near €3. From the car park it is a steady ~30-minute gravel walk to the rim. Our DIY route guide covers the timetable realities; if you'd rather not study them, the transfer-included packages from Pompeii handle the whole climb.
For fit, independent visitors the ticket genuinely is enough — the trail is self-guiding, volcanological guides are stationed at the rim, and the digital guide fills the history in. Choose a guided package when you want transport folded in or the Pompeii combination handled — our sibling site mountvesuviustour.com covers the full guided options honestly. One warning from the data: the cheapest bare ticket-plus-bus bundle on the platform rates just 3.2/5 — when you upgrade, upgrade to transfers or guiding worth having.
A steady uphill gravel switchback of about 30 minutes from the car park, with the altitude gain modest by mountain standards. Anyone reasonably mobile manages it; sandals, however, lose to the cinder path every day of the week. There is no shade, so summer visitors want water, sunscreen and a morning slot. The rim path itself is level and railed.
The crater of the volcano that buried Pompeii in AD 79 — still steaming gently from fumaroles — with a rim path, the volcanological guides, and the Gulf of Naples panorama from 1,200 metres: Naples, Capri, Ischia and the Sorrento peninsula on a clear day. Budget 1.5–2 hours on the mountain, more if you photograph everything the light touches.
Morning slots, spring through early autumn — clearest air over the Gulf, coolest climb, and the most rebooking room if weather intervenes. July–August afternoons bake on the shadeless trail. Winter visits are quieter and shorter-houred, with a real chance of alert-day closures; keep your plans flexible and the free-cancellation clause working for you.
Comfortably — they are neighbours, and it is the classic pairing. Do Pompeii early, Vesuvius after lunch (or the reverse in high summer to beat the trail heat), connected by the Pompei-side buses or a transfer package. For the fully-guided combination day, that's our sibling site's territory: mountvesuviustour.com compares the Pompeii-and-Vesuvius tours properly.
Both are legitimate. Vivaticket is the official channel at the €10 face fare plus fees — right for committed dates and reduced-fare eligibility. The version here adds skip-the-line handling, the digital guide, USD pricing and free cancellation up to 24 hours — insurance that matters on a mountain that closes by weather alert. Same trail, same crater; pick the booking terms that fit your trip.
Still have questions? Email us at info@vesuviusentryticket.com