Etna Park
Hotels Etna Park
Restaurants Typical Products Services
Mount Etna covers an area of about 1600 square kilometres and is situated
between the sea, the valleys of the Alcantara and Simeto rivers and the plain of
Catania.
The Etna Park was instituted in 1987 and comprises the comuni (municipalities)
of Adrano, Belpasso, Biancavilla, Bronte, Castiglione di Sicilia, Giarre,
Linguaglossa, Nicolosi, Maletto, Maniace, Milo, Pedara, Piedimonte Etneo, Santa
Maria di Licodia, Ragalna, Trecastagni, Viagrande, Zafferana, Randazzo and
Sant'Alfio.
The park's area extends around the volcano which is the largest in Europe and
one of the most active in the world, resulting in unique and unrivalled beauty,
a truly fine natural paradise. Whether by car, on foot, horseback, mountain
bike, by skiing or on the Circumetnea railway, there are a large number of
permitted routes for touring and gastronomic, historical and cultural
excursions. With the object of safeguarding the environment, the park is divided
into four zones. Zone A consists of about 19,000 hectares (45,000 acres), almost
all in public ownership and is the largest unspoilt space - the kingdom of birds
of prey. Zone B is about 26,000 hectares (64,200 acres) in size and consists of
small, privately owned agricultural plots. There is an abundance of ancient farm
and manor houses. Zones C and D comprise an area of 14,000 hectares (34,600
acres) which is a pre-park area where consent has been given for some tourist
constructions.
Throughout all four zones, the lava is spread out in startling shapes in which
the folds, fissures and gorges provide many sites for the plants and animals. A
century and a half ago, the animals constituting the Etna fauna included wolves,
boar, deer and goats which have now all completely disappeared. Instead, living
in the park today there are still porcupines, foxes, wild cats, martens, hares,
weasels, hedgehogs, dormice, field mice and bats. Amongst the birds, raptors are
predominant. The park's flora is extremely varied and rich, characterised by a
number of factors, amongst which the volcanic nature of the mountain is
predominant.
At Etna Park, there is tourist accommodation available in hotels, farm holiday,
farmhouse, residence self-catering accommodation, b&b, rooms for rent, holiday
homes, camp sites and tourist villages.
Restaurants Typical Products Services
Sicily
