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Sapienza Hut – Rifugio Sapienza Parking loop from Nicolosi

Sapienza Hut – Rifugio Sapienza Parking loop from Nicolosi

Hard

4.6

(12)

310

riders

Sapienza Hut – Rifugio Sapienza Parking loop from Nicolosi

03:29

55.0km

1,530m

Road cycling

Hard road ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly well-paved surfaces and easy to ride. The starting point of the route is right next to a parking lot.

Last updated: July 29, 2026

Tips

The surface for a segment of your route may not be suitable

Some segments of your route comprise a surface that may not be suitable for your chosen sport.

After 40.5 km for 920 m

Waypoints

Start point

Parking

Get Directions

576 m

Nicolosi

Highlight • Settlement

After leaving the raging traffic of Catania behind, Nicolosi is the first town to reach and the town is very sizeable. As usual around the Etna, the main street is paved with black and quite rough lava planks. If the bottles have already been empty, here is another great opportunity to fill them, if you want to continue towards Refugio Sapienza - on the lava fields you will search for springs and wells in vain.

Translated by Google •

Tip by

692 m

Nicolosi–Rifugio Sapienza Climb

Highlight (Segment) • Climb

Length 17 km, difference in altitude 1073 m, average gradient 6.3%.
The Nicolosi-Rifugio Sapienza climb is the most well-known, most traveled climb on the Etna side and the one of the Giro d'Italia stage won by Contador in 2011 (dedicated to him). The road is very panoramic, smooth and well-maintained asphalt that crosses the young lava flow of 2001. It cuts through a sea of magma with the scent of sulfur that accompanies pedal after pedal. The climb begins by leaving the town of Nicolosi, right from a public fountain, and ends at the Sapienza refuge at an altitude of 1910 m above sea level.

Translated by Google •

Tip by

19.4 km

Sapienza Hut

Highlight • Mountain Hut

The Sapienza refuge is the starting point for climbing the crater of Etna, it is also a very famous place for road cycling, as it hosted the arrival of some stages of the Giro d'Italia.

Translated by Google •

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19.9 km

Rifugio Sapienza Parking

Highlight • Parking

20.3 km

View of Mount Etna (east side)

Highlight • Viewpoint

Great view, worth it in any weather

Translated by Google •

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25.3 km

Descent Through the Lava Field at Silvestri Craters

Highlight (Segment) • Volcano

Since the road surface is sometimes very bumpy, if possible choose this route for the driveway, the road is much better in the direction of Nicolosi (09/2017)

Translated by Google •

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32.0 km

Pignatello

Forest

34.9 km

Fossazza

Forest

55.0 km

End point

Parking

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

53.7 km

1.22 km

133 m

Surfaces

53.1 km

1.09 km

785 m

133 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Highest point (1,900 m)

Lowest point (500 m)

Weather

Friday 31 July

32°C

20°C

0 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 6.0 km/h

to get more detailed weather forecasts along your route

Comments

October 24, 2023,Nicolosi Rifugio Sapienza via Zafferana Etnea circle anticlockwise

From Nicolosi to Zaferana Etnea, just at the beginning, especially through Pedara, there are some main roads in the form of one-way streets that make it difficult to orientate and move forward. Were glad to have finally reached the entrance in Zaferana. It is the hardest climb up to Rifugio Sapiensa, I struggled with the 36-30 translation of the rental …

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Sapienza Hut – Rifugio Sapienza Parking loop from Nicolosi

Nicolosi

Nicolosi–Rifugio Sapienza Climb

Sapienza Hut

Rifugio Sapienza Parking

View of Mount Etna (east side)

Descent Through the Lava Field at Silvestri Craters

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