Hiking on Mount Etna in May

I’m traveling solo by plane to Catania in May and plan to hike the northern side of Etna, starting from Linguaglossa where I’ll arrive by bus. After that, I’d love some info on how to get up to Piano Provenzana (shuttles or hitchhiking), since it seems there’s no public transport except in the summer. Can you sleep there in a free or cheap refuge, or camp? And how far up can you go without having to hire a guide? Thanks in advance. Bernard.

The northern side of Etna (Linguaglossa slope) is much wilder and less "touristy" than the southern slope.

In May, the local buses (FCE) don’t go all the way up to Piano Provenzana station yet. Hitchhiking is common and works pretty well on this single road. Otherwise, it’s a taxi for about 40 € to get up there.

For accommodations, I can’t really recommend anything since I haven’t tried any—I just know that camping is forbidden, but there are small mountain huts where you can spend the night.

As for the requirement to have a guide, that’s only for accessing the summit craters. You’ll find more info on hiking on Mount Etna here.

Thanks for your reply. I’ll hitchhike, which I’m used to, and I’ll look into the mountain huts.