The smallest volcano in Italy at Portico di Romagna

A volcano in Romagna? Could you ever imagine? Well, quite true but do not think about a dangerous natural element. For sure it is a weird exhibition of nature can create. But as you will see in the photos, it’s no much than a little fire that comes out from the ground, due to emanations of hydrocarbon gases which in contact with oxygen stay on. The phenomenon is also known as 'flaming fountain'.

So what? A volcano is always a volcano

You may expect something “more” when you get to the place, a simple clearing that opens to a beautiful landscape, one of those you can see in Romagna and only there, where you close your eyes, breathe and free your mind.

The flames do not ever stop, so that in the 30’s the Italian government thought to obtain gas and energy from this little spot. But the project never started and the volcano became a nice touristic attraction and a place to go in the summer, make a barbecue and spend some hours with friends.

If you see it in the day, it will not impressed, it’s just a flame not very visible with the daylight. So, we advise you to go there at sunset, looking the sun going down slowly and enjoying the fire in the middle of nothing.

In the summer nights

The volcano is really very visible from far away, so, even if there are not clear touristic plaquette that show the way, you just have to follow the light and you will find it. The fire comes from the ground, the stones that you can see around were settled from the local people. And this is the only “untrue” detail you will see here.

Tips

Its’ not easy to find the volcano, and also, it doesn’t need much time to be seen. We advise you to plan a special itinerary, which end at the volcano.