Risk Management for Visitors of Active Volcanic Areas

One of the objectives of this website is to provide a context to promote visitor safety in active volcanic and hydrothermal areas.

This includes essential health & safety aspects that should be considered before venturing into an active crater or climbing volcanoes that may appear quiet but are classed as active and/or potentially dangerous.

Numerous websites offer safety tips, but these are mainly for certain regions or are only concerned with local residents.

Visiting tourists are not always included in volcanic crisis management plans and may face additional difficulties due to language barriers.

Recommendations for Visitor Safety with Guidelines for Volcanic and Hydrothermal Environments

To make volcano tourism as safe as possible, visitors of active volcanic and hydrothermal environments must take necessary precautions and be aware of the various potential hazards around volcanoes and hydrothermal features such as geysers or gas-emitting steam vents.

It is essential that visitors get as much information about the area as possible to enable them to make an informed decision. 

A general set of safety guidelines for volcano tourists, preferably on an international level, and similar to guidelines for residents do not seem to exist in that form as yet.

This web forum contains a list of key recommendations addressing health & safety for temporary visitors of volcanic and hydrothermal environments.

These recommendations can be adapted to any volcanic environment with local variations. Also included are some common hazards that can be encountered in active volcanic environments.

The First Conference Presentation on Risk  

Management for Volcano Tourists

For a larger view please go to the link at the bottom right.

Visitor Safety on Volcanoes – some Suggestions 

For a copy of the safety recommendations and a list of the most common hazards in volcanic regions please see the document attached on the right.