Mount Vesuvius is one of the world's most dangerous volcanoes  

Mount Vesuvius is a stratovolcano east of Naples, Italy. It is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years .The two other volcanoes in Italy, (Etna and Stromboli) are located on islands .Mount Vesuvius is one of the world's most dangerous volcanoes.
Mount Vesuvius is on the coast of the Bay of Naples, about nine kilometres (six miles) east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is conspicuous in the beautiful landscape presented by that bay, when seen from the sea, with Naples in the foreground.
In 79 AD an eruption of the volcano destroyed Pompei and its remains are a popular tourist atraction south of Napoli. In recent years there has been an attempt to relocate some resident from the slopes of the volcano to reduce the risk from the next eruption.

Nowadays the Vesuvius is a very popular tourist attraction, even though know one knows when it will again awake from its sleep. New volcano erruptions can be predicted by volcanologists two weeks in advance.
How to Reach here:
By car: From Naples with the A3, take the Torre del Greco or Ercolano exit.
By Circumvesuviana (train) : Get off in Ercolano and drive by bus to the car park. A road leads you up through beautiful vineyards, lava fields and the valleys Valle del Gigante and Valle dell'Inferno. One can smell the typical smell of broom bushes between May and August.
On foot the ascent leads you from the 1000m high parking spot with its Souvenir and refreshment stands over a gravel road to the top. When the weather is fine visitors can enjoy a fantastic panoramic view.
Vesuvius is best known for its eruption in AD 79 that led to the destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. It has erupted many times since and is today regarded as one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world.