Santa Ana Volcano: Best Day Hike in El Salvador
Here is our guide on how to hike Santa Ana Volcano, one of the best day trips in El Salvador, independently, without a tour. We've covered useful tips on how to get to the starting point of the trek, how much it costs, and safety advice.
Towering at 2381 meters, Santa Ana Volcano and its fascinating crater filled with green lagoon is a top tourist attraction in El Salvador, and a must visit place while exploring the smallest country in Central America.
We've recently visited and hiked to this natural gem and here is our guide on how to visit Santa Ana volcano with useful tips and practical information.
How To Visit Santa Ana Volcano Without A Tour
The main reason why we wanted to travel to the city of Santa Ana was hiking to Santa Ana Volcano, at 2381 meters the country's highest volcano.
We’ve visited the volcano without a tour, and here's our guide on how to do it.
If you don't have a rental car, you need to have one full day to get to the starting point, hike to the top and get back, from the volcano to Santa Ana city as there is only one early bus going from Santa Ana to the mountain and one bus going back later in the afternoon.
The bus leaves every morning from La Vencedora bus terminal in Santa Ana at 7:30 AM, and it takes about an hour and a half to get to El Tibet hostel, where you should get off. The ticket cost $0.90 one way.
Why get off at El Tibet hostel and not at the last stop?
It’s closer to the entrance, guides coming from the parking lot at the end of the road have to pass the hostel anyway so you can join them (if there are no guides waiting at the hostel) and you will save some cash as you don’t have to pay another entrance fee at the parking lot.
It is not possible to walk to the top of the volcano on your own because of the safety concerns, so you need to wait at the hostel until 11 AM for a guide and an armed guard who should protect you against wrongdoers.
On the day of our visit, there were also kids from a local school on a trip who hiked in a separate group and started later on.
Guides are volunteers, so you need to pay only $1 (and tip if you want), and then you need to pay for the entrance to the national park $6.
Our tip: When you have your car or want to enjoy nature around Volcano Santa Ana even longer, you can book your room in Bosques del Tibet (El Tibet hostel), and stay here overnight.
HIKE TO SANTA ANA VOLCANO
Shortly after 11 AM, we finally set off. Our group had nine members plus one guide and one policeman. Most of our group were people who had booked the tour in Santa Ana, but all of us walked together for the safety reasons.
The hike itself was not hard, at least compared to other ones we did in Central America, like Concepcion Volcano hike in Nicaragua.
We walked on a well-maintained trail for the longer part of the trek.
The first section will take you through a forest, and after a few minutes, you will arrive at a clearing with a checkpoint, where you have to pay the entrance fee.
The trail continues through the forest once again, after you leave it behind, the landscape changes rapidly, and you will get excellent views of the surroundings, and you will see another volcano on the opposite side of the valley.
From this point, the scenery becomes monotonous, and you will have the chance to spot some remarkable plants.
We climbed slowly but steadily to the top - it took us about an hour with a few short breaks until we reached the marvelous crater of Santa Ana Volcano filled with a bright yellow-green fuming lagoon.
Unfortunately, it's not possible to make the loop around the crater for safety reasons.
We spent less than half an hour at the top, and when we started to get cold, we made our descent back to El Tibet hostel, which took us about the same time. The only disadvantage was that we had to wait for the bus going back to Santa Ana with departure at 4 PM.
We were quite surprised that it was not only us waiting for the bus as usual, but one French guy joined us, and we had an interesting chat on the way back.
The only drawback, if you want to visit Santa Ana volcano without a tour, is the length of the visit and the waiting times.
As the bus arrives two hours before you can start the hike and you'll be back from the volcano two hours before the bus picks you up, that means you will spend around four hours waiting, and there is not much to do but sit, wait, and read Harry Potter.
If you are short on time and don't like waiting, you might want to consider the guided tour.
SANTA ANA VOLCANO TOUR
If you want to enjoy the hike to Santa Ana volcano without waiting before and after the trek, you can take a guided tour from Santa Ana combining the volcano with the visit of Coatepeque Lake.
Santa Ana Volcano from San Salvador - This is a full-day hiking Santa Ana tour (Ilamatepec) in Cerro Verde National Park that departs from San Salvador.
It's perfect for travelers who don't have time to visit the city of Santa Ana but still want to see the volcano.
Safety Advice
Santa Ana is considered safe for tourists (unlike the rest of El Salvador), some parts of the city even during the night.
We stayed at the lovely family-run guest house and the owner, Louis, every time we asked him about the safety, proudly answered that it's secure in the city and around at the major tourist attractions.
Nevertheless, always ask at the place you're staying at about the current situation, as it might change quickly. If you are not sure what places to visit in El Salvador, Santa Ana is probably your safest bet.
Travel Insurance
We never leave home without travel insurance that was designed to cover our expenses if something goes wrong during the trip.
Travel insurance protects against theft, flight delays, injury, illness, cancellations, and much more.
World Nomads provides travel insurance for travelers to cover their trip essentials, including sports and adventure activities.
SafetyWing is affordable travel insurance for backpackers, long-term travelers, and digital nomads.
Travel smarter and safer!
What To Pack
Although during our travels around El Salvador the weather was hot and humid, the air was pretty cold on Santa Ana Volcano, and it even rained when we were descending from the volcano's top. That's why we recommend you to bring with you the following things.
Day Pack | You don't have to carry a lot of stuff, small daypack should be more than enough.
Rain Poncho | We hiked in a cloud and experienced rain on the way back. Generally, we never go to the mountains without rain poncho no matter how great the weather forecast looks.
Down Jacket | If you are visiting the volcano independently, don’t forget to bring an extra warm layer of cloth. We spent two hours in the rain waiting outside, luckily under the shelter, but the low temperature chilled us after 10 minutes.
Sunscreen | We recommend you to have a good quality sunscreen with high protection (we use SPF 50).
Nutrition Energy Gel | You will never run out of energy.
WHERE TO STAY IN SANTA ANA
Although El Salvador is still waiting to be recognized as a tourist destination, you don't need to be worried about not finding suitable accommodation in Santa Ana.
We were pleased by the number and quality of accommodation options in the city, so we've handpicked three best places for every budget.
Budget | Casa Vieja Guest House - For the price, this place is a true gem. Nice and clean rooms, breakfast, and a friendly owner who speaks English and is willing to help with all your questions are the main features in this guest house.
Mid-range | Hostal Casa Verde - The most popular option on where to stay in Santa Ana is this hostel which has exceptionally positive reviews. Outdoor pool, free bike rental and a terrace overlooking the city are the features hard to find somewhere else.
Luxury | Mikiterio Lake Retreat - If you are looking for a bit of luxury, you need to drive 11 kilometers from Santa Ana. There, on the lake's shore stands a hotel with an astonishing view, good food, and a laidback garden.
Travel Resources
Here you can find links to all the travel resources we use and which you might find helpful when planning your next holiday.
Accommodation: When looking for accommodation, we usually search hotels via Booking.com or Hostelworld.
Tours: Although we love to travel independently, some places are better to visit with a guided tour.
We prefer GetYourGuide for its easy-to-use interface and solid reputation. Another great alternative is Viator.
Rental Cars: When going on a road trip, we always use Rentalcars.com, a reliable site for booking a rental car in advance.
Flight Tickets: When looking for flight tickets, you can search Skyscanner to find the best price.
Travel Insurance: World Nomads and SafetyWing cover against risks of travel.
