Izalco (volcano)
Active stratovolcano in El Salvador
Rising from the southern flank of the Santa Ana Volcano, in the west of El Salvador: a stratovolcano that is still active.
Photo: Angela Rucker, USAID, Public domain
SV · Curated travel guide
El Salvador: 10 places worth the journey
Izalco (volcano), Santa Ana Volcano, San Miguel (volcano) and 7 more — what each one is, and why it is worth the detour.
- Places
- 10
- Language
- Spanish
- Currency
- USD
What to see in El Salvador
Chosen from everything Wikidata knows about El Salvador and ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions describe them, which is about as close to "famous" as open data gets.
Santa Ana Volcano
Large stratovolcano in El Salvador
Also called Ilamatepec, a large stratovolcano in El Salvador's Santa Ana department. Its summit, 2,381 metres (7,812 ft) above sea level, makes it the highest volcano in the country.
Photo: Unknown, Public domain
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San Miguel (volcano)
Stratovolcano located in El Salvador
A stratovolcano in the central east of El Salvador, lying southwest of San Miguel city, approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) away. On January 16, 2002, its summit crater gave off a minor burst of steam, gas and ash that lasted 3 hours without doing any real harm to people or property.
Photo: Gump Stump, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Cerro El Pital
Mountain in El Salvador and Honduras
The highest point of Salvadoran territory, a mountain near the Honduran border in El Salvador, Central America, 2,730 m (8,957 ft) above sea level, 12 km (7 mi) from La Palma town.
Photo: ElmerGuevara, CC BY-SA 3.0
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CECOT
Maximum security prison in El Salvador
Properly the Terrorism Confinement Center, a maximum security prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, built in late 2022 during a sweeping crackdown on the country's gangs.
Photo: Casa Presidencial , El Salvador, CC0
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San Vicente (volcano)
Stratovolcano in El Salvador
Rising beside the town that shares its name, in the middle of El Salvador: a stratovolcano, second in height among the country's volcanoes.
Photo: Kristal Dorion, (U.S. Geological Survey), Public domain
Usulután (volcano)
Mountain in El Salvador
A stratovolcano in central El Salvador, rising over the coastal plain between the San Miguel and San Vicente volcanoes, just east of Taburete volcano, and topped by a summit crater 1.3 kilometres (0.8 mi) wide that is open to the east.
Photo: Lee Siebert, Smithsonian Institution, Public domain
Chinameca (volcano)
Stratovolcano in central-eastern El Salvador
Towering over the town of Chinameca, to the north of San Miguel volcano, in the central east of El Salvador: a stratovolcano.
Photo: Lee Siebert, Smithsonian Institution, Public domain
San Salvador (volcano)
Complex volcano in El Salvador
A stratovolcano northwest of the city of San Salvador, whose crater has been almost filled by a younger cone, the Boquerón volcano.
Photo: Rick Wunderman, Smithsonian Institution, Public domain
Conchagua (volcano)
Stratovolcanoes in eastern El Salvador
Two stratovolcanoes overlapping in a single cone in south-eastern El Salvador, looking over the Gulf of Fonseca.
Photo: Rick Wunderman, Smithsonian Institution, Public domain
About El Salvador
Officially the Republic of El Salvador, a sovereign Central American nation on the Pacific coast, with Guatemala to its northwest and Honduras to its northeast. San Salvador, the capital and biggest municipality, is its political, economic and cultural centre.
Officially The Republic of El Salvador.
Based on the Wikipedia article, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0: the facts are Wikipedia's, the wording is this site's.
Questions travellers ask
What is worth seeing in El Salvador?
This guide lists 10: Izalco (volcano), Santa Ana Volcano, San Miguel (volcano) and Cerro El Pital and others.
How were these places chosen?
By machine, from open data, with no human ranking them and nobody able to pay for a place on the list. Everything Wikidata records in El Salvador that is a building, a landform, a protected area or a tourist attraction, has coordinates, a photograph and an English Wikipedia article, is ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions wrote about it. Provinces, cities, airports, stations and stretches of sea shared with the neighbours are filtered out.
What language is spoken in El Salvador, and what currency?
Spanish. The currency is USD.
How do I get mobile data in El Salvador?
A travel eSIM is usually the cheapest way, and avoids a roaming bill. The plans suggested at the foot of this guide start at $3.38 for 1GB for 7 days. The eSIM is data-only and sits alongside your normal SIM, so calls, texts and WhatsApp keep working on your own number.
Which networks would my phone use in El Salvador?
Claro. Your phone picks whichever has the best signal where you are, the same way a local phone does.
One practical note: staying online
Maps, tickets and translation all want data, and roaming is the expensive way to get it. A Computatus eSIM eSIM connects to Claro once you land, and installs by QR code before you leave.
See 4 Computatus eSIM plans for El Salvador from $3.38
| Plan | Data | Valid | Price | Order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GB for 7 days Cheapest | 1 GB | 7 days | $3.38 | Get it → |
| 3GB for 15 days | 3 GB | 15 days | $11.90 | Get it → |
| 3GB per day | 3 GB | 1 day | $14.43 | Get it → |
| 5GB for 30 days | 5 GB | 30 days | $21.71 | Get it → |
No app needed. Install by QR code before you fly, keep your own number for calls, and it connects the moment you land.
Claro 4G
A commission on plans bought through these links is what pays for this guide. Nothing above depends on it: the places are chosen before any price is looked up.