.

TravelTips24 : Europe : Mediterranean Europe : Italy : Sardinia

Sardinia

Sardinia (Sardegna) [1] is a large island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, between the Balearic islands and the Italian peninsula and south of Corsica. It is one of the regions of Italy.

Cities

Other destinations

  • Alghero - medieval town (L'Alguer in the local Catalan language)
  • Budoni - where you will find one of the most beautiful Mediterranean sea
  • San Teodoro - one of the most important seaside resorts of the island
  • The Punic and Roman archaeological sites of Nora and Tharros
  • Bosa - Small but beautiful medieval town
  • Stintino A small fishing village on the North-Western tip of Sardinia which boasts one of the finest beaches in the whole of Sardinia - La Pelosa
  • Iglesias and the Sulcis are undiscovered treasures of art and sea. While near Iglesias, visit the mines, and hear the history of Sardinian miners. Do not forget to go and see the lovely Santa Barbara cove

Note

Near Perdasdefogu there is a military and sounding rocket launch site. Unfortunately it appears to be almost impossible to obtain information about launch dates and accessing the area is not generally possible.

A long distance hiking trail stretches from the northern tip of the island to Cagliari on the southern coast. So far, only a German hiking guide has been published, and this only covers the first quarter of the trail which is a 7 day hike. The guide is entitled "Italien: Sentiero Italia - Trans Sardinien: Von Santa Teresa nach Monti", and is by Benjamin Flad, Conrad Stein Verlag, March 2007. ISBN: 3866861958

The authors had plans to publish an English version of the guide in conjunction with the British publisher Cicerone, the title of which will be "Sentiero Italia - Trans Sardinia", but this was abandoned by the publisher.

Language

Along with standard Italian, Sardinians speak one of the dialects of Sardinian language (similar to Latin). In Alghero they also speak Catalan.

Getting there

The same rules apply as in Italy.

The following budget airlines can get you there cheaply: Jet2.com, Ryanair, Easyjet, TUIFLY.com, Germanwings.com, Meridiana and SkyEurope.

Flights and airtickets to Sardinia

There are airports near Cagliari, Alghero and Olbia.

By boat

There are ferry services to Cagliari (south coast), Porto Torres (north coast), and Olbia, Golfo Aranci and Arbatax (east coast).

Have a look at Ferriesonline or the state owned ferry service Tirrenia and the private companies Moby Lines, Sardinia Ferries, Grimaldi, Snav.

Getting around

By car

While it is possible to get around Sardinia by bus and train, doing so may well limit how fast you travel and where you go. If you can, hire a car. It is well worth the outlay, and it will allow you to visit some of the more remote and enchanting places and areas.

Unlike the rest of Italy which has a reputation for reckless and inconsiderate driving, Sardinians tend to drive much more slowly and carefully. However, a lot of the roads are narrow, winding and often deserted, and because of this oncoming drivers may not expect to encounter other vehicles.

Buses to Sardinia

Regular, cheap buses between the main centres: Cagliari, Sassari, Alghero, Nuoro etc. You may end up changing buses (or trains) in Macomer. Less frequent buses, but worth persevering for the smaller villages.

By train

Regular trains from the edge of Alghero to Sassari and from Sassari to Cagliari, although buses are usually quicker. Change at Macomer for trains or buses to Nuoro. Less frequent trains on this and other routes.

In the summer period, twice a week, there's a small train that travels from Sassari to Tempio and back. It runs especially for tourists and is highly recommended.

By Boat and Yacht

  • Yacht charter - Windward Islands - Windward Islands, one of the worlds largest yacht charter companies, can take care of all charter requirements, from bareboat to luxury yacht in Sardinia. Operating from 9 offices worldwide (USA, Spain, UK, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Switzerland, Caribbean, Honk Kong and Dubai).

Other companies are specialized in trip to Italy and boat tours in Sardinia Romantica Tours - Romantica Tours is one of the most specialized tour operator companies for trips to Italy and special tours by boat (sail boat and motor yacht).

What to Eat

  • Try Is Culurgiones (typical pasta of Ogliastra made of flour, lard, salt and water ), similar to Ravioli comprised of a filling - potatoes, 'Pecorino' cheese (sheep's milk cheese), onion, mint, and garlic - in any Sardinian restaurant.
  • Seada (pl. Seadas), typical of Barbagia, similar to great Ravioli, comprised of a filling: a characteristic fresh cheese with lemon flavour that melts when Seada is cooked. It must be fried and dipped in honey.
  • Porcheddu is a local specialty of inner Sardinia, it's a young pig roasted into a hole on terrain in a special manner with local wood (oak) and an aromatic local shrub called mirto.
  • Try the fish too, the mediterranean fish ( pesce azzurro ) is a real special dish in the coast of Sardinia. Look for a fish market in any small coast town and buy your own fish in the early morning, cook and eat it: it's simply fantastic.
  • Another thing to try is the sardinian pastry: they have a lot of specialties in this field.

What to Drink

  • Mirto is an alcoholic drink that's a local speciality. It is made of wine spirit flavoured with the berries of mirto, a local shrub.
  • Fil'e ferru is another alcoholic local speciality. Its name means "iron wire" because in the XIXth century it was clandestinely distilled and hidden in small holes covered with soil. Only a small iron wire came out from the soil, to remember where the bottles were hidden.
  • Limoncello is a sweet drink made with lemon rind, usually best served chilled. It is widely produced in locally.
  • Vernaccia di Oristano is a high alcoholic wine produced in Oristano zone. It's a special wine to drink with pastry.
  • Vermentino di Sardegna is light wine with a strong minerally taste.

Where to Sleep

There are many campsites all around the coast, most of them close at the end of September or early October, but some are open all year round. Prices get as high as 30-40€ in the mid-season (August) for a small tent, car and 2 people and tolerable in September/October to an average of 15€ (3-star campsites).

See city / district / destination articles for apartments, guesthouses, hotels, etc.

  • Sardinia Accommodations - Sardegne.com - The main sardinian tour operator. More than 700 solutions for your holidays in sardinia. Hotels, residences, holiday houses, Farm Houses and B&B.

LimoneBeachVillage.it/en - A nice new village in the south-east cost, near Villasimius and Costa Rey.

Hotel Villa del Parco - A 5-star hotel: an oasis of luxury and elegance, near Santa Margherita di Pula.

Getting Home

Daily ferries link Northen Sardinia with Corsica (it is possible to take a day trip to Bonifacio, Corsica) from Santa Teresa di Gallura.

This page was last edited at 12:16, on 10 November 2008 by Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. Based on work by Sergey Kudryavtsev, Wikitravel user(s) Episteme and Texugo, Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel and others.

Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license