I have been to Sardinia three times and I want to go back there again. Even for several trips I could not see all the beauties of this Italian island.
Sardinia has the most beautiful beaches in Italy. The water in the sea is of unreal colors: light blue, emerald, azure and deep blue. All the beaches are very different: some with an equipped descent, others are completely wild, and you have to get to them on a steep mountain path. Here and pebbles, and colored stone chips, and fine white sand. There are wide beaches, and there are tiny ones, where there was no one but us.
I’ve been to different parts of Sardinia, completely different from each other. I’ve seen sunset on a wild coastline among sand dunes, sunbathed on beaches like Tahiti, and seen the Milky Way for the first time on a starlit mountain road.
In this article I will tell you how to organize a vacation in Sardinia and what you can save money on.
📌 Input data
Country: Italy.
Where is it located: west of Italy in the Mediterranean Sea.
When in season: May through September.
Currency: euro, 1 €.
Language: Italian, Sardinian.
☀️ Weather
The season in Sardinia is from May to September. At this time, the air temperature averages +28 °C and the water temperature +22 °C. Winters are mild: it is +14 °C outside, but sometimes it rains. In the fall and spring Sardinia is around +19 °C.
🛳️ The Road
Airplane. Sardinia has three airports in the cities of Cagliari, Olbia, and Alghero.
Ferries. Some tourists travel around Italy and then take a ferry to Sardinia. Ferries run from the ports of Civitavecchia, Genoa, Livorno and Naples. The main ports of Sardinia are Cagliari, Olbia, and Porto Torres. Ferry prices can be seen on the Traghettitalia website. A ticket for one person costs from 60 €.
I live in Italy. The last time we traveled to Sardinia we took the Grimaldi-lines ferry with our car from the port of Civitavecchia, which is two hours by car from Rome. The port of arrival was Porto Torres. A ticket for a private cabin on the ferry cost 500 € for two people. The price included space for a car.
Travel. Tour operators organize tours to Sardinia. On average, a week in Cagliari for two people costs from 1000 €. In my opinion, such a trip will not allow you to appreciate the beauty and diversity of the island. Rest on it is not like a vacation on a trip to Turkey, when all week you live in the same hotel and go to the same beach.
I advise you to book your own tickets, accommodation and be sure to rent a car to visit different beaches that cannot be reached by public transportation.
🌴 Resorts
In the northeast of Sardinia lies the Costa Smeralda with the famous resort of Porto Cervo. This is the luxury part of Sardinia with boutiques, yacht clubs and five-star hotels. Prices accordingly.
In the same part of the island there is a more democratic resort of San Teodoro. There are popular beaches near the town.
In the northwest lies the most famous resort, Alghero, which is called a little Barcelona. A significant part of its inhabitants speak Catalan. This part of the island is known as the Coral Riviera: red corals grow in the sea there. Another resort in the northwest is Stintino. Its beaches are characterized by white, very fine sand.
In the south, tourists stay in the resort of Villasimius and in the capital of the island, Cagliari. It is usually not crowded, even in season, and the beaches are as beautiful as the more popular beaches in the north. The south of Sardinia is also famous for flamingos nesting there.
In the eastern part of the island lies the Gulf of Orosei, famous for its coves with azure waters, rocks and grottoes. The nearest towns to the bay are Cala Gonone, Santa Maria Navarrese and Arbatax.
The west of Sardinia is famous for the Costa Verde. This is the wild part of Sardinia, where many beaches are unequipped and you can enjoy unspoiled nature. The largest town on this coast is Oristano.
The Supramonte and Gennargentu mountains are spread out in the central part of the island. Mountain landscapes, forests, waterfalls and mountain rivers can be found near the town of Nuoro.
🌴Beaches of Sardinia
Poetto is a beach in Cagliari, the capital of Sardinia. It is one of the few on the island that is easily accessible by public transportation. The bus takes about 20 minutes from the train station.
Although Poetto is a city beach, the water is crystal clear and emerald blue in color. There is a convenient promenade along the sea for biking and jogging, and the beach itself is wide and sandy. There is also a separate area for dogs on Poetto.
Part of the beach is free, but there is also a paid area. On average, a sunbed costs about 20 €.
La Pelosa is a beach in the northwest of the island, usually included in all the rankings of the most beautiful beaches in Sardinia. Its specialty is the islet with a tower, which I reached from the rocky part of the beach. The other part is with fine and white sand. To prevent tourists from taking it away with them, La Pelosa has even banned sunbathing on towels. Instead, traders sell special straw mats. Violators of the law face a fine of 100 €.
The islet is easily accessible by wading, but it is better to go in coral slippers for swimming: the bottom is stony
On the beach of Cala Brandinha, I felt like I was in Tahiti. There’s a narrow sandy strip to sunbathe on and a gentle blue sea.
A warning hangs in the parking lot at Cala Brandinca: Spiaggia affolata – “beach with lots of people.” This turned out to be true. There is another beach nearby, Lu Impostu, where the sandy strip is a little wider.
Parking is available on the beach and costs 2 € per hour. Renting an umbrella and a sunbed costs 25 € for half a day. There is a small snack bar under the pine trees next to the beach.
Lazaretto is a beach near Alghero. I liked that it is green around the beach and the water is very clear. There are less people there compared to the previous two beaches and the entrance to the water is deeper. The sand is not as fine and white as at La Pelosa and Cala Brandinqui, but the color of the water is still magical.
There are sunbeds with umbrellas, rental costs 25 €.
Cala Luna is one of the most beautiful beaches in the Gulf of Orosei on the east coast of Sardinia. It can be reached by boat from the coastal towns of Cala Gonone, Santa Maria Navarrese and Arbatax. The cost of a round trip ticket is 5 €. A special feature of the beach are the grottoes where you can hide from the sun. This beach was the setting for Guy Ritchie’s movie “Gone” starring Madonna.
On the Pishinas, I saw the most beautiful sunset. It’s very wide. There are high waves and the sand looks like corn grits. The beach is on the west coast – Costa Verde. It is one of the wildest parts of Sardinia with untouched nature. The Costa Verde is famous for its dunes – kilometers of sand overgrown with Mediterranean plants.
Cala Domestica is a cozy beach with emerald water on the west coast. There are remnants of warehouses, mines and tunnels.
The beach is divided into two parts. The main bay is sandy. If you go through the arch in the rock, you will find yourself in the tiny cove of La Caleta. This is a very romantic place: couples like to stay there in the evening when the beach is empty.
Cala Goloritze is a beach in the Gulf of Orosei in the east of the island. It can only be reached from the town of Baunei on foot along a mountain path. You can only see it from afar by boat: by law, you cannot approach it more than 300 meters away.
The length of the path is about 4 kilometers. It takes about two hours to walk, but the stunning view of the turquoise sea and cliffs is worth it. The beach has pebbles and large stones, so it is better to have special shoes for swimming. Entrance to the beach costs 6 €.
La Maddalena is an archipelago in the northeast with crystal clear sea and cliffs. To tour the islands of the archipelago and swim on the beaches and in the bays, you need to take a boat that leaves from the port of Palau. A ticket costs 50-60 € per person. Smaller boats carry groups of 10-12 people. The excursion costs 130 € per person, including lunch on board.
Iz Arutas is a beach on the west coast with small quartz pebbles like grains of rice. The water is very clear and the entrance to the sea is deep. The beach is wide, well ventilated. There are no sun beds and umbrellas. Parking costs 8 € for the whole day.
🎭 Attractions and entertainment
Sardinia is mainly visited for its natural beauty. But there are also museums, churches, cozy towns. These are the sights that I found interesting.
Orgosolo is an unusual town with paintings on the walls of houses in the central part of Sardinia. The houses are painted with amusing drawings, images of the town’s history and world events. It seems that you are in an open-air art gallery.
The church of San Lorenzo is located in the town of Porto Rotondo in the northeast of the island. It is decorated with thousands of figures carved from Russian pine. In addition to wood, the architects used glass in the design of the church. For example, there is an unusual door in the shape of a cross made of several layers of glass.
Boza is a cozy town with colored houses near Alghero. It is pleasant to wander through the narrow streets, look in the shops of local craftsmen, have lunch in one of the restaurants. A very beautiful panorama opens from the fortress: vineyards, roofs of houses and the sea.
Nuraghi are ancient towers around which the Sardinians built their settlements. There are over 7,000 nuraghi in Sardinia, all located in different parts of the island. The most famous are the nuraghi of the archaeological complex “Su Nuraxi”, which is located in the center of Sardinia. The main tower of the complex was built around the 15th century BC. The ticket costs 12 €.
The abandoned mines are located in the west of Sardinia, in the town of Montevecchio. Ore was mined there since the 19th century, but mining ceased in 1991. Since then, Montevecchio has become a ghost town.
During the tour of the abandoned mines, they show the premises of the company, the house of the mine owner, equipment for extracting ore, railroad cars for its transportation, and the empty dwellings of the miners. For more details, visit the official website.
The Garibaldi Museum is located on the island of Caprera, northeast of Sardinia. General Garibaldi, the national hero who united Italy, spent his last years here. The museum has many of the general’s personal belongings that tell the story of his life.
The museum is also worth visiting for the sake of nature. The island of Caprera is very picturesque in its own right, offering spectacular views of the sea.
Museum of Mediterranean Masks. In one of Sardinia’s towns, Mamoiada, the inhabitants hold a carnival every year in January. Its two main characters are the gloomy Mamutones and the jolly Isohadores. Mamutones wears a black mask, his head is covered with a black shawl, and on his shoulders are black sheep skins and bells. Isohadores is always in a white mask, beret, red jacket with bronze bells. An embroidered shawl is tied around his waist, and in his hand is a lasso for catching animals.
I tried to understand the meaning of this confrontation, but I couldn’t: the tradition is ancient, and there are several versions of the origin. Anyway, the masks and robes of the characters look very spectacular. You can see them in the museum.
💶 Money
When traveling in Sardinia, we paid with cards and cash. For small purchases, it is better to have change: a card may not be accepted. You will also need coins to pay for parking. It often happens that parking meters do not accept paper money or cards.
🚘 Transportation
The most convenient way to get around Sardinia is by car. The public transportation system is not very well developed. There are intercity buses and trains on the island, but there is no direct connection between some cities, and buses do not run after 9 pm. Many beaches can only be reached by car.
You can rent a car at the airport or in major cities. There are offices of different rental companies such as Locautorent, Maggiore, Hertz, Sixt, Avis, Europcar. In addition to a B-category driver’s license, you may be asked to present a credit card in the driver’s name.
A city bus fare costs from 1 €, in some cities, such as Cagliari, 1.3 €. The ticket is valid for 90 minutes and is sold at tobacco stores. If you buy it from the driver, you will pay 0.5 € more. A weekly pass costs from 10 €.
Rubber boats with a motor are also popular among tourists as transportation: some bays can be reached only by water. The cost of renting such a boat for the whole day starts from 150 €.
🏠 Housing
We booked our accommodations in Sardinia through Airbnb. Last time we stayed in the town of Sorso. There we rented a small villa with a garden away from the neighbors, where we could only get to the house by car. A week’s rent cost 300 €. We regretted not renting a place closer to the infrastructure as it was creepy at night. The local dogs were barking all the time. Maybe mice and hedgehogs, but it was still scary.
If you book a hotel, take into account that its cost depends on the resort. For example, in Oristano for a week for two people you will have to pay from 250 €, in Porto Cervo – from 400 €. There is another popular accommodation option – these are mini-hotels in the countryside, where local products are produced: wine, meat, cheese. The cost of a week for two people – from 250 €. Hostels in Sardinia are not very popular and cost like cheap hotels.
🥘 Food
Traditional dishes. Despite the fact that Sardinia is surrounded by the sea, Sardinian cuisine is full of meat dishes. For example, in the mountainous part of the island they cook pig on a spit – porchedda. One day on a mountain road we met a whole flock of wild pigs – future porceddu.
One of the most popular dishes on the island is the Sardinian sheep’s cheese pecorino. I liked the young pecorino, which has a mild, sweet flavor. There is also an aged one: it is more savory and salty. 1 kg of cheese costs 20 €.
All guidebooks to Sardinia usually write about the Sardinian cheese casu marzu, but I had no desire to try it. It’s a pecorino into which cheese fly larvae are injected to speed up the fermentation process and make it soft. Some people remove the larvae, while others eat this delicacy directly with live insects. You won’t find this kind of cheese in the supermarket: the Sardis mostly make it at home.
We tried koulourgiones – something like our dumplings with potatoes, pecorino cheese and mint. Usually koulourgiones are served with tomato sauce.
Fregola is a typical Sardinian pasta. The semolina is rolled into small balls and then baked in the oven. Fregola is often cooked with shellfish. 250 g of dry fregola costs 2.5 €.
Shopping. Most often we bought food in supermarkets. Nearby were supermarkets “Carrefour”, “Pam”, “Eurospin”. We did not feel a big difference in prices compared to mainland Italy. A bottle of Sardinian wine “Cannonau” costs 5 €, a kilogram of tomatoes – 2,5 €, typical bread carasau – 2,5 € for 250 g. It is a flatbread like pita bread, but very thin and crispy.
Restaurants. Several times we had dinner in restaurants. The average dinner for two people costs 50 €. In the fish restaurant the bill is higher – 80 €.
I particularly remember the restaurant Al Tonno di Corsa on the island of San Pietro, in the town of Carloforte. The island is famous for tuna fishing: it was in this restaurant that I had my first taste of fresh tuna. We were surprised that at the entrance you can immediately see the kitchen of the restaurant and how the dishes are prepared for serving. The chef himself took our order and then kept coming up and asking if we liked everything. The dinner cost 35 €. For this money we tried small portions of the dishes on the menu and were full.
📡 Internet
We didn’t have internet in our rented house, so we used our cell phone. My operator, Iliad, had almost no coverage anywhere. But my boyfriend’s operator, TIM, did: in our experience, it has the best coverage in Italy. But that’s because we lived far away from civilization. There were no such problems close to the big cities.
🍪 What to bring back from Sardinia
From Sardinia we brought food and alcohol as souvenirs. Among the sweets I liked papassini – cookies with protein glaze and colored sugar sprinkles, mostacholi – Sardinian cinnamon gingerbread in the shape of rhombuses, tiricke – cookies in the shape of ears with grape and orange filling. Sets of sweets weighing 300 g cost 6 €.
We also bought bottarga – dried mullet roe. It is sold as a vacuum-packed briquette or grated in a jar. Most often caviar is used as a seasoning for dishes. Sometimes it is cut into thin slices and served as an appetizer. A 100 g pack costs 13 €.
Myrtle trees grow in Sardinia. Myrtle berries are an iconic ingredient in Sardinian cuisine. They are added to meat, made into jams and tinctures. We bought myrtle liqueur, which tastes sweet and not strong. A 0.7 liter bottle of liqueur cost €10.
🙅 Safety regulations
It can be dangerous to drive on the mountain serpentine in Sardinia. The speed limit is 90 km/h in the countryside and 50 km/h in the city, if there are no other signs. In remote areas of the island you should be careful: wild animals may cross the road.
For roadside assistance, you can contact a car rental agency, as well as the Automobile Club of Italy (ACI), which will send a tow truck if necessary. The ACI phone number is 803-116 or 800-116-800 for overseas mobile operators. An ambulance here is called by dialing 118. The general number for emergencies is 112.
