Sardinia

I often meet people who are interested in knowing about the place where I am from. They would like suggestions on things to do and places to visit.

This page contains some tips about Sardinia. I tried to be as unbiased as possible, but it’s my home and so I have my preferences. Feel free to make suggestions.

First important tip: get a car, seriously. I mean, you can rely on public transportation, but it’s far better to have a car. A scooter might work too as long as you’re comfortable driving it in Italy (traffic can be slightly different than what you would expect).

Alghero:

A view of capo caccia from an airplane

This is where I was born, and where I lived for a large part of my life. One of the nicest places in Alghero is the old city center - it is a must-see!

Alghero is a special place in Sardinia.

Why? Because I come from there, therefore it’s special! Joking aside, it’s special because of its history. Being an old Catalan colony, the inhabithants speak Algueres, an old version of Catalan with some Sardinian language influences.

Another must-see is the Grotte di nettuno. You can reach the Grotte by boat (you’ll find many signs advertising for day trips in the port of Alghero), or by car. If you decide to go by car, be prepared to climb ~650 steps!

I am particularly emotionally attached to the next place, for many different reasons. It’s a promontory called Punta Giglio. Together with Capo Caccia they are the two tips that mark the Porto Conte gulf.

Punta Giglio was an anti-aircraft outpost during WWII, it’s full of bunkers and structures used during the war. One of these structures is an old concrete terrace, looking onto Capo Caccia. From there you can enjoy a breathtaking view. The structure is quite old and not well maintained, so it’s falling down with time. You can get there following a short hike.

Alghero’s coastline has many nice beaches- Lido, Mariapia, Conchiglia - but if you go further North along the coast, you will find other beautiful beaches that are way less crowded (yeah I mean, don’t expect this to be true in July/August)

One of my favorite is Mugoni.

The beach is within the aforementioned gulf of Porto Conte, the whole area is a protected natural park. Breathe, enjoy the sun, and take this for granted: I really envy you. While you have already visited two of my favorite places in the world, I’m probably sitting under a grey gloomy sky.

If you are in the area, you can have some fun trying to find the ruins of a place called Villa Mugoni.

Another gorgeious beach that is not so far is Portoferro.

Portoferro is huge, more exposed to the wind, and facing the open sea. Because of that, the water over there can be quite rough.

There are lots of good places to eat in/around Alghero. My suggestions:

Now it’s time to move a bit South: I suggest you drive from Alghero to Bosa, on the SP105.

Bosa is a nice small town, and from the SP105, you will get a great view of the western coast. On the way, have lunch or dinner (dinner is better, you increase the chances of seeing a beautiful sunset) at Ristorante pedramare. WARNING

WARNING Call before you go, especially on weekends: sometimes the whole restaurant is rented for a wedding.

Stintino

Not far from Alghero, you have Stintino, a beautiful small town on the northernmost tip of Sardinia. There, you will find the famous beach, la pelosa, and the island of Asinara.

Cagliari

A photo of a sand dune, porto pino beach

Generally slightly warmer than the north of Sardinia, (you’ll notice a difference in temperature, especially in the sea) Cagliari is the biggest city of Sardinia.

Plenty of areas dedicated to shopping, the old city centre (Castello - Bastioni) is nice to visit, plus you have Via Roma and all the surroundings.

You’d also like the poetto, Cagliari’s main iconic beach.

A few other places that are worth a visit:

WARNING Of course there are also a lot of other things to see and do. This is a kind of essential list that may be a bit biased according to my opinions and favorite places. Sardinia has a huge variety, it's difficult to include all the beautiful things in a short list. Iwill be expanding it, so don't forget to keep coming back for updates

If you have any questions or suggestions, follow the link to the About page, grab my email address and drop me a line.