Sardinia (Sardegna) 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.

The sea from Capo Sandalo, in a natural reserve on San Pietro Island, south of Sardinia

Cities

• Cagliari
• Nuoro (Nugoro in the local Sardinian language)
• Olbia
• Oristano
• Sassari

Other destinations

• Alghero - medieval town (L'Alguer in the local Catalan language)

• Wild areas of Barbagia and Ogliastra

• Isola dei Gabbiani - a haven for windsurfers and kitesurfers

• The Punic and Roman archeological sites of Pula and Tharros

• Costa Smeralda - Glamorous beaches

• Bosa - Small but beautiful medieval town

• Stintino small fisherman village in the North-Western tip of Sardinia, its beach La Pelosa is among the very finest of the entire island

• Iglesias and the Sulcis are undiscovered treasures of art and sea. Near Iglesias, you should visit some mines, listen at the history of the sardinian miners, and go to see the marvellous Santa Barbara cove

• Tavolara Island - a popular spot for scuba diving

Understand

Near Perdasdefogu there is a launch site for military and sounding rockets [1]. Unfortunately it seems to be impossible to get informations about launch dates and there seem to be no possibilities to view the area.

Talk

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

Get in

The same rules apply as in Italy.

The following budget airlines can get you there cheaply: Ryanair, Easyjet, Hapag-Lloyd and Meridiana.

By plane

There are airports near Cagliari, Alghero and Olbia.

By boat

There are ferry services to Cagliari (south coast), Sassari (north coast), and Olbia, Arbatax (east coast).

Have a look at the state owned ferry service Tirrenia and the private companies Moby Lines, Sardinia Ferries, Linea dei golfi, Grimaldi.

Get around

By car

Beware the way locals drive: racing along the narrow and bendy roads in the hills.

By bus

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.

Eat

• Try Ravioli con Ricotta (ravioli with fresh cheese) in any Sardinian restaurant or home.

• Porceddu is a local speciality, it's a young pig roasted into a hole on terrain in a special manner with local spices.

• Try the fish too, the mediterranean fish ( pesce azzurro ) is a real special dish here. 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.

Drink

• Mirto is an alcoholic drink that's a local speciality.

• Filuferru is another alcoholic local speciality. It's name means "iron wire" because in XiX^th 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.

• Vernaccia di Oristano is a high alcoholic wine produced in Oristano zone. It's a special wine to drink with pastry.

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.

• Residence Bougainvillae Sardinia, Porto Cervo Marina, 07020, Sardegna, Italy, Tel: +39 078991640 Fax: + 39 078991717, info@bougainvillae.com, Residence Bougainvillae Sardinia Website. Residence Bougainvillae is located just 100m from the famous harbour of Porto Cervo Marina.

Get out

Daily ferries link Northen Sardinia with Corsica (it is feasable to take a day trip to Bonifacio, Corsica) from San Teresa.