When I was planning a trip to Sardinia, I was desperate to find a way to see both the north and south in one week. I wasn’t able to take more than a week off of work, but I didn’t want to be forced to choose only one location if I was going to make the (often grueling) trip there. I couldn’t find an itinerary that incorporated both in less than ten days, though. In fact, most blogs I read even stated it would be impossible. My friends and I decided we were up to the challenge, and we ended up with the trip of a lifetime.
Fair warning: this itinerary incorporates a LOT of driving. You absolutely will need to rent a car. If you are looking for a relaxing beach trip to Sardinia, this might not be the itinerary for you. If you’re looking to experience as much of the 9,305 square mile island as possible in one week, then this is definitely the itinerary for you.
Finally, to execute this itinerary you will need to book a one way ticket to the Olbia airport and then a one way ticket from the Cagliari airport (or vice versa). I flew into Rome from the States and then booked two one ways in and out of the Rome Fiumicino airport separately using Google flights. The Spanish airline Volotea had the best flights for me, and the process was seamless. If you attempt to buy a flight from the U.S. to Sardinia all in one go, it will probably cost as much as twice the price as booking the legs separately.
Getting to Sardinia
To get to Sardinia, I recommend flying into Rome or Naples and then taking a domestic European airline into Sardinia. As mentioned, if you book a flight from the U.S. to Sardinia all together, you’ll probably end up overpaying. I purchased a United Arlines flight from D.C. to Rome, and then I booked a separate Volotea flight from Rome into Olbia that took off a few hours after I landed in Rome to give myself wiggle room. I didn’t check a bag, but it would be easy enough to grab your bag from the baggage carousel and reenter the terminal if you give yourself enough time.
There are two main airports in Sardinia: Olbia and Cagliari. We flew into Olbia and out from Cagliari, but the order of this itinerary could easily be reversed if that works better for flight times.
In the North, we spent two nights with our home-base as Porto Pollo, but anywhere in the North could work. In the South, we spent four nights with our home-base as Cagliari. I would highly recommend staying in Cagliari for the Southern portion of the trip.
Day 1: Olbia and Porto Pollo
We arrived at the Olbia Costa Smeralda airport around 2:00 pm on a Monday. As soon as we got there, we picked up our rental car from a company in the airport terminal. If you can only drive automatic, make sure you are VERY specific about requesting this when you book your car. Additionally, you might need an International Driving Permit. Be sure to check, because if you need it and arrive at the counter without one, they will not give you the car, and there is no way to get it once you’re there except by mail. If you do it before you depart for Italy, the process is incredibly simple and takes one day.
Once we got our car, we explored Olbia a little and then started on our journey to the Airbnb. Olbia is a cute city, but in my opinion, you don’t need to spend any real time there. We stayed at the very northern tip of Sardinia, and I highly recommend this. It was close to Palau, which is a small seaside town. I would also suggest staying in an Airbnb for some quintessential Italian hospitality. When we arrived, our host immediately brought us fresh tomatoes, parmesan, and sardines (yes, that’s where the name comes from) simply because I said I was hungry to my friend.
Once we were settled in our Airbnb, it was about 4:30 pm. We immediately changed into bathing suits, got into the car, and headed to Porto Pollo, which is about a 10-15 minute drive from Palau.
Spiaggia di Porto Pollo is a beach famous for wind surfing. It’s right next to Spiaggia dell'Isola dei Gabbiani, which is a thin strip of beach surrounded by the sea on both sides. We got drinks at Wind, where we spent the evening watching all of the wind surfers (there were seriously hundreds). If you’re feeling adventurous, you can take windsurfing or kitesurfing lessons. Then, we walked about five minutes and got food and more drinks at Rupi’s Beach Bar, which has an incredible vibe. Very beachy and fun, almost Caribbean-y. We watched the sun set behind the windsurfers, hung out here until about 8:30 pm, and then drove home to enjoy a nice bottle of wine at our Airbnb (of course left for us by our generous hostess). It was the perfect first day to prepare us for the rest of the week.
Day 2: Spiaggia di Ezzi Mannu and Spiaggia La Pelosa
We woke up early the next morning to get the day started.
Altogether, this day was the most driving-intensive day of the whole trip. We were in the car for around 6 hours total, which was definitely a lot. If you would like an alternative, I would recommend going to La Maddalena islands. You can take a ferry there from Palau (I would recommend bringing your car onto the ferry because the main island is big; the ferries start at around €25 per person if I remember correctly), or you can join a group tour of the islands that will take you to many of the islands in a boat.
We decided to see Ezzi Mannu and La Pelosa instead, though, because we were trying to see as much of Sardinia as we possibly could. These two beaches are close to each other and are on the northwestern side of the island. At about 8:00 am, we got in the car and started heading towards Ezzi Mannu, which was about 2 hours from our Airbnb.
The drive to Ezzi Mannu is lovely, so we didn’t mind it at all. There were cute produce stands as well and we decided to stop at one to get homemade wine, fresh fruit, and jarred artichokes in olive oil.
Spiaggia di Ezzi Mannu is known for its calm, crystalline water. We parked ourselves at Albanella Beach Club, where we rented two chairs and an umbrella for €25 total. Ezzi Mannu was absolutely the clearest, greenest water we saw during our trip, with little to no fish or even rocks or shells.
After hanging out at Ezzi Mannu until around 1:00 pm, we headed further west to Spiaggia La Pelosa. This is one of the westernmost points of the island and is known for some of the most magical beaches.
Warning: to lounge on La Pelosa beach itself between June and September you will have to make reservations. Reservations are done via the website Spiaggia La Pelosa, and tickets cost €3.50 per person. La Pelosa became a National Park after suffering greatly due to over-tourism, and these practices prevent further harm to the stunning area. You will also need a straw mat to set under your towel to prevent carrying sand away from the beach. Rangers will be monitoring to ensure everyone has a straw mat. There are many vendors that sell them in the area in case you (understandably) didn’t think to pack one.
We didn’t know about the reservations and were unable to reserve one the day of after we found out. There were rocky areas not on the beach itself that we sat on, and they even had some chaise lounges attached to a restaurant. Overall, we got to swim in the water and experience the sea, so we weren’t too bothered.
Other options for this day:
Ferry to the Maddalena islands (~25 Euro)
Cala Brandinchi and Spiaggia della Vacche
Spiaggia di Cala li Cossi
Spiaggia La Marinedda
Spiaggia di Marinella
Because we were driving back to our Airbnb in the Palau area from the westernmost corner of the island, we stopped at the pictureqsue Castelsardo for dinner. We happened upon a lovely pizza place and stopped there for wine and food before finally heading home.
Day 3: Travel from North to South
The one place we knew we had to check out on the way down to Cagliari was Porto Cervo. We couldn’t afford staying here, so we decided to stop in for breakfast and coffee. This took us about thirty minutes from Porto Pollo and was worth the trip to see the elegant resort town.
We also knew we wanted to visit another beach on the way down. We were choosing between Porto Istana (about 45 minutes from Porto Cervo) and Cala Brandinchi (about hour from Porto Cervo).
In the end, we decided on Cala Brandinchi. Known as Little Tahiti, it can definitely get busy in peak season, so be prepared for some crowds. If you go, head to to Cala Brandinchi North Beach and walk to the right side where the beach bar is. The water is beautiful everywhere, but here is where the water is typically clearest, and you will have the best view of Isola Tavolara. We spent about two hours here (we rented a self-paddle boat and some goggles and snorkled a bit), and then we hit the road again.
There’s really only one highway that gets you from the northern part of Sicily to the southern part, and that’s Strada Statale 131. We stopped at an agriturismo for lunch, and there are many off 131. If you are unfamiliar, agriturismos are basically farms, typically run by a family. They produce their own food and most of the time they have accommodations to stay in. You just need to make sure the agriturismo you are stopping at offers meals to people who are not staying there. A few options on the way down to Cagliari are:
Agriturismo Su Connottu
Il Liso Restaurant Oristano
Ristorante Monreale
Craf Da Banana Restaurant
All in all, the drive took us about six hours because we meandered our way down and took our time. It was a very pleasant way to observe the desert topography and sporadic communities that make Sardinia special.
We arrived in Cagliari around 8:00 pm. We checked into our Airbnb, which was right in the middle of the old part of town, and walked to a restaurant for a late dinner. If you’re staying downtown Cagliari, there will be countless options for food and drinks. Explore the city at night: it’s safe and absolutely stunning. I recommend staying as close to the old town as possible!
Day 4: Teulada
In the morning we grabbed cappuccinos and croissants from a local cafe, and then we drove to Teulada. After driving the majority of the day before, we wanted to spend the entire day in one spot, ideally at the beach. Lucky for us, Teulada, one of the most beautiful beaches in the south, is about an hour and twenty minutes from Cagliari. It was well worth the drive.
We rented chairs and an umbrella (highly recommend doing this in advance), and spent the day moving between the beach and the ocean. For lunch we ate at Poseidon, a beach club that was incredibly yummy despite its potential to be a tourist trap. I had the lobster pasta, and it absolutely did not disappoint. The branzino was also incredible, with the waiter deboning the fresh grilled fish at our table. We washed it down with a bottle of rose and headed back to our beach chairs for the rest of the afternoon!
We drove back to Cagliari around four as the sun was setting. We got back to our Airbnb, freshened up, and headed back out to downtown Cagliari for dinner.
Day 5: Boat Ride and Dinner at an Agriturismo
After lounging all day at the beach in Teulada the day before, we wanted to get ourselves onto a boat. We booked ourselves a six hour boat tour through Airbnb Experiences. Airbnb Experiences are my favorite tours typically, since they usually have more of a local feel with many personal touches. After grabbing breakfast at a cafe in the city, we headed out for our boat day.
The tour we chose left from the marina in Notteri. It can take about 45 minutes to an hour to get there from downtown Caligari, but most of the boat tours we found left from there. The experience was incredible, though. We snorkeled and chatted with the five other guests as well as the owners of the boat, who were an Italian couple that had lived on their boat for the past several decades with their adorable dog. They provided us with snacks and Aperol Spritzes, and we boated around the south of Sardinia for half a day.
By the time we docked at the marina and got off the boat, it was around 6:00 pm. We lazily wandered to our car, having worked up an appetite spending all day in the Sardinian sun and swimming around the Mediterranean.
One of my non-negotiables for this trip was dinner at an agriturismo. We had our own Airbnb back in Cagliari, but the food and ambience of agriturismos is often some of the best you will ever experience.
After bugging the other girls I was with the entire trip, we decided tonight was the night! We stopped at Agriturismo Sa Bingia di Ghiani Rossano because it had great reviews and was sort of on the way back to our Airbnb. Man oh man, did we get lucky. This restaurant was absolutely incredible. It’s a flat rate for every person, about 38€, and that includes various appetizers, pasta, meat, fruit, desserts, wine, coffee and a digestif at the end of the meal (we actually ended up having many digestifs, courtesy of our heavy-handed waiter). Every dish was a local favorite and produced on-site.
The space is beautiful, with lovely plastic tables set up outside and an indoor area with huge floor to ceiling windows that can fully open. It’s not for the faint of heart, however; there were dozens of pigs roasting on spits just off where the outdoor tables were set up. This is traditional Sardinian "porceddu," or roast suckling pig. If you have a stomach for meat, though, everything was incredibly fresh and delicious. It’s way, way too much food to eat, but it all tasted amazing.
We did get lucky that they had a table available for a walk-in. From what I have heard, it’s highly suggested to get a reservation in advance. If you decide to do a boat day out of the Notteri area, I CANNOT recommend stopping here to fill up on local Sardinian cuisine enough. Eat up and then head back to Cagliari for a late night drink, espresso, or hit the hay!
Day 6: Explore Cagliari
Use this last day to soak up your last moments in Sardinia. You can either spend the entire day at a beach nearby if you’re in the mood to fully relax, or you can do some of the following:
Morning:
Breakfast at a café: Start your day with a traditional Italian breakfast at a local café. Enjoy a cappuccino or espresso paired with a pastry like a croissant or a Sardinian frittella.
Visit the Bastione di Saint Remy: This historical fortification offers panoramic views of the city and the sea. Explore the stunning architecture and take in the breathtaking scenery.
Explore Castello District: Wander through the charming streets of the Castello district, the old town of Cagliari. Admire the medieval architecture, quaint shops, and local art galleries.
Late Morning:
Cathedral of Santa Maria: Visit the Cagliari Cathedral (Cattedrale di Santa Maria) in the heart of the city. The cathedral boasts impressive architecture and houses various religious artworks.
San Benedetto Market: Immerse yourself in the local culture by visiting the bustling San Benedetto Market. Experience the vibrant atmosphere, and browse through stalls selling fresh produce, seafood, cheeses, and local products.
Lunch:
Sardinian Cuisine: Enjoy a leisurely lunch at a local trattoria or restaurant. Indulge in Sardinian specialties such as "culurgiones" (a type of pasta stuffed with potato and cheese), "porceddu" (roast suckling pig), and "pane carasau" (crispy Sardinian flatbread).
Afternoon:
Poetto Beach: Head to Poetto Beach to relax and unwind by the sea. Take a leisurely stroll along the promenade, soak up the sun, and perhaps dip your toes in the Mediterranean waters.
Molentargius-Saline Regional Park: If you're interested in nature, visit this park located between Cagliari and Quartu Sant'Elena. It's a wetland area famous for its pink flamingos and other bird species.
Evening:
Sunset at Sella del Diavolo: For a memorable sunset experience, hike up to Sella del Diavolo (Devil's Saddle), a promontory offering breathtaking views of the city and the sea.
Dinner at Marina District: Head to the Marina district for dinner. This area is known for its seafood restaurants and lively atmosphere. Enjoy fresh seafood dishes and traditional Sardinian flavors.
Evening Stroll: After dinner, take a leisurely stroll along the Marina and enjoy the city's illuminated buildings and waterfront ambiance.
This is just a suggested itinerary for your day in Cagliari. Feel free to adjust it based on your interests and preferences. Cagliari as a city has so much to offer, and it’s worth dedicating a whole day to it and the surrounding area. From historical sites to world-class beaches, you can’t go wrong. Spend the day savoring the unique blend of culture, history, and natural beauty that the city offers!
Day 7: Depart from Cagliari Airport
My flight from Rome to the United States was in the evening, so I took an early morning flight out of Cagliari to Rome to give myself enough time if something went wrong (i.e. Easy Jet or Ryan Air cancelling my flight from Cagliari, which is entirely possible). I returned our rental car at the Cagliari airport and headed into the domestic terminal to begin my journey home. Again, be sure to book these legs separately, as you will surely get a much better deal than trying to book a flight to Rome or Naples and then to your final destination on the same ticket.
While this trip was a whirlwind, I left feeling very confident I filled each day experiencing as much as I could of the amazing island that is Sardinia. I wouldn’t have changed a thing.