Travel Eye on Costa Smeralda (Sardinia, Italy)

Write a review or view peoples experiences in the Costa Smeralda.	Hotels in the Costa Smeralda	Flights	Car Hire/Rental

Want to contribute to the writings of this travel guide? If so, Click here

Overview:

Legend has it that a fabulously wealthy consortium of businessmen first exploited this beautiful wild coastal strip in the 1960s, backed by the Aga Khan. Today the local villages and towns have become discreet up-market resorts crammed with private villas, luxurious holiday villages, contrived Mediterranean-style shopping malls, low-rise high-priced hotels and huge yachting marinas packed with gleaming yachts. Main town of the area is Porto Cervo, a crime and litter-free playground of the rich with its ranks of pale pink and red villas climbing the hill from the busy marina. The other favourite retreat for celebrities is the town of Porto Rotondo, situated on a natural cove about 10 miles (16km) from Olbia, site of the international airport. The town offers a wealth of beaches, nightclubs, bars and restaurants, most clustered around its Piazza San Marco, and the marina. The main attractions of the Costa Smeralda are the numerous sequestered beaches, none signposted, which can be discovered simply by following a dirt track down towards the sea. Among the most scenic are Cappriccioli, Rena Bianca and Liscia Ruja, all south of Porto Cervo.

Locality:

On the jet-set strip of Sardinia, Costa Smeralda is a six-mile (10km) stretch of coastline between the gulfs of Cugnana and Arzachena on the island's northeast coast, which has become a developer's paradise.

Entertainment/Facilities/Attractions/Things to do:

Garibaldi's House : Famous revolutionary, Giuseppe Garibaldi, lived the last third of his life on the woody, undeveloped island of Caprera, a short ferry-ride from Palau on Sardinia. The trip to view Garibaldi's house and museum is very popular in season, with visitors queuing to catch one of the regular ferries to Caprera. Garibaldi came to live in Caprera in 1855 after a 20-year exile from Italy. He led his famous 1,000 Red Shirts on his campaign to conquer Sicily and Naples from here in 1861. The elegant homestead has been preserved as he left it. Tours of the property end with his tomb in the garden. Transport: Regular ferries from Palau to La Maddalena, main island in the Maddalena archipelago, from where it is possible to reach Caprera by a connecting bridge ; Opening time: Tuesday to Friday 9am to 1pm and 3pm to 6pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am to 1pm

Nuraghe : The mysterious Nuragic people who arrived in Sardinia around 1500 BC festooned the island with about 30,000 circular fortified structures. Today about 7,000 of these remain standing to be marvelled at by tourists. The complex of Nuraghe in Barumini has been added to UNESCO's World Heritage List and is the finest and most complete example of this prehistoric architecture. The Barumini site can be reached from Oristano or Cagliari on route 131 and turning off onto route 197. Other well-preserved nuraghe can be seen at Sant Antine. At Nora on the very southern tip of the island are the remains of an extensive Nuragic village including an amphitheatre, forum, baths, temple and Kasbah. Other good Nuragic sites are near Villanovaforru, Alghero, and Abbasanta. Most Nuraghe are closed afternoons and Sundays; most charge no admission.