The secrets of south Sardinia

A popular destination for the yachting industry, the island of Sardinia attracts many visitors from around the world, every year. However, even though it’s one of the largest islands in the Mediterranean, Sardinia’s raw beauty is still secret to many visitors.

The most popular places to visit are commonly in the northern parts of Sardinia, which has the famous coastal strip Costa Smeralda, among many other luxury resorts and attractions. However with so many visitors flocking to the better known, popular locations in the north, Sardinia’s southern attractions are still somewhat of a secret.

Below, Sardinia’s leading yacht services company - Star Sardinia, outlined some landmarks of South Sardinia, which they would recommend for any potential visitors.

Marco Argiolas of Star Sardinia commented, “The South side is just as beautiful, and yet not invaded by mass tourism and modern buildings. Our island has unique folkloristic traditions and landmarks that are rooted in prehistoric history, and as such are unique in the world. These places are not as famous as our coastline and white sandy beaches, yet worth visiting just as much.”

Marco and Star Sardinia have accumulated a wealth of local knowledge of the island, and he went on to say, “The southern coast is less serviced in comparison; thus it may be difficult to find the most qualified provider for any need. However, contacting an experienced professional with the local knowledge of Sardinia can open up the southern island. After 20 years of business we have been able to hand-pick the best, and we pride ourselves on delivering great quality at the right price, all over the island.”

Grotte di Is Zuddas, Santadi

Spectacular natural caves located in south west Sardinia, home of the unique “eccentrical aragonites” (very unique formations of material within the cave), which formulate within the caves, ignoring the force of gravity.

Cagliari Belvedere

Cagliari Belvedere offers a fantastic panoramic view in Cagliari – a great place to see the town from above; you may also be able to spot flocks of migrating pink flamingos from here.

Trenino verde (Little Green Train)

This is a historical railroad journey, using original coal trains, which takes you through southern Sardinia and offers a beautiful landscape with imposing mountains, cliffs, rivers and lakes.

Porto Pino sand dunes

Porto Pino is a stunning beach underlined by the picturesque sand dunes which run across the beach, offering fantastic views and scenery.

Nora

Something similar to Pompeii, Nora is an ancient Roman and pre-Roman town placed on a peninsula near Pula, near to Cagliari. It is believed to be the first town founded in Sardinia and as such it is marked on ancient maps.

Barumini Nuraghe

Sardinia is well-known for its typical and peculiar buildings called Nuraghe, first appearing during the Bronze Age. Barumini is a small village, known for containing the most important archaeological site of the island; the nuraghic complex of Barumini. The attraction itself is a huge, ancient fortified village built without any cement, about 60 kilometers north of Cagliari.

Sant'Efisio Parade - every 1st May in Cagliari

Sant'Efisio Parade has occurred every year in Cagliari since 1656. The streets come alive with the largest and most colourful religious procession in the world, lasting for four days. The Saint is saluted by ships’ horns in the port, and is brought to visit the ruins of the ancient town of Nora.

Villasimius beach

A fantastic beach with crystal clear waters, gleaming white sand and breath-taking scenery; making it a rare find even on such an island packed with natural wonders.

Molentargius Saline Park

Cagliari’s main beach, named Poetto, runs parallel to the Molentargius Saline Park, which has become the destination for migrating flocks of flamingos from Spain, France and Africa. It’s very common to spot them from the car while driving to the beach.

Wild horses in Gesturi

When visiting the Giara, a basaltic plateau that rises 1,600ft near Gesturi  (60km north of Cagliari), you may enjoy the sight of the rare, miniature Sardinian Giara Horse, of which 700 still live free in the wild.

Ancient traditional music

You can also experience the ancient, traditional music of Sardinia; something very unique that you may not hear anywhere else in the world. View a video here.

For more information visit Star Sardinia.