7 Days in Sardinia: The Ultimate Week-Long Itinerary

This 7 days in Sardinia itinerary runs north to south, starting near Olbia airport and finishing around Cagliari — or you can reverse it depending on your flights. It's built for travelers who want more than a beach chair: a mix of coastline, food, archaeology, and mountain scenery, with driving kept to roughly 1.5 to 3 hours on most days.

It suits families with children reasonably well, since nothing here demands a hike longer than 45 minutes and most overnight stops have decent pediatric-friendly restaurants. Senior travelers should find the pace workable too, provided they're comfortable with narrow, winding roads — Sardinia's interior roads are well-maintained but twisty, and nobody should attempt the Barumini-to-Oristano stretch in the dark.

It's less ideal for anyone wanting one fixed base and zero packing-up mornings, or for travelers chasing nightlife — Sardinia's energy is in its coastline and villages, not clubs, with the partial exception of Porto Cervo in high season. If you want pure beach relaxation with no driving, you'd be better off comparing this to a week in Ibiza or the Costa Smeralda alone, both of which reward staying put. This itinerary assumes you want the fuller picture, the way a week in Crete or Sicily might be structured around variety rather than a single resort.

Most international flights land at Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport, a 20-minute drive from the coast itself. Pick up your rental car here rather than in town — queues are shorter and most agencies have desks inside the terminal.

Morning: Airport transfer and settle in

Collect your car, grab groceries at a supermarket near the airport (prices on the Costa Smeralda itself run high), and drive roughly 30 minutes to your base near Porto Cervo or Baja Sardinia. Check-in times in Sardinia are typically 2-3pm, so don't rush — use the morning to adjust and avoid driving while jet-lagged.

Afternoon & evening: Coastal exploration

Spend the afternoon at Spiaggia del Principe or Liscia Ruja, two of the better free beaches near Porto Cervo — arrive before 2pm in July or August, since parking fills quickly. In the evening, walk Porto Cervo's marina; it's touristy and pricey for dinner, but worth an hour to see the yachts. A sunset boat tour along the Costa Smeralda coastline is worth booking ahead for this evening or tomorrow — check current prices and availability before you commit, since July-August slots sell out days in advance. If the weather turns, the alternative is the Museo Archeologico in nearby Arzachena, a low-key but genuine introduction to Gallura's nuragic history.

Gallura is Sardinia's only DOCG wine zone, known for Vermentino di Gallura — a crisp white that pairs oddly well with the region's grilled fish. This day stays close to your base, with total driving under an hour.

Morning: Wine tasting and vineyard tour

Head inland toward Berchidda or Monti, both roughly 45 minutes from Porto Cervo, where several family-run wineries offer tastings and short vineyard walks. Book a tasting in advance in peak season — many wineries are small operations with limited daily slots. Expect a typical tasting-plus-tour to run 1.5 to 2 hours. If you're traveling with young children who'll find this tedious, consider splitting the group: one adult tastes while the other takes kids to a nearby playground or granite rock formation, common throughout Gallura.

Afternoon & evening: Local village dining

Spend the afternoon wandering Tempio Pausania, Gallura's old granite-built town, cooler and quieter than the coast — a good option if the kids (or you) need a break from beach heat. Dinner here is noticeably cheaper than on the Costa Smeralda; a trattoria meal for two runs €35-50 versus €70+ near Porto Cervo. This is also a sensible rainy-day swap for Day 1's boat tour, since the town's covered market and cafes work regardless of weather.

Drive about 45 minutes to Palau, where ferries to La Maddalena depart roughly every 30-60 minutes and take 15-20 minutes to cross. Park near the port — paid lots cost €10-15 for a full day — and leave the car behind for this one.

Morning: Ferry and island exploration

Once on La Maddalena, a half-day boat tour of the archipelago is the single best-value booking of the week — it covers Caprera, Budelli's pink-sand-adjacent waters, and Spargi's beaches that cars can't reach. Book this in advance for July-August; smaller boats cap at 12-20 passengers and fill fast. Seniors and families with toddlers should ask specifically about boats with shaded seating, since midday sun on open decks is intense.

Afternoon & evening: Beach relaxation

Treat this as the week's genuine rest day. Spiaggia Rosa on Budelli is off-limits to landing (protected status), but Cala Coticcio on Caprera and Spiaggia del Relitto nearby are open and worth the stop if your boat tour includes them. Back on the mainland by early evening, Palau has relaxed waterfront dining — less polished than Porto Cervo, better value. Compared to the Maddalena Islands, Capri gets more attention internationally, but it's far more crowded and three times the price for a similar boat excursion.

This is the longest drive of the trip — about 2.5 hours from the Costa Smeralda area to Nuoro — so leave by 9am. The scenery shifts from coastal granite to cork oak forests and the Supramonte mountains, genuinely different from anything on the coast.

Morning: Mountain drive and cultural sites

Break the drive in Olbia or stop briefly in the hill town of Buddusò for coffee. Nuoro itself isn't a conventional tourist town — it's workaday and authentic, which is partly the point. This is where you start to understand Sardinia beyond its beaches, something travelers comparing it to Mallorca or the Costa Smeralda often miss entirely.

Afternoon & evening: Local museum visits

Visit the Museo Etnografico Sardo (MEOC), which covers traditional costume, masks, and rural life — allow 1.5 hours. Families with younger kids may find it slow going; the Monte Ortobene viewpoint just outside town is a better alternative, with short walking trails and views over the Barbagia region. Overnight in Nuoro or push on 45 minutes to Oliena, known for Cannonau wine and a more scenic village setting.

From Nuoro, it's about 1.5 hours to Barumini, home to Su Nuraxi — Sardinia's UNESCO-listed nuragic complex and genuinely one of the best cultural sites on the island. Allow an hour for the guided tour, which is mandatory for entry into the central tower.

Morning: Coastal town exploration

After Barumini, continue 45 minutes to Oristano, a low-key provincial capital with a pleasant historic core and far fewer tourists than the north coast. It's a good lunch stop — expect to pay €15-20 per person for a proper seafood lunch, less than half the Costa Smeralda equivalent.

Afternoon & evening: Beach time

Drive 20 minutes to the Sinis Peninsula for the afternoon — Is Arutas beach, with its unusual quartz-grain sand, is one of the best beaches in Sardinia and rarely as crowded as the northern coast in shoulder season. Base yourself in Oristano or a nearby agriturismo for the night; it's considerably cheaper than coastal resort towns and puts you well-placed for tomorrow's drive south.

Drive roughly 2 hours south from Oristano into Sulcis, a region most visitors skip entirely — which is exactly why it's worth including if you have the time.

Afternoon & evening: Coastal villages

Head to the coastal town of Carloforte on the island of San Pietro, reachable by a short ferry from Calasetta — about 30-40 minutes crossing. The town has a distinct Ligurian character, a legacy of 18th-century settlers, and noticeably different food (look for tuna-based dishes). If ferry timing doesn't work, Masua's beach near the mining sites, with its view of the Pan di Zucchero rock, is a solid alternative that needs no boat at all.

Cagliari Elmas Airport is about 1-1.5 hours from Sulcis, making this a manageable departure day without an early alarm.

Each day of this Sardinia road trip pairs one dominant activity type with a realistic drive time, so you can rebalance the week around your own pace.

7-day Sardinia itinerary comparison: daily highlights, drive time, and activity type

Drive times are approximate and increase in peak summer traffic or with frequent stops; confirm current road conditions before you travel.

Morning: Final beach visit

Spend the morning at Poetto Beach in Cagliari, a long urban beach that's easy to reach and has proper facilities — showers, cafes, sunbeds for rent around €15-20 a day. It's not the most dramatic beach of the week, but it's convenient and genuinely pleasant for a last swim.

Afternoon: Return to airport

Have lunch in Cagliari's Marina district before the drive to the airport — allow at least 2 hours before your flight for car return and check-in, since rental drop-off queues at Elmas can run long in summer. If you have an afternoon flight instead, a quick walk up to the Bastione di Saint Remy for views over the city is a better use of an hour than sitting in the terminal.

A car is non-negotiable for this itinerary. Public transport in Sardinia connects major towns but misses most of the beaches and archaeological sites that make the island worth visiting.

Car rental and road conditions

Book your rental well ahead for July-August — prices can double and availability tightens noticeably. A compact or mid-size car suits the terrain better than anything large; interior roads are narrow and parking in old towns is tight. Expect to pay a refundable deposit via credit card, and check fuel policy carefully — full-to-full is standard and cheaper than prepaid fuel options. Roads are generally well-surfaced, though the SS125 along the east coast has sharper curves than GPS estimates suggest.

Driving times between destinations

Budget realistically: Olbia to Nuoro is about 2-2.5 hours, Nuoro to Barumini around 1.5 hours, Barumini to Oristano 45 minutes, and Oristano to Sulcis roughly 2 hours. These aren't highway-speed estimates — mountain and coastal roads slow things down, so add 20% to whatever your map app suggests, especially with kids needing bathroom stops.

Base choice matters more in Sardinia than in compact destinations like Malta, where nothing is more than 45 minutes away.

Multi-base vs. single-base strategy

This itinerary works best as three bases: Costa Smeralda/Gallura for days 1-2, Nuoro or Oristano for days 4-5, and Sulcis or Cagliari for days 6-7. A single-base strategy — staying near Olbia the whole week — would cut unpacking but add 4+ hours of extra driving on the Nuoro and Oristano days, which defeats the point. If you genuinely don't want to pack up more than once, drop the Sulcis leg and extend the Maddalena rest day instead.

Accommodation options by region

Costa Smeralda hotels run high — expect €150-300+ a night in summer for anything decent. Gallura and the interior offer agriturismi from roughly €80-120 a night, often with home-cooked dinners included, a better value match for families and seniors who appreciate a slower pace. Oristano and Sulcis have fewer resort-style options but plenty of mid-range B&Bs around €70-100.

Three experiences in this itinerary are worth reserving ahead rather than winging it: the Costa Smeralda sunset boat tour (Day 1), the Maddalena Islands half-day boat excursion (Day 3), and the guided tour of Su Nuraxi at Barumini (Day 5), which requires a timed guided entry by law. Wine tastings in Gallura also fill quickly in August, so a day or two's notice helps. For all of these, compare current prices and availability before you book — summer demand pushes both up considerably compared to shoulder season (May, June, September), which is also a more comfortable time to drive and hike without the heat.