Sardinia

Sardinia, Italy's wild and beautiful second region (after Sicily in size), floats in the western Mediterranean 200km from the Italian mainland as a world apart—an island of 1.6 million people with its own distinct language (Sardinian/Sardu, recognized as a separate Romance language), 7,000+ mysterious Bronze Age nuraghi stone towers found nowhere else on earth, and some of the most spectacular beaches in Europe with water so clear and turquoise that first-time visitors genuinely mistake photos for the Caribbean. The island's 1,850km coastline harbors an astonishing variety: the Costa Smeralda (Emerald Coast) in the northeast draws billionaires and superyachts to Porto Cervo's exclusive beach clubs, while the Gulf of Orosei on the east coast hides pristine coves—Cala Goloritzé (a protected natural monument with a 143-meter limestone pinnacle), Cala Luna, and Cala Mariolu—accessible only by boat or demanding hiking trails through the Supramonte mountains. The south offers long sandy stretches at Chia and Villasimius with turquoise shallows perfect for families, while the island of La Maddalena (reachable by 20-min ferry from Palau) forms an archipelago national park of pink-granite islands and crystal waters.

Beyond the beaches, Sardinia's interior reveals a different island entirely: the rugged Gennargentu mountains where shepherds still tend flocks in a landscape of cork oak forests, wild pigs, and ancient pastoral traditions; the Barbagia region centered on Nuoro where Sardinian identity runs deepest and traditional festivals (including the haunting Mamuthones carnival masks of Mamoiada) preserve pre-Christian rituals; and thousands of nuraghi—the mysterious beehive-shaped stone towers built between 1900–730 BCE by the Nuragic civilization, with Su Nuraxi di Barumini (UNESCO World Heritage) as the most impressive and excavated example. Sardinian cuisine stands proudly apart from mainland Italian food: porceddu (spit-roasted suckling pig flavored with myrtle) is the island's signature dish, culurgiones are handcrafted pasta parcels filled with potato, pecorino, and mint sealed with an intricate wheat-ear crimp, pane carasau (paper-thin crispbread baked since Neolithic times) accompanies every meal, and bottarga (dried mullet roe, the 'gold of the sea') is grated over pasta in a way that rivals any truffle dish. The island's Cannonau wine (Grenache) is central to the local diet and, some researchers argue, to the remarkable longevity of Sardinia's Blue Zone communities in the Barbagia—one of five regions worldwide where people live measurably longer lives.

Cagliari, the elegant capital in the south, combines a dramatic hilltop old quarter (Castello) with a lively waterfront, while Alghero on the northwest coast preserves Catalan architecture and language from medieval Aragonese rule. Visit May–June or September–October for warm swimming weather (24–28°C / 75–82°F) without August's extreme crowds and prices—July and August are hot (32–38°C / 90–100°F) and packed with Italian and European holidaymakers, inflating costs by 50–100%. A rental car is essential—public transport is limited and the island's best experiences require flexibility to chase hidden coves, mountain villages, and roadside agriturismo farms serving feasts under vine-covered pergolas.