I had never been to La Maddalena, so it was one of the stops on our last trip to Sardinia. After five days in Gallura ne the magnificent beaches of the Costa Smeralda, we were told that if we wanted to see the most beautiful sea in the north of Sardinia we should go to the Maddalena archipelago.
La Maddalena Sardinia
So we left early in the morning from our residency in Porto Rotondo to reach the north-eastern tip of Sardinia in Palau where the embarkations for Isola Maddalena are located.
Actually, it can also be reached from Golfo Aranci and Olbia by sea, but we preferred to make the journey by car to see the interior of Gallura as well.
Ferries to La Maddalena
In about half an hour from Porto Rotondo you can reach the embarkations in Palau, there are two companies that make the journey, one is the Maddalenalines and the other is the Delcomar.
The ferries of the two companies alternate departures about every fifteen minutes, so I suggest not to book earlier in order to have the maximum flexibility especially if like me you go in the month of September where the tourists are definitely less.
How much does the ferry cost
The cost of the round-trip ticket for two people and our car was 40 euros and, very interesting the formula of the open return ticket so as not to worry about timetables.
We decided to take the car as well because getting around the various coves would be very difficult without a means of transport, but I can assure you that to find wonderful beaches you just have to pull the car over at a random point along the road and walk down the thousands of paths there.
The archipelago of La Maddalena
The Maddalena archipelago, A Maddalena in Gallurese, Sa Maddalena in Sardinian, is a marine nature park established in 1994 and consists of seven islands: Maddalena, Caprera, Santo Stefano, Spargi, Budelli, Santa Maria, Razzoli.In addition there are other small islands Mortorio, Chiesa, Spargiotto and Giardinelli where there is the beautiful beach of Testa di Polpo.
Where is La Maddalena
La Maddalena and its archipelago are located in the north-eastern part of Sardinia. I didn’t know where it was either, but if you are on holiday on the Costa Smeralda the road signs for Palau and the embarkations for the archipelago are many.
The ferry trip from Palau takes about half an hour, but it is also possible to visit the archipelago with the numerous boat trips that leave from the same Sardinian port lasting the whole day. These touch all the islands of the natural park and stop in the most beautiful coves for swimming.
We intended to rent a dinghy once we arrived on the island. There are dinghies of all sizes – even for those who do not have a boat licence – so that we would have the maximum freedom to discover the most hidden corners and perhaps arrive at the pink beach of Budellibut the sustained sea and the Mistral did not allow us this option, so we went to the information office asking for suggestions on how to reach the best beaches by car.
The information office is located immediately off the ferry, park near the first large roundabout you find and less than a hundred metres away on foot. There we took the map of the island and the hostess gave us very useful information about the most significant places.
The village of La Maddalena
Once you arrive at the port, a very pleasant village opens up in front of you which hosts many tourists during the summer season. In its narrow streets tourists swarm to visit all its most characteristic corners and take advantage of the numerous cafes and craft shops.
Choose the best beach depending on wind conditions
It is almost impossible to choose among the beaches of La Maddalena the best. The archipelago is almost always windswept, and in our case an annoying 30-knot mistral was blowing over the western part of the island, so we only visited the most popular coves on that side, and then set off again towards Bassa Trinità and then Testa di Polpo.
The beaches we visited were really beautiful and in the middle of September even devoid of the hordes of tourists that usually abound on this island.
Cala Trinità with the beach of bassa Trinità can be reached along an equipped path a few tens of meters from the main road. More than 200 metres long, it is divided into three coves separated by huge cliffs that can be covered on foot.
Octopus head and the alberello beach are located on the island of Giannarelli, separated from the island of La Maddalena by a small land bridge 2o meters long. It is not easy to reach the beach because you have to walk along a very bumpy dirt road, but at the end there is a car park from which, passing through the cliff, you can reach this corner of paradise.
La Maddalena by car
Luckily we went by car, otherwise it would have been very difficult to understand the wonders of this island.
There is only one road that goes around the whole island of La Maddalena in all its external part. They call it “Panoramica” and in fact it is; it can be travelled both clockwise and anticlockwise and its length is about 20 km.
We opted to go clockwise starting from the side of the island which, even on this sunny day, is beaten by a strong wind that over the years has rounded off the enormous blocks of granite that emerge everywhere.
It gave us magnificent views of the hundreds of coves and a breathtaking panorama of the island of Spargi and the island of Budelli where the incredible Rosa beach is located, now closed to disembarking and bathing to preserve its uniqueness and beauty.
In the distance you can also catch a glimpse of Corsica from where the dangers and attacks of the French under Napoleon came in the past.
The sea with its Tiffany colour seems to beckon you in every cove and after three stops for a swim, our journey continued to the discovery of Caprera, an island that was owned by Garibaldi and donated to Italy upon his death.
In our stay in the North of Sardinia the archipelago of La Maddalena was one of the most exciting moments. The sustained sea will “oblige” us to come back to visit the other islands in a better way.
Booking.com
by Roimax ltd
