You couldn’t choose a better place to stay on Sardinia than Cagliari. The city is known as the greenest in Italy because of the number of its verdant parks and it has a rich history based on its historic port. Out of the city you’ll discover the mountainous centre easily with a hire car or head to the Monumental Cemetery of Bonaria, considered one of the finest on the continent.
Having a car will also enable you to search out the restaurants and trattorias serving delicious traditional Sardinian dishes such as suckling pig or fish stew.
Cagliari Airport Mini Guide
The full name of the airport at Cagliari is called the Aeroporto di Cagliari Elmas and is only 6 kilometres away from the centre which has the famous pond of pink flamingos. There is also a train station known as the Trentialia Station.
Cagliari Airport is the largest airport on the island of Sardinia in the Mediterranean and handles thousands of holiday passenger traffic. There is car parking available at the airport, disabled facilities and a few bars and restaurants. A local bus service operates into the town regularly but you must buy your tickets from the bus ticket machines as you cannot buy them on the bus.
Cagliari is a cosmopolitan city with two thousand years of history which has a medieval centre, archaeological remains, churches, museums and the Poetto beach, along with salt marshes which are the homes of cranes, cormorants and the pink Flamingo. It has a population of approx 162,000 and holds one of the island of Sardinia's colourful festivals honouring the patron saint of Cagliari. This is held on 1st May and an effigy of the saint is taken around the city on a carriage pulled by a bullock, it also hosts a carnival every February.
There is a wide choice of eateries on offer which include the traditional dishes along with both gourmet and budget foods. During the peak summer months there is lots of entertainment going on in the city itself but outside of these months most of the nightlife is centred in Assemini which is 16 kilometres away. There are lots of opportunities to buy traditional Sardinian crafts and it also has the large italian department store called La Rinascente.
There are two beaches - the long Poetto beach which is just over a kilometre from the centre or the Calamosca beach. You can reach Cagliari by boat at the ferry terminal called the Satzione Marittima which sails to different Italian mainland ports and also to Sicily.
Useful Links: