Known for its vast mountains, white sandy beaches and fresh seafood, Sardinia is the place to be this summer. Sardinia is bigger than it looks, the coastline measures 1850km and the island actually has three airports, so choosing an area to explore is not easy. I’ve heard that the Eastern side of the island is much more touristy, and the Western side is favoured by the locals. We stayed in and around Olbia, which is where we flew to, and is in the North-Eastern area of the island. One thing I’d highly recommend when visiting Sardinia, is hiring a car. Though there are trains and busses, they can be a little unreliable, and hiring a car means you can drive wherever, whenever and explore lots of different beaches and towns. I can’t speak for high season in the summer, however when we visited in May, the roads were fairly quiet and driving was no problem (for those worried about ‘crazy Italian drivers’)!!

Golfo Aranci

Golfo Aranci (The Orange Gulf), is around a 20 minute drive from Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport, and the drive itself offers amazing views over the apartments, and stunning blue waters. With a couple of viewpoint stops along the way, you can pull over and take it all in, don’t forget to take some photos, although they do not do the view justice! Formally residence to handful of local fisherman, this stretch of the island is now a popular tourist destination filled with amazing restaurants, cafes and gift shops. There is so much to do in Golfo Aranci, you could:

Hire a Boat

Enjoy fine-dining on the beach

Dolphin Watching

Go fishing 

Visit the underwater museum (snorkelling)

Go shopping in ‘La Dolce Vita’ promenade

Scuba Diving

Enjoy views from viewpoints around the Island

Go Mountain Biking

Hike a Mountain and see Marconi’s first ever radio broadcast transmitter 

The Viewpoint 

Location: Panorama sul Golfo di Marinella. Click the link for the Google Maps Pinpoint.

Stazione Radio Guglielmo Marconi – Hiking Trail

The radio station was built in 1890 and is a huge part of Sardinia’s history. Though Marconi did not technically invent the radio, he was the first person to use radio waves as a method of communication. He sent the first radio signal to the Italian Mainland back in 1928. The remains of the station stand at the top of Capo Figari, and you can hike the trail all the way to the top for incredible panoramic views over Golfo Aranci, at a height of 342m, thats higher than the Shard in London! The trail is about 5km walk from the train station which is located near the bottom of the trail. Once you get the the start of the trail it’s a 3.2km hike up to the top, but make sure you wear really comfy shoes as the path is very *rocky* and *gravelly* (best way to describe it!), especially coming back down! There are a couple of trails to choose from but I’d highly recommend choosing the one that goes UP the mountain; as the views are stunning. From this starting point, the sign says it was 1hr 45mins, however we managed to do it in 1hr. Leave plenty of time though, so you can relax and enjoy the view at the top. Take plenty of water and leave early so you’ll hike to the top and get back down before midday, as the sun is scorching hot and there is no shade along the way. There are a couple of spots on the way up to stop and enjoy a picnic, which would be lovely on a warm day!

We also saw the mountain and hike trail from the plane window on our flight home! How cool is this??

Where to Eat

.

Click here for the location of La Taverna Del Lupo Di Mare.

Click here for the location of La Pecora Viziosa.

Click here for the location of Cafe Cocoloco

Click here for the location of Bar Centrale.

Gabbiano Azzurro Hotel & Suites 

Where should you stay? There is no question – Hotel Gabbiano Azzurro is the PERFECT place to stay when visiting Golfo Aranci. Known as ‘Your Window Over The Sea’, this hotel has the most beautiful views over the crystal blue waters and stunning Sardinian coastline. From classic village view rooms, to incredible suites with in-room tubs, sea views and private rooftop pools, there is accommodation for everyone. If you can, I’d highly recommend upgrading to a sea-view room or suite, as the view when you wake up in the morning is second to none. The hotel offers so much. They have a huge outdoor pool, private beach, incredible dining area and bar.

Hotel Gabbiano Azzurro also offers amazing experiences such as a private beach dinner, scuba diving, massages, wine tasting – to name a few! Just a five minute walk from the hotel, is the main town where you can find a range of shops, cafes and restaurants.

The pool is stunning and is filled with seawater, with the sun shining on it all day, it’s the perfect place to kick back and relax. You can chill by the pool and order yourself some drinks from the bar – holiday mode has started!

Prefer the beach instead of a pool? No problem, just around the corner from the hotel’s restaurant is private beach with clean white sand, natural rocks and the clearest water I have ever seen! Relax on one of their sun beds or grab a towel from the hotel and enjoy the Italian sunshine…

There are lots of rooms and suites to choose from, we stayed in the pool suite; where we enjoyed a huge double room with sofas, wardrobes, a desk and a stunning in-room bathtub. The bathroom has a modern, clean shower with a beautiful  beach vibe! The interiors in Gabbiano Azzurro suites are stunning, with natural, beach features. I cannot recommend the pool suite enough, as you get to wake up to a gorgeous view of the sea every morning, and a quick trip upstairs to your very own private pool on the terrace… bliss. After a long day of exploring Sardinia, relaxing on the private beach or having a dip in the pool, you can come back and unwind in this incredible in-room bathtub. Enjoy the view, or pop the TV on and watch a movie whilst you soak.

The hotel has two restaurants; The White Restaurant and The Blu Restaurant. The White Restaurant offers stunning views over the water, and offers the a la carte menu with vegetarian options, and is also where you are seated for breakfast. The view is unbelievable; it almost feels like a movie. Breakfast is a buffet; with everything you could want. There is hot food such as sausages, eggs etc. along with a huge selection of Italian meats and cheeses, fresh bread and rolls, fruit, cereals and yogurts. There is also a vast selection of pastries and breakfast ‘cakes’, which was new for us, but we loved it!

The Blu Restaurant also offers a very romantic package; where you can have a private candlelit dinner set up on their own beach, with flowers, fancy food and your own waiter. The Hotel also offers other experiences on their private beach such as massages in a gazebo by the sea, so you can feel truly relaxed!

Just pop to the front desk to organise your special experience, the staff are more than helpful and make you feel so welcome when you arrive and/or need anything during your stay! The friendliness of Italian staff always makes me feel right at home, and everyone at Hotel Gabbiano Azzurro were so smiley and professional. I love the little touches in this hotel, such as the fresh, cold water in the reception area, flavoured with fresh mint and cucumber. Or, the beautiful flowers dotted around the hotel, or the fact that staff make an effort to wander around and speak with guests, ensuring they have everything they need. It’s things like this that make a hotel a luxurious place to stay.

Book your stay here!

As always, love Elise x

P.S. The hotel stay was a complimentary experience in exchange for my review and photos. As always, opinions are my own and honest.