The ferry route we took was from Livorno to Olbia and it took 7 hours. Other people we met offered an alternative route from southern France to Corsica and then the short ferry route to Sardinia. This is a good suggestion as it allows you to not only visit Corsica and thereby make some comparisons between the two islands but also avoids the expensive Mont Blanc tunnel or other trans Alps route.
We didn’t actually meet any British people in motorhomes but met two couples in caravans. That was a bit surprising as we have in the past, when we had a caravan, been put off such a trip with talk of winding narrow roads. We found it quite easy to get around Sardinia. The roads are good and extremely quiet. When travelling along the slow coastal sections it was rare to have anyone behind us and you could easily drive for about 3-5 minutes without seeing another vehicle. Large lorries are rare presumably because most heavy freight would arrive from Italy via the major ports and outside of these ports the landscape is generally rural. Sardinian drivers were courteous and careful: only in the large city of Cagliari did we encounter the horn sounding and the two or one finger gestures.
The campsites were good. If you use the ACSI online campsites scores. take note that these are generally overrated slightly. This was particularly noticeable with Camping Flumendosa in the south that attained a score of 8.0. I felt it more appropriate to score this between 6.8 and 7.4. In terms of facilities both Calik Blu and Baia Blu were the best, although for location and facilities Camping Dune in the Costa Rey was probably our favourite. Although the facilities were not that good we also enjoyed our short stay at the Sosta in the Chia Beach area. This was an attractive location with stunning beaches and a quiet ambience. Although we liked the coastal area west of Oristano, the numerous lagoons in the area resulted in high numbers of vicious mosquito’s. Its also important to note that electricity supplies on most campsites is low in amps. Most sites were 3 amp so we were unable to use our electric water heater, kettle and halogen oven. As a consequence we used more gas. So make sure you take adequate gas supplies.
We felt that the beaches on Sardinia were about the best we’d come across in Europe, the water was generally safe and fairly warm. We would have liked to have spent some time inland as the mountains seemed appealing and with good maps and in company of other walkers perhaps we could have made more of these. The other English people we met were mainly covering the northern areas of Sardinia, however we really enjoyed the southern sections and the Costa Rey area where the beaches were wider and quieter. If you are restricted to the North don’t overlook the area just south of Olbia where we used the excellent Camping Tavolara.
Large cheap supermarkets were rare and you really do have to hunt these out. The larger towns and cities such as Cagliari, Olbia and Alghero have a large choice. Eating out was generally reasonable and probably the same prices as the uk. A variety of beer could be bought in supermarkets but this wasn’t as cheap as say France with the local beer being the cheapest. If you’ve got space and you like a decent beer, stock up when travelling through France. Also take lots of mosquito repellent if you plan on travelling to the western region around Oristano.
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