7 days in southern Sardinia

Everything within two hours of Cagliari

The south of Sardinia is compact enough that this whole route, from the capital to the Sulcis islands, never involves more than a two-hour drive, and most days are under an hour — a real advantage over the island’s north, where distances between highlights are considerably longer. This itinerary flies into Cagliari, spends two nights there, then works its way anti-clockwise through Villasimius, Chia and the Sulcis coast before finishing on the islands of Carloforte and Sant’Antioco, with a single day trip inland to Barumini.

	Details
Where	Cagliari → Barumini (day trip) → Villasimius → Chia → Sulcis islands
Duration	7 days, 6 nights
Best for	First-timers flying into Cagliari, families, anyone short on time
Getting around	Hire car; short ferry crossing to Sant’Antioco or Carloforte
Best months	June, September, early October

Day 1: Cagliari — Castello and Poetto

Land at Cagliari-Elmas, a 15-minute drive from the centre, and spend the afternoon in the Castello quarter, the walled hilltop old town with views out over the Bay of Angels. Our things to do in Cagliari guide covers the bastions, the cathedral and the best viewpoints. In the evening, walk or take the tram down to Poetto beach, a genuinely good city beach that runs for several kilometres and stays lively well into the evening in summer.

Cagliari is also one of the more affordable Italian capitals to eat well in — a proper seafood dinner in the Marina district runs €35-50 per person, noticeably less than a comparable meal in Villasimius or Chia later in the week. If you’re not driving straight to the hotel from the airport, the Bastione di Saint Remy, a set of terraces built into the old fortifications, gives one of the better free sunset views on the island and is a good way to get oriented on foot before the rest of the week’s driving starts.

Day 2: Barumini’s Su Nuraxi and the Giara

Book the guided tour to Su Nuraxi di Barumini from Cagliari for a straightforward day trip to Sardinia’s only UNESCO World Heritage nuraghe — a Bronze Age stone fortress complex about an hour’s drive north of the city. Our Su Nuraxi Barumini guide covers what the guided visit includes and why the site requires a guide by law.

If time allows, add on the wild horses of the Giara, a basalt plateau nearby where a rare native pony breed roams semi-wild among seasonal ponds. Back in Cagliari by evening, flamingos at Molentargius, the saltpan wetland right beside Poetto, is worth an hour if you’re not templed out. Both destinations sit close enough to Cagliari that this whole day can be done without checking out of your first hotel, which keeps the itinerary’s early logistics simple compared with the driving-heavy days later in the week.

Day 3: Villasimius and Capo Carbonara

Drive an hour east to Villasimius, the south-east’s best base for beach and boat days, and check in for two nights. The Villasimius beaches guide ranks the coves around town, and the marine protected area at Capo Carbonara has some of the clearest water in the south. Spend the afternoon at Porto Giunco or Simius beach, both an easy walk from the centre. Porto Giunco in particular sits beside a small lagoon that occasionally attracts flamingos outside the main summer months, and the walk up to the old Spanish watchtower above the beach gives one of the better viewpoints over Capo Carbonara’s whole coastline without needing a boat.

Day 4: Boat day off Villasimius

The boat and snorkelling tour around Capo Carbonara covers Isola dei Cavoli and the marine reserve’s best snorkelling spots, with the water here noticeably clearer than closer to Cagliari. Our diving at Villasimius and Capo Carbonara guide has options for anyone certified and wanting to go below the surface rather than just snorkel from the boat. If a longer detour appeals, Costa Rei, 30 minutes further north, has one of the longest uninterrupted sand beaches in the south.

Day 5: Chia and the beaches of the far south

Drive roughly an hour south-west to Chia, swapping Villasimius’s rockier coves for wide dune-backed sand and a Saracen watchtower on the headland. The Chia beaches guide covers the main bays, and the full-day beach tour to Chia and Tuerredda is a good option if you’d rather not drive yourself for the day.

Tuerredda itself, just past Teulada, is one of the south’s quota-controlled beaches — check current booking rules in our beach access quotas guide before turning up expecting to walk straight on. Chia’s other coves — Su Giudeu and Cala Cipolla among them — don’t carry the same quota restriction and are a reasonable fallback if Tuerredda’s daily allocation is already booked out by the time you check; both are a short walk along the coast path from the main car park and get noticeably quieter once past the first few hundred metres of sand.

Day 6: Crossing to the Sulcis islands

Drive to Portoscuso or Calasetta for the short ferry crossing to Sant’Antioco or on to Carloforte on San Pietro island, a Ligurian-dialect-speaking fishing town settled by Tabarkin coral fishers in the 18th century — genuinely unlike anywhere else on Sardinia. The full-day boat trip and snorkelling around Sant’Antioco is worth booking if the weather cooperates; the town itself, covered in Carloforte and its Tabarkin heritage, is worth a slow evening on its own for the seafood and the couscous — a genuine local dish here, another Tabarkin legacy.

Tuna remains central to Carloforte’s identity and its restaurant menus, a legacy of the tonnara fishing tradition that sustained the island for generations before commercial quotas curtailed it; a tasting menu built around it runs €40-55 per person in most of the harbourfront restaurants, on par with Cagliari and considerably below Villasimius for a similar standard.

Day 7: Nora and back to Cagliari

On the way back towards the airport, stop at Pula and Nora for the Punic-Roman archaeological site right on the coast, with mosaics and a theatre still visible metres from the sea. The Nora archaeological site tour covers the site with a guide and included tickets; our Nora archaeological site guide has opening hours if you’d rather visit independently. From here it’s a 45-minute drive back to Cagliari-Elmas for departure.

What this route costs

The south is one of the more affordable regions on the island to travel through, particularly outside Villasimius’ peak-season pricing, which makes it a sensible choice for a first trip on a tighter budget.

	Cagliari	Villasimius / Chia	Sulcis islands
Double room, mid-range	€90-140/night	€110-180/night	€80-130/night
Dinner for two	€40-60	€55-85	€45-65
Boat/snorkelling tour (per person)	—	€50-85	€45-75
Ferry to Sant’Antioco (per car)	—	—	€10-15 return

Sant’Antioco and Carloforte come out noticeably cheaper than Villasimius for a comparable standard of hotel, which makes them worth extending to a second night if the budget needs to stretch further. Our Sardinia on a budget guide has more general cost-cutting tactics that apply well to this specific route, and is Sardinia expensive puts the island’s overall pricing in context against other Mediterranean destinations.

Where to stay along this route

Cagliari works as a single base for the first two days given how central it is to Barumini and Molentargius. For days three to five, Villasimius or Chia each work as a two-night base without much backtracking. Our where to stay in Sardinia guide compares options across the south, and Sardinia on a budget is worth reading if you’re weighing hotel nights against the ferry and boat-tour costs on this route.

An agriturismo just inland from Chia or Villasimius can work out noticeably cheaper than a beachfront hotel room for a similar level of comfort, with the trade-off being a five- to ten-minute drive to the sand each morning rather than stepping straight onto it — see hotel vs agriturismo in Sardinia for a fuller comparison of the two.

Practicalities for this route

Driving distances here are genuinely short by Sardinian standards, but the coast roads around Villasimius and Chia narrow considerably in places and slow to well under the speed limit in summer traffic, so build a bit of padding into any timed booking, particularly on a boat tour departure. Fuel stations are plentiful along this route compared with the west coast or the interior, so refuelling isn’t something you need to plan around in advance.

If you’re travelling in July or August, book the Sant’Antioco or Carloforte ferry crossing ahead rather than assuming a same-day slot, since car space fills on the busiest sailings. Our driving in Sardinia guide has wider detail on road conditions and speed realities that apply across this whole route, and staying safe in Sardinia covers general practical points, from water safety flags to petty theft precautions in car parks near popular beaches.

Frequently asked questions about a week in southern Sardinia

Is Cagliari a good base for the whole week?

Only for the first two or three days — Villasimius, Chia and the Sulcis islands are each far enough away that a dedicated overnight works better than a long day trip back to Cagliari.

Do I need to book the Sant’Antioco or Carloforte ferry in advance?

Not usually outside August, when it’s worth booking ahead; crossings run frequently and are short, generally under an hour.

Is Barumini worth a full day or just a half-day?

A half-day is enough for Su Nuraxi itself; add the Giara’s wild horses if you want to fill the rest of the day rather than heading straight back to Cagliari.

Which beach is better for families, Villasimius or Chia?

Villasimius, generally — several of its bays shelve more gently, and Porto Giunco in particular suits younger children.

How much driving does this route involve overall?

Relatively little by Sardinian standards — no single transfer exceeds about ninety minutes, which is what makes the south a good fit for a first, easier week on the island.

Can I do this itinerary without a hire car?

Cagliari and Villasimius have some bus links, but Chia and the Sulcis islands are difficult without a car; see renting a car in Sardinia before ruling one out.

Is the south a good choice for a first-ever trip to Sardinia?

Yes — short driving distances, a major airport, and a genuine spread of beaches, archaeology and islands make it one of the easier regions to start with; see how many days do you need in Sardinia if you’re deciding whether to extend this route further north afterwards.

How does this compare to spending the week in and around the Costa Smeralda instead?

The south is considerably cheaper and involves far less driving between highlights; the Costa Smeralda has more dramatic yacht-culture scenery but at a real price premium — see north vs south Sardinia for a direct comparison.