4 of us are touring Sardinia in early October. Does anyone have any guidance? We thought we’d rent a car in Olbia, then pick two agriturismo’s- one in the north west, one in the south east.
Posted by
Bay Area, California
1671 posts
I have not been there, but I want to caution you about renting a car:
- Be sure that you rent an automatic, if you cannot drive a stick shift.
- If possible, avoid leaving ANYTHING in your unattended rental car.
- Get your IDP from AAA.
- If you use your credit card's car insurance, check that the policy covers Italy.
Have fun!!!!
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
6677 posts
Sardinia seems to be on a lot of people's radar lately. You might try a search of the forum for information. There are trip reports and other posts. To get you started, these are a couple posts by a frequent forum contributor, he did rent a car to see the island:
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16243 posts
It’s a good plan. I stayed in hotels primarily in the Santa Teresa di Gallura area, but never at agriturismo. I did eat at one agriturismo however, and my wife and I had a feast. We couldn’t even finish half of it, it was so much. I don’t remember the name of the agriturismo. I looked on Google Maps to see if I could find it and I think it is the one linked below, although I am not 100% sure.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/8ohJqzUdwuvEvT1x9?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy
If there are 4 of you, make sure you rent a proper size vehicle, especially because of the luggage. I usually use the broker below:
www.autoeurope.com
www.autoeurope.eu
Check both as sometimes their European website has better deals (prices there will be listed in €uro. I also purchase the zero deductible option (click on “no deductible” coverage option, a.k.a. the “refundable excess” in the .eu website. Deductibles can be as high as 1,000€ so to me that is peace of mind. You cannot decline insurance in Italy, but you can opt not to buy the extra “no deductible” option. If you do make sure your credit card covers that.
Sardinia’s roads are fine, but those along the coast are two lane highways only, and have some curves, so be careful. Be also aware of the presence of hidden speed cameras. So observe the speed limits and make sure you use Waze as your navigator. All Italians use Waze, so it is very updated with all alerts, including speed cameras. I’ve never had problems with car break ins in Sardinia or Italy, but of course don’t leave valuables in the car while the car is parked as some secluded beach.
While in Santa Teresa (if you stay there) make sure you do a boat excursion to the Maddalena archipelago. It will be the highlight of your trip. Another nice thing to do is to visit Bonifacio in Corsica. A ferry can take you from Santa Teresa to Bonifacio in 50 min. It’s a car ferry, but you won’t need a car if you plan to see Bonifacio only. If you plan to venture for multiple days in Corsica, then you will need a car. Ferry check in is about 2 hours prior to departure.
I love the northern side of Sardinia but I’ve never been to the southern portion.
Posted by
OP
4 posts
thank you all so much. This is valuable information.