Sardinia & Corsica advice!

These are two places high on my list, but I can never seem to get a good airfare for my 10 day window in late spring.
You might check that out if you have not done so already--I am not sure of the amount of time you have, but it may be difficult to get both in, and you might be better off choosing one island.

Hi valadelphia! That's a good point. We are sort of tagging along on my in-laws' trip (lucky us, right?) and I believe they are thinking of flying into and out of Rome, then taking the ferries to and between the islands. I wish you luck finding some excellent airfares! (Are the fares for Milan/Malpensa any cheaper?)

Then you are all set then! Any of the mainland will probably have low cost carriers to the islands, so check that as well as ferries (which would eat into your time).
Look into the rental car rules for ferrying among the islands.

You mentioned beaches, but I imagine you aren't expecting to be able to swim in April or early May, right?

Hi acraven, good point! I should have mentioned that we're from Oregon, so the frigid waters of the Pacific have prepared us well for chillier ocean adventures. :) I doubt we'll be spending hours in the water, but there's no way my husband will leave Sardinia without spending some time in the sea! I know the waters off Sardinia are famous for their clarity and I'm planning to bring my snorkel (for brief outings). We swam in the Aegean off Paros in early April last year -- would you say the water temperature would be comparable? (And yes, my Greek friends thought we were nuts for doing that.)

In terms of choosing where to stay, it's very important to my mother-in-law to be able to see and hear the sea from where we're staying. The rest of us will be happy to have some sand to play in and some water to run shrieking in and out of. :) Do you have any favorite seaside towns or villages to recommend?

valadelphia, I hadn't thought of that rental car issue! And I had read that the ferry from the mainland takes quite a while -- we experienced a very long ferry ride in Greece last year and with a four-year-old in tow, we're not eager to repeat it. ;) Thanks for those tips!

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/fly-into-sardinia

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/sardinia-10e5a248-2848-4d78-8fdc-14a40d512964

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/sardinia-a4b6bf34-12f0-4f41-aa46-cc7c08ab1f7f

Thanks for the links, Roberto! I was excited to see that you mentioned Budoni on your counterclockwise loop list. My mother-in-law looked in Santa Teresa (which we've also heard great things about), but we've been looking into Budoni as a possibly less crowded and slightly more affordable base of operations. I've been looking at vacation rentals in that area all afternoon and have found some really nice-looking and affordable options!

I'm definitely going to keep the places in your loop list in mind as we plan our day trips! With our limited time, we certainly won't have time to see everything, but I guess we'll just have to come back. :) Grazie mille per le raccomandazioni! :)

What crowds are you talking about?
In April?
You’ll hear the echo of your voice in the streets. At that time of the year there are no tourists, at most you might encounter the typical local Sardinian playboys, some with at least one tooth.
Sardinia outside of July and August is very cheap. Maybe at Porto Rotondo or Porto Cervo you might find a VIP who got lost with his yacht.
If you want a quick excursion to Corsica (Bonifacio) and to the Maddalena Archipelago (rough seas permitting), you should stay in or near Santa Teresa.

LOL! I thought it might start getting a little busier in May, but I should have known -- not quite hot enough yet for all of mainland Italy to need an escape! I'm glad to hear we shouldn't worry too much about crowds. :)

Roberto, I'm looking into Santa Teresa a bit more. If that time of year is really very quiet all over the island, maybe we could make it work! And the proximity to Maddalena and Corsica definitely makes it very desirable. I appreciate the advice! :)

Check also Capo Testa, just outside S.Teresa.
They have a great beaches and strange lunar rock formations at the Valle della Luna.

You don’t have to stay in Santa Teresa, but if you intend to have a day trip to Bonifacio (Corsica), you should stay close. The ferry is there.
Budoni is too far, almost two hours from Santa Teresa.
Also at the same Santa Teresa harbor they have lots of companies that organize boat excursions to the Maddalena Archipelago National Park.
Ferries and boats go to Maddalena also from Palau, the main port to the Maddalena.

The problem is that I don’t know if they’ll have boat excursions in April. The strait gets windy and with high winds they don’t go. The ferry to Corsica should always go. That is a big ferry that carries cars too.

What a shame to go to Sardinia and only have a few days! We were there for 3 weeks this past September and wished we had another week or two. I don't think you will be swimming in late April/early May, even if you're used to colder water (I'm from Seattle). I would save Corsica for another trip (that's what we decided).