Sardinia is often reduced to images of emerald waters and white beaches – a Mediterranean playground where the sun and sand are the main attractions. For those who like to explore a region’s history more deeply, the island has a rich and fascinating past with many archaeological and historic sites to tell this story. Our 14-day self-guided itinerary is intended for first-time visitors to the island looking for a meaningful introduction to Sardinia’s heritage. You will find day-by-day sightseeing suggestions, hotel and restaurant recommendations, as well as guidance for adjusting the length of the tour to suit your requirements.Â
- Thomas Dowson, with
- Gianluca Pitzeri
- Last Checked and/or Updated 15 December 2026
- Italy, Italy Travel Tips & Ideas, Self Guided Tours & Itineraries
Sardinia is not just ‘more Italy’ – it is its own distinct cultural entity with its own unique past. A history evidenced by thousands of years of extraordinary archaeological and historical sites. From the Domus de Janas, added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2025, to the enigmatic Nuraghe towers that dominate the landscape. From Roman ruins to the industrial ‘ghost towns’ of the 20th-century mining boom. This relatively small area, or large island, which has been at crossroads of so many movements of people around the Mediterranean, offers a history that is not found anywhere else in Europe.
With this itinerary, we purposefully turn our attention away from the crowded beaches to lead you to over 40 of the more captivating sites and museums to introduce you to the unique history of the island. You will discover Sardinia’s ‘ziggurat’, ancient cities of the Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Romans, medieval castles and hilltop villages, as well as the island’s more recent industrial heritage. This is an itinerary designed for those who want to explore the history of Sardinia in a more meaningful way – for those who would rather stand in the shadow of a 3,000-year-old nuraghe than the shade of a beach umbrella.
Our Itinerary includes:
A circular route around the island, with 2 night stays in 7 different towns, making up a total of 14 nights. If you have more time, or less, you will find suggestions for where to stay longer, or what to reduce or eliminate. You will require your own transport. This itinerary can not be followed using public transport.
For each day we provide a list of places to see and activities in a town/city, as well as where to stop when travelling between these towns/cities. You will find top recommendations, as well as alternatives to consider to enable you to create a tour to suit your interests. These recommendations include:
• UNESCO World Heritage Sites
• Prehistoric and Nuragic burial sites
• Nuragic towers, sacred wells and sanctuaries
• The Giants of Mont’e Prama
• Phoenician, Carthaginian and Roman settlements
• Medieval towns, castles and fortifications
• Sardinian style Romanesque churches and frescoes
• 20th century industrial heritage
• National and local museums
Hotel and restaurant recommendations based on our own experience and visits.
Itinerary Overview
The ‘backbone’ of this itinerary is a selection of seven towns that make up the circular route outlined above. Each of these towns has a number of interesting sites and museums to suite different interests, as well as a range of accommodations and excellent choices of restaurants.Â
Balancing a meaningful selection of historic attractions at a reasonable pace, this itinerary has two nights in each town. This is not as daunting as it might at first seem, as most journey times between these towns are under an hour and a half, many under an hour – with only one or two journeys over two hours. And on all the days moving between there towns there is a good choice of places to explore to break the journey.Â
The following map only shows the location of the seven towns, along with the recommended sites and museums that are between them. This is to give an idea of the route around the island. After the day-by-day outline of the itinerary you will find a second map – this includes all sites and museums recommended for this itinerary together with the seven towns.Â
The detailed itinerary and maps are only available to Annual and Lifetime Members.Â
All Towns, Sites & Museums Included on the Itinerary
The following map includes all the towns and cities, sites and museums suggested and recommended for this itinerary. Of course, to see them all you would need much more than 14 days. But they are included as some of the best places to include on your itinerary depending on your interests. Some may feel two nuraghe is more than enough, others may feel they can do with out the churches.Â
Together the seven towns make a good basis from which to build out your itinerary according to you interests. Use the suggestions included on the map below, or find more places to visit on the more complete Interactive Map of Places to Visit in Sardinia.Â
Too Long or Too Short?
If 14 days is too long, I would first consider removing Castelsardo and, Sant’Antioco from the itinerary, and reducing your stay in Barumini to one night.Â
If you have more than 14 days for your tour of Sardinia, first see which towns have more of what type of sites you want to see on your itinerary – more museum, or more archaeological sites. And add days accordingly. I would certainly consider adding at least one night to the following cities, in this order, Cagliari, Alghero, Oristano and Olbia.Â
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Archaeology Travel Writer
