La Maddalena in Sardinia is a true holiday paradise. The archipelago, located on the northern side of Sardinia, is full of green areas, small bays and beautiful sandy beaches. There are also campsites, a number of smaller hotels and a small charming town - also called La Maddalena.
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La Maddalena archipelago
When we arrived in Sardinia yesterday, with the the ferry from Bonifacio in Corsica to Santa Teresawe headed straight for the La Maddalena archipelago. This island group is located just north of Sardinia and consists of a main island, with several smaller islands around it. Coming here was really like landing in a small paradise!
Ferry to La Maddalena
To get to La Maddalena you have to take a car ferry from Palau on the "mainland", which cost us about 600 SEK round trip for two adults and a camper (2015). The ferry ride is relatively short and as soon as you arrive you are greeted by a really charming town and an island with fantastic nature.
Town of La Maddalena
La Maddalena is the name of the archipelago, but also the name of the small town that is the capital of the islands. This is a charming little town with a harbour full of boats and winding alleys where the small shops are close together. We started by parking the motorhome at the harbour and strolling around the charming town for a while.
Archipelago of Sardinia
You could say that the island belongs to the Sardinian archipelago. Off the coast of Sardinia are hundreds of islands, each more beautiful than the last. You would have to spend a few months here to discover everything there is to see. We can only give you a small glimpse of not forgetting the things you don't think about, like this island.
Two campsites
There are two campsites on the archipelago, but funnily enough neither of them opens until 25 June. One of them (camping La Maddalena) has, however, opened "stealthily" and there are quite a few motorhomes here. The atmosphere is nice - the campsite's restaurant is full of well-dressed locals eating and drinking and in a good mood. The reception is closed and the owner (who we found in the bar) was very welcoming, but thought that check-in and such - "Oh well, we'll deal with that tomorrow!".
Differences Corsica/Sardinia
When we travelled from Corsica to Sardinia, we actually changed countries, from France to Italy. What this means may not be fully understood yet, but some differences (which may be partly due to being on a small island off Sardinia) have already been recognised:
1. bathing fashions
In France, there is a natural attitude towards nudity: toplessness is extremely common and whenever there is a secluded corner of a beach, both men and women take the opportunity to swim naked. Here, bikinis are the order of the day, preferably with bikini bottoms as minimal as possible. Men's swimming trunks should also be small and preferably high-cut, as they were in Sweden in the 70s or 80s...
2. Food in shops
It is really striking how much pasta there is in the shops here! There's pasta everywhere, in shapes I've never seen, filled and unfilled, fresh and dried and frozen or sometimes with potatoes in the dough. And then the tomatoes - so how do Italians to make them so good???? However, we have not (yet) found liverwurst ...
3. prices
So far it feels cheaper here! We have found a store that is similar to Lidl and where things like fruit, vegetables, wine and beer are significantly cheaper than in Corsica. We also bought each gin and tonic at the campsite bar the night before last for 4 euros / drink, and we could not complain about that price.
4. internet
In this particular campsite there is no WiFi (which is very common in France and Corsica). For now, we blog by going to the tourist office that offers free WiFi, we'll see what happens in the future...
Sun and sea in La Maddalena
What do you say? Take a look at the pictures and see if this is what you want your holiday to look like. Of course, it's a great destination to just enjoy and get away from everyday life.
Facts about La Maddalena
- Country: Italy
- Language: Italian (some also speak English)
- Currency: Euro
- Price mode: Slightly cheaper than in Sweden
- Residents: 11 700 at La Maddalena (2008)
- Time difference: None
- Emergency number: 112
- Religion: Christianity (mainly Catholicism)
- El: As in Sweden
- Water: Drinking beard
Travelling to La Maddalena
- Fly to Sardinia: You can fly to Alghero or Olbia in Sardinia. From here, you can travel by car hire, for example.
- Ferry to Sardinia: You can also travel to Sardinia by ferry, from 28 different destinations in Italy, France, Corsica and Sicily, with 8 different companies. Find out more at Ferries.co.uk.
- Ferry to La Maddalena: A car ferry runs from Palau on the Sardinian mainland to La Maddalena.
Food and drink
- In the small village of La Maddalena there are several nice little restaurants, where you can enjoy Italian dishes, or perhaps seafood.
- Take the opportunity to buy fresh fish in one of the many fish shops by the harbour. Perfect for cooking if you're travelling by caravan or renting a cottage.
Accommodation
- There are plenty of smaller hotels in La Maddalena. For example, check Booking.com.
- Cottage accommodation is also available, for example at Abbotaggia Village.
Pitch and camping
- Camping La Maddalena, Via G. Mary Loc. Moneta is a nice and green campsite with a restaurant.
- Camping Abbotaggia Village has both cottages and space for camping vehicles. Read more at the campsite's website.
- It is not uncommon for fricamping at La Maddalena, but it is unclear whether it is authorised.
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Ditte says:
How marvellous! And here at La Maddalena I have not been. (However, in Sardinia and I have never travelled by boat/ferry here either).
A nice relaxed atmosphere at the campsite, which bodes well.
Keep up the good work.
And I wonder if there was any seafood in the fish shop.
21 June 2015 - 12:37
BP says:
It will be exciting to hear if you like Sardinia as much as Corsica. The people seem to be nice and cool. That little village also looks really cosy.
21 June 2015 - 12:52
Mr Steve says:
Great, so I get to visit another of the islands that didn't make it onto my list of islands to visit.
21 June 2015 - 13:54
Matts Torebring says:
Am I wrong, but have you switched to the Italian country now? Will you be able to work again after a trip like this and all the experiences? Have a good time
21 June 2015 - 18:29
Frankie & Co says:
This will be interesting because I don't know much about Sardinia so thanks in advance for your summaries ?
God roll campers!
21 June 2015 - 21:11
Lisa & life on the bright side says:
Looking forward to as much inspiration about Sardinia as you gave about Corsica - seems magical!
I have messaged you on Facebook, please check that it is not in some unknown folder somewhere...
/LIsa
21 June 2015 - 22:08
Across the board says:
Exciting to see what Sardinia has to offer compared to Corsica!
Keep up the good work!
21 June 2015 - 22:11
Steel city anna says:
There seems to be some confusion with my comments too?
22 June 2015 - 0:33
Ama de casa says:
Lovely with such a relaxing attitude 🙂 We experienced the same thing when we camped in Italy in early June. It was not open, but you could camp there anyway, they were still there and were clearing / cleaning for the season 🙂.
22 June 2015 - 9:46
admin says:
Ditte, it's nice that we can report on a place you haven't been 🙂 Sure, there were Vongole mussels and some fish that we don't know the name of... 😉 in the fish dish.
BP, so far we have a very positive impression. We will return when we have had time to see and experience more!
Steve, yes now it will be a new island trip! 🙂
Matts, you are absolutely right! Now we have switched from France to Italy. We are also wondering how to work after this trip... but we will need an income when we get back home and have to pay rent again... 😉 .
Frankie & Co, so far we don't know much either, but we'll report during the trip!
Lisa, Peter has replied on FB now, as far as I know! (We don't have Internet access at the campsite now, only at the tourist office...) Of course you can borrow pictures if you link. Just nice! 🙂
Across and across, yes it will be interesting to "compare".
Steel city Anna, have you written comments that do not appear? If so, I'll check the spam when I have better access to the Internet (I'm at the tourist office now ;)).
Ama de casa, we like this relaxed attitude. We never actually got to check in, and when we had to pay, we had to go to the bar and say how long we stayed etc. 😉.
22 June 2015 - 11:28
steel city anna says:
They come out in a hurry!
23 June 2015 - 18:06