3 Best Sights in Sardinia, Italy

Although there is a perfectly serviceable sandy beach right outside the archaeological site of Nora, infintely more enticing is the series of long expanses of sand 18 km (11 miles) farther south toward the cape of Capo Spartivento, Sardinia's southernmost tip. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee in summer); toilets. Best for: swimming.

The narrow promontory outside Pula was the site of a Phoenician, Carthaginian, and then, later, Roman settlement that was first inhabited some 2,800 years ago. Nora was a prime location as a stronghold and an important trading town; Phoenician settlers scouted for good harbors, cliffs to shelter their craft from the wind, and an elevation from which they could defend themselves. An old Roman paved road passes the temple ruins, which include baths, a Roman theater, and an amphitheater now used for summer music festivals. 

The simple 11th-century church at the base of the Nora promontory is key to one of the island's most colorful annual events. Don't be put off by the inappropriate modern frontage added to the building in 2021—the interior retains its ancient character. A four-day procession during the Festa di Sant'Efisio accompanies a statue of the martyred St. Efisius all the way from Cagliari to here and back again. The event culminates in a huge parade of costumed Sardinians and decorated traccas (ox-drawn carriages) along Cagliari's main avenue. Try to catch this if you're in southern Sardinia from May 1 to May 4.