Sailing round Sardinia. Any advice?

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peterandjeanette

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Having done some flotilla sailing in the Greek Islands SWMBO and I are now planning our next jaunt to the Med.
The favourite option is a bareboat charter out of Sardinia. I've never been to that area before and wonder if anyone can give advice on the area and gerenal sailing in mid May?
Many thanks
 
First of all a really large wallet is advised.

The whole of Sardegna is spectacular and is untouched by cheap mass holiday resorts which is why it has become the favourite destination of mega luxury yachts. Every new building is kept low and blends beautifully with the landscape, hence the few existing holiday resorts remain exclusive and are very expensive.

If you would like to escape the crowd head for Cagliari in the South. The South West end is one of the least populated areas but also ground for NATO military excercises.

There are also several camping sites by the sea and if you manage to anchor in front of them by using discretion you may be able to take advantage of their services.

The strongest wind is Maeastrale (N and NE) that can blow for several consecutive days. The local rule of thumb is increasing in strength for three days and decreasing for another three days.

Beware of the submerged rocks near the shore.

May can be still quite a cold month with variable weather and rain. The sea water will not be yet warm enough to enjoy swimming.

The best months to visit Sardegna (if you are looking for an hot escape) are July, August and September.
 
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I would forget about the south and fly into Alghero by Ryanair or Olbia by Easyjet. From there you have the delights of the Straits of Bonifacio including the Madallena Islands , Gulf od Arzachena (Cannegioni) and lots of other anchorages and across to Corsica to Porto Veccio and possibly out to Elba and Isla Capria.
Loads of good anchorages and some cheapish marinas. There are rocks and occassional strong winds but you want to go sailing don't you!!
 
Last was there in '69, in Porto Raphael on the N. Coast. Assumed it was a quiet fishing village. Wrong! A nice village created by the rich from scratch. Only allowed to build houses designed by the Rome guy. The gulley was enlarged by dynamite to create the room needed to build a nice seaside square. Sand was replaced each year after the storms. It was still fun, can't imagine how it is now with the big money. Then there were still bandits operating in the hills, an American was shot while we were there. Refused to open his wallet.
The story I liked was about the the sheep-herd who owned the nice white sand beach near us, which was top priority for the Aga Khan's resort. They offered a millionone, he said no chance, two. They wrote the cheque, he inquired of his friends if it was good, they said yes, so he wandered off up the hill to his shack. Leaving all the bank guys wondering about the business they had lost.
Not much help here for your trip, but we had a good time. I would love to know how it is now.
Point of the trip was to rescue an Atalanta and get it back to UK. Managed that.
A
 
Hi
Corsica is rather nicer I think. Have a look. They are both rather expensive to get to and not cheap when you are there. The inland scenery in Corsica is stunning and there are beautiful white beaches. It is French and not Italian but we can't have everything. It does get lots of Italian visitors later in the season.
 
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I would guess that chartering on the north coast might give you the best cruising options. Both the Sardinian and Corsican sides of this coast are interesting, with plenty of possibilities. Bonifacio is superb and the islands on both sides of the Strait are very pleasant. The other coasts of both Sardinia and Corsica are nice enough but ports are fairly well-spaced, especially the east coasts of both. West coasts can suffer heavy swell if the mistral is blowing, and both islands are sometimes affected by strong winds, especially through the Bonifacio Strait. For example:

P1000926.jpg
 
peterandjeanette said:
Some interesting thoughts and observations.
All noted. (I'll report back on our adventures next year!)
Many thanks
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We passed through in late May. The pilot books refer to all the anchorages being filled with expensive buoys and the requirement for a licence. We did not find a single mooring buoy laid so had free run of all the anchorages. If you go later than May then be prepared for these bouys to be laid.

If you go in July August you have to be totally nuts as the place is crowded as sin.

AVOID: Villasimeus on the south eastern corner - very expensive - nothing works and no-one there. Also rude staff - I think we were ruder to them though! Also the wind whistle through the place.

Boneficio - Superb - but crowed even in May.....

Madalenas - beautiful

But when we arrived in Greece - it was just wonderful to have arrived there - a wonderful cruising ground in comparison.

Also a warning - watch out for the lee side of the island in windy and gale force conditions, the gusts down the mountains have to be seen to be believed.
 
I chartered once out of Alghero in September.
Bit disappointed, it was very much end of season with empty restaurants, and expensive . Dont plan on going there again. But the Fornelli passage was good.
 
Chris_Robb said:
AVOID: Villasimeus on the south eastern corner - very expensive - nothing works and no-one there. Also rude staff - I think we were ruder to them though! Also the wind whistle through the place.
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Things must have changed?? Spent a week here in August 2009 - Staff were super, and very helpful. Having paid for 2 nights, (very expensive), we discovered that they were happy for us to use a berth during the day for free, (about 10am to 6pm), and we anchored in the bay for 5 nights. Found a fabulous beach restaurant in the NE corner of the bay. Looked like a cheap cafe from the anchorage, but it filled up with high rollers after we had arrived :)

Nice town aswell, about 10 euros in a cab.
 
peterandjeanette said:
Having done some flotilla sailing in the Greek Islands SWMBO and I are now planning our next jaunt to the Med.
The favourite option is a bareboat charter out of Sardinia. I've never been to that area before and wonder if anyone can give advice on the area and gerenal sailing in mid May?
Many thanks
Click to expand...

Alghero area is nice, also if in Bonofacio Straights, seek out Iles de Cavallo, just of SE corner of Corsica.
 
The north-east corner is lovely (it's all I have visited because, on paper, the rest looked a bit flat and uninteresting) but I would suggest heading north and visiting the west coast of Corsica as far as Calvi.

I was last in Porto Cervo 21 years ago. Then the overnight marina charge for a 36 footer was £50 - and we were storm bound for several days.
 
We were holed up in Bonnifacio when they recorded 78 knots at the Pertusato light. The outside pontoons in the marina broke their moorings and it was only because the big boats had their anchors out as well that a major calamity was avoided.

The straights of Bonnifacio are known for their strong winds. The first time I sailed a large cruising boat was on my honeymoon in Corsica and we had a gale (my first) there as well.
 
Sybarite said:
We were holed up in Bonnifacio when they recorded 78 knots at the Pertusato light. The outside pontoons in the marina broke their moorings and it was only because the big boats had their anchors out as well that a major calamity was avoided.

The straights of Bonnifacio are known for their strong winds. The first time I sailed a large cruising boat was on my honeymoon in Corsica and we had a gale (my first) there as well.
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Yep, 4/5 outside, funnelled into 7/8 in the straits.
 
Richard10002 said:
Things must have changed?? Spent a week here in August 2009 - Staff were super, and very helpful. Having paid for 2 nights, (very expensive), we discovered that they were happy for us to use a berth during the day for free, (about 10am to 6pm), and we anchored in the bay for 5 nights. Found a fabulous beach restaurant in the NE corner of the bay. Looked like a cheap cafe from the anchorage, but it filled up with high rollers after we had arrived :)

Nice town aswell, about 10 euros in a cab.
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Richard - it was blowing 40 knots through at the time, the shop had just gone bust, the laundrette had closed, and the place had a feeling that it was going bust. Toilets were filthy and flushes bust, electrics not working on berths. I am not surprised there were only a handful of boats there!

Sorry you are land bound in Manchester now......
 
Have a look at my site, which lists and rates the areas around both Corsica and Sardinia (among many other areas). Drill down to:

http://www.jimbaerselman.f2s.com/Corsica Sardinia.htm

The straits between the two islands are the best cruising grounds for a charter. The coasts from Olbia, northward up to (and beyond) Porto Vecchio are excellent cruising, and are mostly well sheltered from the strong blasts of wind through the Straits of Bonifacio. In late May the area will not be crowded, and inexpensive berths and anchrages wil be available. In two weeks you should expect some four days or so of unsettled weather.

If you're an ambitious sailor with two weeks in hand, and you don't mind a whistle-stop tour with a lot of time at sea, an anticlockwise circuit of Corsica is possible. Wonderful west coast. For easy day sailing, there's plenty just around the straits.

These pages are also published on the Cruising Association web site, but with far more detail and links to pilot book corrections etc. However, this detail is only available for members - may be worth the £120 pa if you charter a lot, especially since they are now negotiating member discounts with some charter companies. Have a look at http://www.cruising.org.uk/cruising_information to see the stuff available to non-members.
 
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