Santa Teresa Gallura
Santa Teresa Gallura is a town at the northernmost tip of Sardinia. Its permanent population is around 5,000 people, but it grows enormously every summer with domestic and international tourists. The town is also an important transit point for ferries to Corsica.
Understand
The official name of the commune is Santa Teresa Gallura, although it is often known as Santa Teresa di Gallura (and Lungoni in Gallurese, Lungone in Sardinian). It's a fairly popular tourist destination and there are several beaches in the town itself and is close to other tourist destinations such as the Costa Smeralda and Castelsardo. The town is also one of three places in Sardinia where you can take a ferry to Corsica.
Tourist information
- 🌍 Ufficio Turismo e Spettacolo, Piazza Vittorio Emanuele I, 24, ☏ +39 0789 754127, turismo@comunesantateresagallura.it. M-W 09:00-13:00, 16:00-18:00; Th F 09:00-13:00, 16:00-18:30; M-W 10:00-13:00, 16:00-18:00.
- 🌍 Seasonal information point (Stazione Marittima – Porto Commerciale), ☏ +39 0789 755113.
Also one may check with the Infopoint at Lu Brandali (see below).
Get in
By boat
Frequent ferries by Moby Lines and Blu Navy link the town with Bonifacio in Corsica.
- 🌍 Stazione Marittima (Ferry terminal). This ferry costs approximately €25 and leaves every 2 hours starting around 8AM.
By plane
The closest airport is in Olbia (Aeroporto Costa Smeralda).
Get around
By bus
Sardabus provides a few bus services to the nearby settlements. In summer, there is a frequent connection to the Capo Testa peninsula.
By taxi
- 🌍 Taxi rank, Piazza San Vittorio 14, ☏ +39 0789 754376.
By car or motorcycle
The car and motorcycle rental street is Via Maria Teresa/Via Nazionale, with 4 rental offices, none of them international brands, between numbers 29 and 58. Motorcycle rentals start around €20. The emptier beaches and most nearby archeological sites are only easily accessible by private transport.
See
- 🌍 Lu Brandali, ☏ +39 3423731281. Apr-Sep 09:30-18:30; Nov-Feb 09:30-11:30; Mar 09:30-12:00. An archaeological site with remains of a prehistoric village and nuraghe (megalithic tomb). €2.
- 🌍 Torre di Longonsardo. Apr-Sep 10:00-13:00, 16:00-20:00; Oct-Mar 10:00-13:00, 16:00-18:00. 16th-century defensive tower. One of many built by the Spanish along Sardinia's Northern and Western coasts €3.
Do
The town is very walkable, and the primary beach, La Spiaggia di Rena Bianca, is at the northern end of town.
Eat good food, relax at the beach, and find la dolce vita.
Buy
The supermarket on Via Nazionale has normal prices, whereas most other places in town are high.
Eat
Most places are pricey compared with other Western European cities, but a few budget options are as follow:
La Lucciola at Via Maria Teresa 42 serves a large variety of pizza and pastry options: +39 338 125 7602
The restaurant downstairs in Albergo Scano offers a fixed price dinner that generally runs below €15 per person, including the house wine.
Drink
It is a quiet town, but there is some nightlife and live music to be had. Ask at the tourist information center.
Sleep
Hotel Sandalion regularly offers the best budget option in town, and it is close to the main piazza: +39 0789 754541
Another budget option is Albergo Scano also near the main piazza: +39 0789 754447
Nearby Capo Testa and Palau generally have the best options that can be booked online with major hotel chains.
Go next
- Bonifacio in Corsica - the ferry trip takes around 1 hour
- Tempio Pausania - an old town, famous for its granite architecture, a former mountainous co-capital of the Gallura subregion
- Castelsardo - a nice town on the coast of the Asinara Gulf built around an old castle
- The town of Maddalena at the Maddalena archipelago
The Costa Smeralda begins around 30 km from Santa Teresa.