Cagliari

The capital city of the elite holiday island of Sardinia is a revelation, a city steeped in history with its roots in the Phoenician and pre-Roman eras. Sitting on Sardinia’s Mediterranean south coast, Cagliari may have grown a crop of workaday suburbs but its center is a delight of triumphal buildings built in mellow, golden stone.
Cagliari’s ancient port has been welcoming visitors for thousands of years and today leads straight on to the city’s main thoroughfare, the tree-and-arcade-lined Via Roma, which dissects the sleek Marina district around the waterfront. This is a plush area of smart restaurants and bars with views over bobbing yachts in the marina. 
Inland from the sea, the hilly alleyways of the Castello quartiere storico (historic quarter) meander through cobbled piazzas surrounded with brightly colored townhouses and are linked by ancient archways and worn stone steps; the major artery of Via Lamarmora leads to the 12th-century Gothic cathedral of Santa Maria and Santa Cecilia, a clutch of historical museums, Baroque churches and the remains of a Roman amphitheater, which is a venue for plays to this day. The Castello district is overshadowed by the ocher-hued fortress of San Michele; built in the 10th century, it now houses temporary art and photography exhibitions in its squat towers. 
Summer sees the frenetic city action move to six-km (four-mile) Poetto Beach for endless days of sunbathing, watersports and late-night clubbing; an open-air movie theater appears in July and August and funfairs line the seafront promenade.

Practical Info

Cagliari’s tourist office is in the Palazzo Comunale at Via Roma, 145, and is open daily 9am–8pm. It is accessible by ferry from several points on mainland Italy, including Genoa, Naples and Civitavecchia near Rome. Shuttles run to and from the airport from the bus station near the ferry port and the adjacent railway station connects with towns all over Sardinia. The city is also a popular stopover for cruise ships.