Castelsardo

Castelsardo from sea

Castelsardo is a town in the province of Sassari in Sardinia.

Understand

The town is the major centre of Anglona historical region of northern Sardinia which lays in the middle of the Western coast the Gulf of Asinara. Initially the town was called Castelgenovese, then Castellaragonese and only then by its current name -- Castelsardo.

Castelsardo is a member of I Borghi più belli d'Italia, an association of small Italian towns.

Tourist information

• 1 Ufficio di accoglienza turistica (tourist reception center), Via Bastion, 1 (Palazzo Eleonora d’Arborea), ☏ +39 079-470220, ufficioturismo@comune.castelsardo.ss.it. M-F 09:00-14:00, 16:00-18:00. (updated Jul 2017)

Get in

By bus

ARST buses from Sassari, Porto Torres, Santa Teresa Gallura; buses from Olbia, Porto Cervo.

Get around

By bus

A local bus, Castelsardo - Lu Bagnu, connects the porto turistico (marina) with the town's centre.

By car

The main access to the town center is a limited traffic zone (ZTL) (map and hours). Most vehicles are prohibited from accessing it.

See

• 1 Castello dei Doria (Doria Castle). The castle is the major landmark of the town. Originally the castle was built by Doria family from Genoa in the 12th century. Later on the town was emerged on the slopes surrounding the castle. (updated Jul 2017)

• 2 Museo dell’Intreccio Mediterraneo. Jul Aug: 9:00-00:30; May Jun Sep: 09:30-21:30; Apr Oct: 09:00-19:00; Nov-Mar: 10:30-16:30. The castle hosts the Mediterranean Weaving Museum. €3. (updated Jul 2017)

Castelsardo Cathedral

• 3 Concattedrale di Sant'Antonio abate (Castelsardo Cathedral). The cathedral is located at the northern edge of the medieval centre of Castelsardo, in a panoramic position overlooking the sea. The building blends the elements of the Catalan Gothic and the Renaissance. It was consecrated in 1622. The altarpiece contains a notable 15th-century painting Madonna con Bambino assisa in trono ("Enthroned Madonna and Child") attributed to the painter known as Master of Castelsardo. (updated Jul 2017)

• 4 Museo Diocesano, via Manganella 42. May Sep: Th-Tu 10:00-13:00 15:30-19:30; Jun: 10:00-14:00 15:00-21:00; Jul Aug: 10:00-14:00 15:00-22:00. The Diocesan Museum is located at the crypt of the cathedral where among the artefacts you'd find some other parts of the original altarpiece by the Master of Castelsardo. €4. (updated Jul 2017)

• 5 Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Grazie. This medieval church has no facade, the entrance is on the right side of the building. (updated Jul 2017)
• 6 Palazzo la Loggia. The Town Hall since the year 1111. (updated Jul 2017)

Sleep

• 1 Hotel Meli (On the main road near the small beach), ☏ +39 079479097. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 10:30. This centrally located hotel has dated rooms and an uninspired free breakfast, but with a fantastic view and for a very reasonable price for the location. From €100 in high season. (updated Jul 2023)

Go next

Elephant Rock

• 1 Roccia dell'elefante (Elephant Rock) (Multeddu locality). It is a rust-colored heavily eroded roughly 4m in height block of granite which is said to resemble a sitting elephant. Its resemblance with an elephant was first noted by the scholar Edoardo Benetti in 1914. Before that it was known as Sa Pedra Pertunta (perforated stone). This stone used to be a part of the rocky complex upstream Castellazzu from which it fallen downstream. The rock is not only popular among the modern tourists, apparently it was a place of cult since the prehistoric time: there are two domus de janas from pre-nuraghic time located there. (updated Jul 2017)