We fell in love with the French island of Corsica last year, so it was only a matter of time (and monitoring of Easy Jet ticket prices) before we journeyed to its Italian neighbor. Sardinia is absolutely gorgeous — one look at the turquoise blue waters in the photos below and I’m sure you’ll agree — and it took a serious amount of self control to resist the urge to extend our visit.

Gui and I spent a glorious weekend boating along the coast of La Maddalena Archipelago and relaxing on one of Costa Smeralda’s perfect sandy beaches. Our hotel — Parco degli Ulivi — was surrounded by a beautiful mountainous landscape and had a great vibe and tasty breakfast, so definitely check for availability if you’re planning to visit Sardinia.

A couple of money-saving tips: We opted for one of the larger, day-long boat tours of La Maddalena with Elena Tour Navigazioni and felt it was pretty good value for the money (40 euros per person) considering many of the companies charged double that price or more. Also, if you’re trying to choose a beach on the Costa Smeralda, try Spiaggia del Principe: There is a free parking lot about a 10-minute walk away if you can manage to find its unmarked entrance — just make sure to stop by the bathroom before you arrive or you’ll be searching for free bush pretty quickly 🙂 Cheers!