Published on: 15 December 2016 | Last updated: 3 January 2020
At a glance
Distance
362 kilometres
Difficulty/terrain
Easy to moderate. There’s a of climb just over 1000 metres (altitude gain) in the middle of this route, and another smaller climb, but otherwise it’s pretty flat.
Traffic
This route is mainly on quiet roads. Much of it is on the old strada statale 125. Between Cagliari and Tortoli the SS125 has been superseded by a newer version and most through traffic uses the new road, which means that the old road is really quiet. However there is a stretch of about 10 kilometres where traffic from the new road joins the old road. Note also that the old SS125 between Tortoli and Orosei is a scenic route that is popular with motorcyclists.
Surfaces
Entirely on roads that are in good condition.
Finding your way
There are no cycling-specific signs. The route is easy to navigate, but on the old SS125 you need to keep your wits about you as the road signs are intended to direct through traffic onto the fast road. If you have a gps then all you need to do is download the tracks from this page and follow it, but if you are doing it the old-school way then it needs a little care —although it’s no more than common sense really. Please be sure to check out the detailed route descriptions and carry a map.
Overview
This route gives you a bit of everything that Sardegna has to offer: rocky coastal scenery, mountains, and lots of sandy beaches. It takes you along the coast of south-east Sardegna, before heading north towards the mountains of the Gennargentu crossing over the Genna Silana pass (1017m). From here it heads along the coast to Olbia via Posada, one of the island’s most attractive villages.
Highlights
- the cycleway along the Spiaggia del Poetto out of Cagliari
- the coastline around Villasimius
- the mountains of the Gennargentu and Gola di Gorropu canyon
- the beaches at Santa Lucia, La Caletta, Bari Sardo, San Teodoro
- the hill town of Posada overlooked by the Castello della Fava
Map and altitude profile
Powered by WP-GPX Maps
tips for using the map

Run your cursor over the graph to show the elevation, and distance from the start, for any given point on the route. (Note: the altitude graph is not shown where the route is flat).

Click the little icon in the right-hand corner to see the map fullscreen
Distances | |
---|---|
Cagliari to Villasimius | 54 kms |
Villasimius to Muravera | 48 kms |
Muravera to Tortolì | 76 kms |
Tortolì to Genna Silana | 43 kms |
Genna Silana to Orosei | 40 kms |
Orosei to Posada | 42 kms |
Posada to Olbia | 49 kms |
Options and connections
This route would work just as well going south from Olbia.
An alternative option would be to turn off the route and head for Lanusei and then skirt round the Gennargentu via a series of mountain villages heading for Fonni and then heading for Dorgali via Mamoiada, Orgosolo, and Oliena.
At Muravera you could head inland for Barumini and from there to Oristano and Alghero — or south along the coast. Or you could head from Dorgali south-west to Laconi and from there to Barumini.
To the north this route joins with the [Sardegna North Coast] route along the northern coast between Olbia and Alghero. To the south it connects with the route between Alghero and Cagliari, but I would strongly recommend getting a transfer between Cagliari and Pula and picking up the route there.
The road out of Cagliari to the west is really pretty horrible, and my advice would be to get a transfer to Pula if you want to continue on the Sardegna West Coast route.
Getting there and back
There are airports at Olbia and Cagliari. Olbia airport is fairly easy to get to by bike, but to it’s probably best to take the train to Cagliari airport.
Olbia is the main ferry terminal for the island with routes to Genova, Livorno and Civitavecchia. The terminal at Golfo degli Aranci is also nearby. There’s also a ferry terminal at Arbatax with services to Civitavecchia as well as summer services to Genova and Cagliari.
There are train stations at Cagliari, Tortoli/Arbatax and at Olbia.
Scroll down to the resources section for useful websites.
Downloads
Maps to print out or view offline
GPS files
More information
Places to stay
Transport and services
Resources
Articles in this series
- Sardegna East Coast: Introduction
- Sardegna East Coast: Part 1: Cagliari to Tortoli
- Sardegna East Coast: Part 2: the Gennargentu
- Sardegna East Coast: Part 3: Orosei to Olbia
Get in touch
Please get in touch if you find any errors in the information, or if there’s anything, good or bad, that you’d want other cyclists to know.
Join the mailing list?
If you’ve found this site useful why not sign up to the mailing list for occasional updates about new routes.