Beautiful beaches and excellent seafood. That’s how Sardinia is usually praised. However, I wanted to explore its least popular side and more urban and colorful part. I managed to do that, even without renting a car!
Table of contents:
- Exploring Cagliari: the hidden gems of the city
- Street Art in San Gavino Monreale
- Sardinia without a car – how we did it?
- Sardinia – was it worth it?
Exploring Cagliari: the hidden gems of the city
From Poland, we had two landing options for our trip to Sardinia: Cagliari and Alghero. After a lengthy discussion, we decided on Cagliari because there seemed to be more attractions compared to other places. As people who typically don’t own a car, we prefer to consider driving as a last resort. I understand that not everyone may relate to this, but that’s just who we are. Please don’t judge.
Mural by Ericailcane, via Schiavazzi. AMAZING!
Cagliari made a similar impression on me as Rome or Barcelona – a beautiful, historic city that struggles with various social problems. Sometimes I wonder if Instagram users are showing an ideal image of Italian holidays, don’t they notice what’s happening beyond these tourist attractions? But that’s not what we’re talking about today!
When it comes to Cagliari, there are a few impressive tourist spots, such as Bastion di San Remo with a view of the city panorama. Sure, we checked it out and I can’t say it wasn’t worth it. However, in this post, I’ll tell you about alternative locations where there were hardly any tourists and spending time there was a pleasant adventure. 🙂
Street Art in Cagliari: Galleria Del Sale
During our trip to Cagliari, we rented bikes for the first time in our travel history. It was an excellent experience!
We found a rental shop with good prices near the train station. Although leaving the city centre was not particularly pleasant due to heavy traffic and construction work on the streets, once we reached the bike path, it was perfect. The bike path was amazing! It ran along the sea and featured plenty of art installations.
Work by real
Work by Federico Carta – Crisa & Ericailcane & Andrea Casciu
Work by Ruben Mureddu
Work by Gianluca Gelsomino
Work by Kofa
Work by Bastardilla
Work by ZED1
Two works above are made by Ericailcante
Psst, there is more! The bike path leads to The Park of Molentargius, where you’ll find flamingos. An important point – the park is more of a reserve, and the flamingos are there, but not always as close as you would like, so it’s worth taking binoculars. However, the ride through the park itself is a pleasant activity. We drove all over the park, so we hooked up with a flock of sheep, looked at the military areas and even said hi to the locals.
Street Art in Cagliari: Sant’Elia
The neighborhood I wanted to explore the most was Sant’Elia. Once a fishing village, it is now a residential area filled with high-rise buildings. The district is ‘cut off’ from the city center by an expressway and two stadiums, one of which is abandoned and heavily overgrown.
Murals by Ericailcane, Tellas, Crisa, Ciredz
Once again, I have to emphasize that in non-touristy, authetnic places, you can find truly beautiful art! Sant’Elia hides a rough history behind the doors of its citiziens. You can sense it here.
Mural by urbanKofa
The art in the neighborhood began to appear in 2022 through the festival ‘Urbanfest – Metropolitan Generations’. Let me quote the festival’s organizer the Asteras Cultural Associationis Urbanfest:
We believe that art, part of art and visual language, is a powerful means of communication, capable of transforming places and people. We start from Sant’Elia, a neighborhood on the Gulf of Angels, to mark a new time, opening up new perspectives. We have the task of making urban space more sustainable, in social and environmental terms.
I’m keeping my fingers firmly crossed for this festival, because its idea, as well as their way of working (collaboration of artists with the local community, hell yeah!) are essentials.
Street Art in San Gavino Monreale
My companion and I also wanted to see something outside the city. The options for exploring the art besides Cagliari (even without a car) are a few. Some of them are easy to achieve, but some need a bit more energy and time. We decided to take a trip to San Gavino Monreale. We hit the jackpot! The city is not too big but there are more than 70 murals by excellent artists – local and foreign. The reason for this is the activity of the SKIZZO Cultural Association. In their office, you’ll get a map of the murals and buy some local merchandise. They also offer guided tours around their town!
Walking around this town was great fun. However, I recommend planning your trip wisely. Here, from 1 to 5 pm (more or less) everything was closed. By writing everything I mean EVERYTHING – restaurants, cafes, markets. It’s worth keeping this in mind.
Bastardilla
STILL ALIVE by Andrea Casciu
RIP/ART by Raku
Equazione culinaria sarda / Pardulas e Pibadra by Cibo
Cercarsi negli Altria by Zed1
Sardinia without a car – how we did it?
We got around Cagliari by bus. They run quite often in different directions. You can buy tickets easily on the local app. There is a 24-hour option at a very good price. Remember to validate them. Sometimes the controllers appear.
Bicycles are also popular here. There are a few bike paths in the city and trails outside. We chose urban adventures and bicycles worked for us. You should find the rental shops easily. In high season it’s a good idea to reserve a bike in advance.
In travelling out of town, the trains did its job. The trains are regular, the prices are good and the routes are long. I’ll be honest, when we went to San Gavino, I regretted that we did not go further to Macomer – another city where art made a good fuss. So, there is no excuse. I have to come back here! Where the railroad does not reach, buses sometimes do. We did not try this option.
I giardini by Andrea Meli and me
Sardinia – was it worth it?
I believe we could have explored more of Cagliari, but for the first time, I feel proud of our travel experience. I’m glad we visited San Gavino Monreale, especially since a week after our departure there was a flood there. Traveling in Sardinia isn’t the easiest, but when we visit again—and we definitely should, since we’ve only seen about 30% of my list—we’ll be better prepared for a car trip. Do we regret not having a car this time? Absolutely not!
So, check your flights and get ready to discover the hidden street art in Sardinia; it’s everywhere!
Ahem, interested in the topic? I’m throwing in a couple of pages that helped me prepare for my trip. Maybe they will help you too?
- https://www.blocal-travel.com/italy/south-italy/sardinia/cagliari/visit-cagliari-street-art/
- https://www.continentecreativo.eu/
- https://streetartcities.com/cities/san-gavino-monreale
- https://www.associazioneasteras.it
- facebook.com/sangavinomonreale
- https://www.facebook.com/associazioneculturaleskizzo
K.
Part of Streets 