Officially no longer the capital of the province, Olbia gains points in other important areas, such as liveability and charm. And it continues to grow: new bike lanes are already under construction and projects are taking shape for a new pedestrian promenade and bike path going around the town centre and out past the airport, as well as spotlighting the city’s fantastic wetlands, and much more.
Olbia is a green town, where people live well, there is parking near the centre, great shopping, thriving nature, and a gulf where the best mussel farms in the Mediterranean live happily alongside the great cement structure where the ferries dock. On the horizon sits the incredible, ever-changing silhouette of the island of Tavolara.
Olbia is cheerful, thousands of tourists prefer it to the small resorts along the coast, as evidenced by its more than 150 hotels and B&Bs. Located at the centre of an area that encompasses the most beautiful beaches in Sardinia, Olbia is very popular. It provides a port for cruise ships and private yachts so large that they cannot find other docks that can handle their tonnage.
Low cost flights from 50 European countries land there, but also private jets, more than any other private terminal in Europe, at least in the three central months of summer!
nd it was also popular in the past, as evidenced by the numerous remains housed in the archaeological museum. Olbia, Terranoa (Newfoundland) in Sardinian, which already existed in the pre-nuragic era, as shown by the “Tombs of the Giants” archaeological sites and the nuraghe of Cabu Abbas, dating back to the second millennium BC. It was later inhabited by the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans. The basilica of San Simplicio, from 1.100 AD is worth a visit, as is the Church of San Paolo.
Restaurants and bars have tables on the street, the centre is lively and busy until late into the evening all year round. The cuisine on offer is varied and of excellent quality. Sporting types will visit Fausto Noce, the city park. A date not to be missed is the feast of San Simplicio, patron saint of Olbia and Gallura, from 10 to 15 May, where you can soak up an authentic Mediterranean festive atmosphere.
