Sardinia has an extensive network of bus routes, which is also supplemented by several railway lines.

However, buses only run a few times a day to smaller resorts, and some tourist destinations cannot be reached by public transport at all. Therefore, when planning a holiday in Sardinia, 

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By car

If you’re planning to explore all the island’s beauty, a car is the right choice for you. Cars are available to hire at all airports, and of course in the main tourist centres too.

The island has motorways connecting the largest cities, such as Cagliari, Sassari, Oristano, Nuoro and Olbia. There are no tolls in Sardinia and no motorway vignette is required. Away from the main roads, you should expect narrow and often very winding roads. Only experienced drivers should attempt to drive here.

You can find detailed information about car hire and driving in Sardinia in our article ‘Car Hire in Sardinia’.

Trains in Sardinia

Regular rail services to Sardinia are operated by two companies; their tickets are not valid on each other’s services, so you must always buy a new ticket, even when changing trains.

Trenitalia

The main island line runs from the capital, Cagliari, to Ozieri-Chilivani, where it splits into two lines.

One of these takes you to Olbia/Golfo Aranci and the other to Sassari and Porto Torres.

A ticket from Cagliari to Olbia costs 18 eur and the journey takes approximately 3 hours and 20 minutes. The journey to Sassari is slightly cheaper; a ticket costs 16,50 eur and the journey takes 3 hours. From Olbia to Sassari, you’ll pay 8,10 eur. 

Two further Trenitalia routes run from Cagliari to the inland towns of Carbonia and Iglesias, although these are not particularly useful for tourists.

You can check timetables and prices online on the Trenitalia website; it is not necessary to buy tickets online, as the price for regional services is the same at the station.

ARST

Three further routes are operated by ARST, where you can only buy tickets at the station or from the conductor. An alternative way to buy tickets is via the Tabnet mobile app (Google Play / App Store).

ARST’s most important route is the one from Alghero to Sassari, which continues on to the town of Sorso, or from Macomer (with connections to the main line and Trenitalia services) to Nuoro.

Timetables for these routes can be found on the arst.sardegna.it website.

Trenino Verde

During the summer holidays, why not consider a trip on the Trenino Verde tourist train, which travels along stunning routes between the coast and the hinterland, on tracks no longer used by regular trains. These mid-20th-century railcars will take you on a leisurely, scenic journey through beautiful countryside, ensuring you have a wonderful experience. 

The Trenino Verde runs every summer on five different routes, usually once or twice every 14 days. One-way ticket prices range from 12 eur to 17 eur.

For more information, visit the official website attreninoverde.com

Buses to Sardinia

Buses are the main form of transport if you want to travel along the coast and to major tourist attractions.

The network is fairly extensive, but you should bear in mind that services run at limited intervals.

Most larger towns are served at least 5–8 times a day, whilst smaller resorts may have as few as three services a day. It is also worth bearing in mind that in rural areas, bus stops may not be signposted at all, and even if they are, there may be no information on the signpost. 

The locations of all city and intercity bus stops are very well known en.mapy.cz, which will be a great help in finding your way around.

There are several bus operators in Sardinia.

Regional services throughout Sardinia

The main public transport network is operated by ARST buses, which run regional routes from the major towns and cities over distances of around 100–120 km. You’ll find them all over the island.

Transport is very cheap; a ticket for an intercity journey costs around 1 eur per 15 km. 

ARST also operates local public transport in Cagliari and Alghero, where a single 90-minute ticket costs 1,30 eur and a 120-minute ticket (valid for use on both buses and trams) costs 2 eur.

Where to buy tickets

Buying paper tickets from ARST is a bit more complicated. We strongly recommend purchasing them before boarding the bus at an ARST kiosk (found only in major cities, always at the bus station) or at a newsagent’s or smaller shops.

For a specific route, you can always buy a 24-hour ticket, which costs twice as much as a single ticket. This will come in handy when travelling to more remote locations (typically beaches), where it is not possible to buy a ticket.

Although the driver does sell tickets, it is very common for them to run out, and they will refuse to let you board without a ticket purchased in advance.

The best option by far is therefore to use mobile apps. For travelling on ARST and Trenitalia buses and trains, you can use two apps, both of which offer the same tickets at the same prices:

• DropTicket(Google Play / App Store)
• Tabnet (Google Play / App Store)

Frequency and timetables

The best way to find connections and timetables is on the transport operators’ official websites.

• ARST city bus timetables
• ARST intercity bus timetables

Regional and long-distance services from Olbia

As well as ARST, which operates many routes from Olbia, you can also use other bus companies that will take you mainly along the Costa Smeralda or on long-distance routes across Sardinia:

• SunLines – lower-cost public services (around 1–2 eur s per 10 km) from Olbia to the Costa Smeralda, to Palau and Porto Torres; commercial services from Olbia to Sassari, Alghero and Alghero Airport (prices around 20 to 25 eur)
• Caramelli Tours – connections from Olbia along the Costa Smeralda
• Deplano – long-distance route from Olbia via the resorts of San Teodoro, Budoni and Cala Gonone to the town of Nuoro
• Turmo Travel – long-distance services from Olbia to Cagliari and the port of Santa Teresa Gallura; regional services from Olbia to the towns of Bono, Budduso and Telti

Regional and long-distance services from Alghero

As well as ARST, which operates many routes from Alghero, you can also use other bus companies to travel to towns around Alghero and on long-distance routes:

• SunLines – commercial services from Alghero Airport and the town centre to Sassari and Olbia (approx. 25 eur)
• Turmo Travel – a service to the inland town of Bonorva
• Reden Tours – a service from Alghero Airport via Macomer to the town of Nuoro
• Digitur – a service from Alghero via Castelsardo and Badesi to Santa Teresa Gallura
• Sardabus – a route from Alghero to the seaside resort of Stintino
• Logudoro Tours – a long-distance service from Alghero Airport via Macomer and Oristano to Cagliari

Regional and long-distance services from Cagliari

As well as ARST, which operates many routes from Cagliari, you can also use other bus companies to travel to towns around Cagliari and on long-distance routes:

• Turmo Travel – long-distance services to Olbia, Arzachena and Santa Teresa Gallura
• Logudoro Tours – a long-distance service from Cagliari via Oristano and Macomer to Alghero Airport
• Murgiabus – regional services to nearby towns such as Quartu, Nora and Sarroch

Regional and long-distance services from the north coast

One of the most visited parts of Sardinia is the north coast (Palau, Porto Torres, La Maddalena), which attracts not only the traditional ARST public bus service but also other private transport operators:

• Sardabus – a number of regional services in the resort of Badesi and around Santa Teresa Gallura (La Marmorata), and from Castelsardo to Tempio Pausania
• Caramelli Tours – regional routes from Palau to the island of Isola Gabbiani and Capo d’Orso
• SunLines – regional services from the Costa Smeralda to Olbia and the resort of Palau
• Turmo Travel – a long-distance service from Santa Teresa Gallura to Cagliari and local services to the La Maddalena archipelago
• Digitur – services from Santa Teresa Gallura, Badesi, Castelsardo and Porto Torres to Sassari and the towns of Bosa, Cuglieri and Is Arenas beach

By boat

Public ferry services from Sardinia to the La Maddalena archipelago, the island of Asinara and the island of San Pietro (Carloforte harbour) are all operated by a single company, Delcomar.

One-way ticket prices range from 3,70 eur for the La Maddalena archipelago to 10 eur for the islet of San Pietro.

• Timetables and price list at delcomar.it