Carloforte in brief – tourist information and more

Carloforte with its 6.000 inhabitants is the only village of the San Pietro island, located in the southwestern tip of Sardinia. Of vulcanic origins San Pietro with a surface of 51 square chilometres is 10 km long and about 8 km wide. The island in general is mountainous, especially on the western coast. The eastern part is more soft and offers some bays and sandy beaches.

Best things to do in Carloforte and San Pietro

Carloforte is a lively and pittoresque village located sea-side with a nice esplanade, narrow roads and a central main place. There are a lot of shops which offer local potteries and other handicrafts, groceries, bars and restaurants. The cuisine of Carloforte is very tasty and a type of Mediterranean cross-over: the main ingredients are Genoese Pesto sauce, Trofie (a twisted pasta of Ligurian origin), Couscous and obviously Tuna fish.

In the harbor in Carloforte you can also charter motor boats and sailing boats or book a boat trip to admire the fascinating coast from the sea.

The island of San Pietro offers a lot of nature. We therefore recommend an island tour by car or bicycle, which leads from fascinating steep cliffs to gentle bathing bays through a hilly landscape, where wine is also occasionally grown. The west coast is rather rocky and consists of volcanic rock, on the east coast, however, the coast with sandy beaches and small bays is somewhat gentler.

Especially in off-season in spring and autumn, Carloforte and the San Pietro island are the best place for activity holidays, cycling tourism and hiking. We recommend in general the whole south-west of Sardinia, which is less developed for tourism than the rest of the island, for slow down vacation, to explore as best the history and the Sardinian traditions and the beauties of a nearly unspoilt landscape with slow mobility, or better on foot, by bike or on horse.

The best beaches of Carloforte and San Pietro

The main beaches of San Pietro are: in the south the Spiaggia La Bobba, sheltered from the wind and situated near to the the two characteristic sea stacks called Le Colonne (unfortunately the smaller one collapsed during a storm in 2013) , in the south-west the La Calletta beach (ideal for families with smaller children and diving if there is no wind, otherwise a hot spot for surfers) and in the north-west the bay Cala Fico, surrounded by steer cliffs and a natural oasis for the Eleonora falcon.

The beaches La Bobba and La Calletta offer a beach service for renting beach umbrellas and sun beds.

Il Girotonno in Carloforte, an event not to be missed

In the 18th century San Pietro were colonized by Ligurian fishermen which were expelled from Tabarka in Tunisia and about 250 km in beeline south of Sardinia. The population achieved a certain prosperity through the caught of red Tuna fish: every year in May big shoals pass by and are caught with an traditional method called the Mattanza.

The cultural and gastronomic event Girotonno which takes place at the end of May is a high-light not to be missed, as the restaurants in Carloforte and chefs from all over the world prepare tastefully dishes with tuna fish. In addition there is live music, and traditional handicraft products, food and much more are sold from stalls spread out over the promenade and the main place in Carloforte.

How to get to Carloforte and San Pietro

The island is connected by regular and daily ferry boat service from Portovesme on the mainland of Sardinia and Calasetta in the north of the island Sant’Antioco. The crossing takes about 30/40 minutes.