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Information and tips for Costa Rei in the south of Sardinia
The Costa Rei in the south-east has become in the last decades a popular tourist destination for holidays in Sardinia. The seaside resort is famous for its exceptionally clear sea water and its long, golden sandy beaches with reefs, islets and bays. Water sport lovers choose it for snorkeling and diving or for doing wind- or kite-surf.
We also recommend Costa Rei in off-season, especially for activity holidays in Sardinia, like trekking in the nearby Sette Fratelli mountains and cycling along the coast.
Costa Rei has a shopping centre with bars, restaurants, pizzerias and all kinds of shops and a large selection of vacation rentals, residences and hotels.
Geography & History
Costa Rei is located in the south of Sardinia, about 50 km in the north east of Cagliari and 20 km away from Villasimius and belongs to the municipality of Muravera in the Sarrabus.
Costa Rei can be reached from Cagliari via a winding but impressive coastal road, which snakes past numerous bays and sandy beaches and offers beautiful views. If you want to arrive faster, you can take the highway from Cagliari towards Castiadas – Muravera, which leads almost to Muravera and significantly reduces the travel time to the Costa Rei.
The coastline with the hill Monte Nai and its rich Mediterranean vegetation is bordered in the south by the rocky bays of Sant Elmo and the sandy beach of Cala Sinzias, and in the north by Capo Ferrato, a nature reserve characterized by dark volcanic rocks where no construction is allowed. From Capo Ferrato it’s possible to see the island of Serpentara and the smaller Cavoli island.
The best beaches of Costa Rei
Costa Rei offers beautiful sandy beaches from Capo Ferrato in the north to Sant Elmo and Cala Sinzias in the south. Among them we mentioned Punta Molentis and Cala Proceddus, Cala Pira, protected by a Spanish tower, Cala Sinzias, Sant’Elmo and Santa Giulia with the rock formation Scoglio di Peppino.
Of course during summer there are available some beach services to rent sun shades and deck chairs and bars offering drinks and snacks throughout the day. You can do also a lot of water sport activities like wind surfing, kite surfing, diving, water skiing and sailing.
Places of interest: what to do in Costa Rei
But Costa Rei is not only sea, sand and sun: some important archeological sites are worth the visit, like the megalithic complex of Piscina Rei with its more than 20 menhirs from the Neolithic period, and the Nuraghe Scalas. Other nuragic sites of interest are those of Figu Niedda and Sa Domu e’ s’Orcu. At Castiadas there are still well-preserved giants’ tombs to discover, which show that the area was already inhabited in ancient times.
Nature lovers and trekking or mountain-bike fans should visit the Parco dei Sette Fratelli in the territory of Castiadas, a beautiful mountain-park that gives hospitality to many protected species, among them the Sardinian deer.
About 15 km from the coast is the former prison of Castiadas, which was built in 1875 and existed until 1953. The task of the inmates was to drain and bring to life the surrounding alluvial land, which had been uninhabited for more than 350 years. Some of the small and extremely spartan prison cells can still be seen in the partially renovated buildings. Part of the complex houses the exhibition rooms of the Ethnographic Museum of Agriculture of the Sarrabus-Gerrei region: the exhibits range from paintings of traditional costumes, miniatures of old beach houses and animations to the mines of Sardinia, to rooms furnished in the old style of living.
Odds & sods for Costa Rei
The Costa Rei was “discovered” in 1962, when the Belgian Guido Van Alphen visited the area and recognized the (tourist) potential of this stretch of coastline. He bought (like Aga Khandid with the Costa Smeralda in the northeast of Sardinia) from the local shepherds about 80 acres to build the first holiday homes near the beach.
As mentioned above, Costa Rei belongs to the municipality of Muravera. The entire coastline with its fertile plains is known for its agriculture, which specializes in citrus fruits. The savory and fragrant oranges, tangerines and lemons are well known and appreciated for their juicy flesh and sweetness. No wonder then, that in April in Muravera every year a three-day festival of lemon fruits, the Sagra degli agrumi, is celebrated!
In the surroundings of Costa Rei and in particular in the area of the municipality of Castiadas you can visit numerous farms where you can buy genuine local products, like honey, cheese, olive oil, fruits and vegetables and much more.
