The Arcipelago di La Maddalena is 7 major islands (+ dozens of tiny ones) off the northeast tip of Sardinia. Pink granite rocks sculpted by millennia of wind into SHAPES — arches, mushrooms, animal forms, abstract sculptures. Water so clear that boats appear to hover. Spiaggia Rosa (Pink Beach) on Budelli — sand colored pink by crushed coral and shells (now protected — you can't walk on it, but you can see it from a boat). Caprera — where Giuseppe Garibaldi, the HERO OF TWO WORLDS who unified Italy, retired in 1856 and FARMED for the rest of his life. His house is a museum. His tomb is under a granite boulder he chose himself. The man who conquered kingdoms died planting tomatoes.
La Maddalena (main island, 11,000 residents): The town — pastel houses, a harbor, military history (NATO naval base until 2008). Walk the Lungomare. Caprera (connected by bridge): Wild, mostly parkland. Compendio Garibaldino: Garibaldi's farm-house (1856-1882). His bedroom, his tools, his calendar stopped at the day he died (June 2, 1882). His tomb: a rough granite boulder in the garden. The hero of Italian unification, who could have been king, chose THIS. €6. Spargi: Uninhabited — Cala Corsara (one of the most beautiful beaches in the Mediterranean, boat access only). Budelli: Spiaggia Rosa (Pink Beach) — protected since 1994, viewable from boat/boardwalk. The pink color: fragments of Miniacina miniacea (a microscopic organism) mixed with coral and shell. Santo Stefano: Former military — now nature walks.
Ferry from Palau (Sardinia mainland): 15 min, €10-15/person, every 15-30 min. Car ferry available but better to leave the car in Palau (limited parking on La Maddalena). Boat tours: Full-day archipelago tours from La Maddalena or Palau — €35-60/person, visit 4-5 islands, swimming stops, lunch included in some. THE best way to see the archipelago. From Costa Smeralda: Palau is 30 min from Porto Cervo. Stay 2+ nights on La Maddalena — the evening on the harbor, the granite coast at sunset, the silence of Caprera after the day-trippers leave. Sardinia →