Renowned for its pristine beaches and dramatic granite cliffs, the Italian island of Sardinia has long been known as a jet-setter's paradise. However, far from the mega yachts and glitterati of its glamorous Costa Smeralda seaside resort, much of the Mediterranean's second largest island remains an untouched wilderness waiting to be explored.
Now, a group of hikers and former miners is hoping to lure adventurers to Sardinia's seldom-visited southwest coast by offering free accommodation along the 500-kilometer Santa Barbara Mining Route.
Named after the patron saint of miners, the 30-stage route passes through imposing sand dunes, lush forests, craggy outcrops and around 150 abandoned mines. It also offers travelers plenty of opportunities to meet the local Sardinians and enjoy the island's famous cuisine.
“Before my trip, I knew nothing about the history of this part of Sardinia,” said Giorgio Pedulla, a 26-year-old data analyst from Milan who spent five days hiking the trail in March. “On this hike, you can really get into the culture and the lives of the people who live there.”
Pedulla was taking advantage of the trail's new Leg's Go In Cammino initiative, launched in October 2023, which offers visitors under 35 up to three consecutive nights' free accommodation. When hikers register, they receive vouchers to use at local inns, campsites and guesthouses. After the free stays, they pay the normal rates of 20 euros per night in posadas (small family-style inns) and 28 euros per night in private accommodation.
The details
To receive the three free accommodation vouchers, young walkers have to buy a 5 euro walker's passport and make a small donation via the Cammino website. The vouchers can be used until December 15, 2024, but not during the period from June 16 to September 14.
“We wanted to lower the average age of our visitors, from pensioners to people in their 20s and 30s. It's also very important for us to let people know about the history of this trail,” said Margherita Concu, 30, the association's secretary and a hiker who has covered all 500 km of the trail. “We want people to get to know this community, a place that not even some Sardinians know about.”
In addition to the landscapes, exploring the trail gives hikers the opportunity to fill up on Sardinia's famous cuisine and hyper-local ingredients. Travelers can sample bluefin tuna pasta in the village of Carloforte, the island's famous sweet onions in San Giovanni Suergiu; spiny artichokes in Masainas, chickpeas in Musei and the famous cherries and oranges of Villacidro. Along the way, visitors absorb the region's ancient history, with sites that reflect the island's tangled roots and its vulnerability to outside conquering forces.
Even for Italians who have been to Sardinia before, the trail is a revelation.
“I'd seen the touristy part, with crowded beaches, but I'd never seen this more real part of Sardinia,” said Pedulla, who discovered the free accommodation promotion while browsing Instagram. He invited two friends who live in Amsterdam, Carlo Fuselli and Cecile Van Der Stappen, and they all enjoyed the connections they made with the locals.
“I want to give a big round of applause to the people working on the trail. They welcomed us and started telling us their stories. Some of them had parents or relatives who were miners, so this is their personal story, not just the one in the books,” said Pedulla.
In contrast to life in Milan, Pedulla says that the small Sardinian villages he and his friends visited were full of people ready to welcome them and make them feel part of the community.
“It seemed that everywhere we stopped, everyone had a cousin,” laughs Pedulla. If we asked where to eat, it was: “My cousin has a great restaurant!”. When we wanted to do the laundry, they'd say: 'My cousin has a laundrette!
Among Pedulla's highlights: a stop in the small village of Masua, facing the gigantic Pan di Zucchero sea stacks, where, apart from his bed and breakfast hosts, Pedulla and his friends made up the only population.
There was also an afternoon guided tour of Porto Flavia, a 1920s zinc and lead mining facility built directly into the cliffs overlooking the water, followed by a “super lunch” of sliced ham and cheese, bruschetta and lasagna dishes.
The most demanding day, a seven-hour, 20-kilometer drive from Masua to the town of Buggerru, was Pedulla's favorite.
“This part of the coast is very steep, so you walk on large rocks that [seem to fall] straight into the sea,” he said. “All day long, you get wonderful views.”
The trio ended their adventure with an easy hike from Buggerru, past a mining museum, a limestone cave covered in a millennium of encrusted snail shells and a cold water cave, to the dunes of Portixeddu. There, they swam and relaxed in the Golfo di Leone restaurant, feasting on porceddu (roast suckling pig wrapped in myrtle leaves), accompanied by a strong, ruby-red local Cannonau wine.
“Hiking is very tiring for the body, but very relaxing for the mind. I was expecting that feeling,” said Pedulla. “[But] what surprised me was the cultural part of meeting people.”
While Pedulla and his friends were looking for company, Jiseon Moon, a 33-year-old interpreter of Korean, Italian and English who lives in Bergamo, took the opportunity to be alone.
Moon discovered the trail through her husband, Alessio Taormina, who filmed it for his upcoming documentary, In Sa Terra, about the Sardinians' sense of identity and ties to their land.
Stressed from working three jobs, Moon made a New Year's resolution to hike the Santa Barbara trail and arrived in mid-March.
“I'm more of a mountain person, but the first time I saw the ocean [from the trail], I was really moved. I had one of those moments when you can't tell the difference between the sky and the sea. I was so moved that I started drawing what I was seeing,” said Moon.
An experienced hiker, Moon noted that the trail offered excellent telephone and internet connections, providing a sense of security. “There was nothing else but nature,” he added. “You see the mountains and the sea, and it's so relaxing.”
In the evenings, Moon sometimes ate with other hikers in hostels and restaurants. She especially appreciated the time she had to read and think, and was pleasantly surprised by the campsites in Buggerru, where she was given a lift by the friendly owner of a café in Porto Flavia.
“It was beautiful, an old mining structure that had been abandoned. They've done a lot of work to make it very welcoming,” said Moon, who, like Pedulla, was impressed by the imposing Pan di Zucchero limestone rocks that protrude from the water offshore.
From the scenery to the serenity, Moon says the walk gave her the rest she was looking for.
It was really special,” she says. “The people of Sardinia were so warm and welcoming. I was alone, but I've never really been alone.”
