Holiday apartment in Santa Maria Navarrese: Coast, Culture and Nature
Accommodation in Santa Maria Navarrese
Coast, Harbour and Views across the Gulf
A pine-shaded terrace in Santa Maria Navarrese offers views across the gulf and over the marina. This already reveals a special combination of sea, harbour and shady retreats. Spiaggia Centrale is approximately 400 metres long. Behind the beach, a shady pine grove provides pleasant coolness during the hot hours of the day. The beach can be reached on foot in a short time from the town centre and the marina.
File:Olivastri di Santa Maria Navarrese, Baunei, Sardinia 2.jpg
Photo: Thiotrix via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Beaches with Clear Spatial Connections
Santa Maria Navarrese’s Spiaggia Centrale stretches from the rocks below the Torre Spagnola to the rocks known as Birissi. Another coastal landscape is formed by Spiaggia di San Giovanni, which lies between the Torre Spagnola and the marina. The bay located north of the Torre Spagnola is also known among the locals of Baunei as Portu Santu Giuanni. For centuries, it was used by boats travelling along the coast of Ogliastra.
Boat Trips along the Coast
From the jetties of the Santa Maria Navarrese marina, boats and inflatable boats set out on trips along the coast from April to October. Nearby Cala Biriala can also be reached on boat trips or by rented inflatable boats departing from Arbatax and Santa Maria Navarrese. In the nearby Gulf of Arbatax, the Isolotto d’Ogliastra lies directly opposite Santa Maria Navarrese. Those who want to spend time on the water therefore have different opportunities to experience the coastal area from various perspectives.
Church, Festival and Local Traditions
The Torre Spagnola was built around 1591 as part of the coastal defence against pirate raids. The church of Santa Maria Navarrese is plausibly considered to have been founded in the 11th century and is associated with Basque sailors who survived a shipwreck. The Assunta festival is still celebrated every year in Santa Maria Navarrese on 15 August and is connected with local tradition and folklore. The old Forno della Festa near Santa Maria church was used for the Assunta celebrations. During ethno-gastronomic events, the Forno della Festa is fired up, particularly for baking the local potato bread Turredda.
Nature Experiences and Notable Details
In a small area close to the sea, Santa Maria Navarrese has a concentration of centuries-old wild olive trees. A large wild olive tree stands beside the church and is probably more than a thousand years old. It is approximately 10 metres high; its trunk circumference, measured at a height of 1.30 metres, is 8.40 metres. A simple and scenically appealing nature walk leads from Santa Maria Navarrese to Pedra Longa and begins in Santa Maria Navarrese.
Choose a Holiday Apartment to Suit Your Preferred Daily Rhythm
When choosing a holiday apartment in Santa Maria Navarrese, you can consider which experiences should shape your holiday. The short walking distance from the town centre and the marina to Spiaggia Centrale supports planning a day combining the beach and harbour. On other days, you can choose from seasonal boat trips, the hike to Pedra Longa, historic sites and local traditions. If you are travelling with children of different ages, this allows you to balance active outings, observing nature, time for swimming and cultural impressions without limiting the holiday to just one way of experiencing it.
Further Places for Orientation
For further orientation, you can also visit Baunei, Torre di Bari, Ilbono, Arbatax, Perdasdefogu, Arzana, Tortoli and Lanusei.
To the overarching travel overview: Ogliastra.
