Sardinia and Corsica archeology tour

Planet

CARBON REDUCTION

There are no internal flights. You arrive in Cagliari, cross from Sardinia to Corsica by ferry from Santa Teresa Gallura to Bonifacio, travel overland, and leave from Bastia.

The group shares one minibus on each island. Cagliari, Alghero, Bonifacio, Sartène, Ajaccio, Corte and Bastia are explored on guided walking tours; the archaeological sites are visited on foot, and the Alta Rocca sites are reached on a 2-mile circular walk. Day 7 is a walking tour and free time, with no driving.
Vegetarian and vegan meals are available every day.

Our Cagliari hotel states that it has Class A air conditioning, LED lighting, room key cards that control the power, energy class A TVs and minibars, and an electric vehicle charging point.

ENVIRONMENT AND WILDLIFE

Our Cagliari hotel states that it has flow reducers on taps and showers, uses biodegradable or recyclable toiletries, has cut single-use plastic and uses digital systems in place of paper. It takes part in A Pesca di Rifiuti, a local seabed clean-up scheme, and its restaurant uses organic and zero-kilometre produce where it can.

Our Bonifacio hotel holds the EU Ecolabel for tourist accommodation and states that it is part of Nustrale, a regional environmental project in Corsica.
Before departure, we send guests a note asking them to stay on marked paths at sites, leave stones and pottery fragments where they find them, bring a reusable water bottle and ask the guide where to refill it, take shorter showers and reuse towels in hotels, and buy local food, wine and crafts.

Entrance fees to all archaeological sites, museums and monuments on the itinerary are included.

People

LOCAL ECONOMY

In Sardinia, the guides, drivers, and pasta-class host are all from the island. Lunches are at family-run agriturismi and restaurants, and the Gallura wine tasting is at a family-run estate. Our Olbia hotel belongs to a Sardinian hotel group.

In Corsica, the tour leader, archaeologist and drivers are all from the island. Three of our four hotels are locally owned and run, in Sartène, Ajaccio and Bastia. The Bastia hotel was developed by a Corsican project leader and backed by Corsican regional investment funds. The Bonifacio hotel belongs to the Accor group. The tour ends with a performance of traditional Corsican polyphonic singing.

The route includes inland towns such as Pimentel, Barumini and Lévie, away from the coastal resorts. Departures are in spring and autumn, outside the July and August peak.

EMPLOYMENT, INCLUSIVITY AND DIVERSITY

All local partners are paid above the minimum wage or the rates set by the national collective agreement.

Laura Sedda holds an MA in Classics and Archaeology and a postgraduate specialisation in archaeology, both from the University of Cagliari. She has excavated at the Neolithic village of Su Coddu and at the nuraghi of Su Mulinu, Sa Reggia and Asusa, still carries out archaeological surveys for the government and has been an accredited guide since 2010.

Dr Kewin Peche-Quilichini was born in Ajaccio. He holds a PhD in Prehistoric Archaeology from Aix-Marseille University and has directed excavations at Cuciurpula, Cucuruzzu, Nuciarela, Monti Barbatu and Puzzonu. He has been director of the Musée de l’Alta Rocca since 2021.

We are an LGBTQ+ friendly tour company.

The tour is physically active. You need to carry or roll your luggage over uneven paving and stairs, and to stand and walk for up to three hours at a time. Contact us before booking if you have any mobility needs.