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Now let the sea day I'll be doing. Hello, my name is Claudia. I was born and raised in Sardinia and I still call it home. I am the mastermind behind the Strictly Sardinia Travel Blog and now the Streetly Sardinia Podcast where each week I'll bring you the best Sardinia has to offer and share my most useful tips that will help you plan a memorable trip to my wonderful island. First of all, happy 2026. I hope you've all had a wonderful holiday season. In the last episode of my podcast, I talked to you about the Renting a Car in Sardinia. This week I will share with you my tips on driving in Sardinia. Let me stress that you will find a more detailed version of today's episode on my blog, streetlysardinia.com and as always, you can find the link to my blog post in today's episode description, so don't forget to read that for more information. Also, let me remind you that if you need more tips and help to plan your trip to Sardinia than what's on the podcast and on the blog, you can book a one hour consultation with me. The link for that is in the episode description. Now today's topic Driving in Sardinia and the best expert tips by a local. That would be me. Driving in Sardinia is a fantastic experience. I really recommend it. Sardinia is a great destination for a road trip. There are some incredibly scenic roads on the island and in fact, getting around by car is the best way to move around, especially to reach certain places on the coast or on inland. In addition, with a car you can better organize your stops and follow your own timetable without having to worry about missing the scheduled buses, the trains. You know, Let me remind you, public transportation isn't the best in Serena, but this is for another episode. A relaxed driving pace is perfect to enjoy and take in the natural beauty of the island. But before you get behind the wheel, it's good to know a few things so that you can drive around safely and with peace of mind. Now, as I said, I'm a local. I driving around my island. I enjoy driving in general. You know, I always rent a car wherever I go in the world and I'm ready to share all the secrets that will help you make your road trip around Sardinia absolutely memorable. Now, is it safe to drive in Sardinia? If this is your first worry, you should rest assured that driving in Sardinia is usually safe compared to the rest of Italy. Sardinia has a very low population density, which means that the roads are not nearly as congested as you would experience in other parts of the country, for example Rome, Naples or Milan. This is especially true if you visit Sardinia in the off season. That means between October and May, when there are very few tourists, traffic outside of the city is typically minimum. Then there are some celebrations of sort that may cause some traffic jams. For example, roads in Sardinia are very busy on Easter Monday, when literally all locals go for a hike or for a picnic. Otherwise, minimal traffic also means more safety. If you decide to visit Sardinia in the summer, on the other hand, you should be prepared for traffic in the summertime. Sardinians who work in the peninsula or abroad return home for their holidays, and then, as you can imagine, there's much more traffic around the coastal areas. One thing that slows down traffic is the presence of large camp events, which are generally a bit slower than cars. Oftentimes, the narrow and windy roads of Sardina make it impossible to overtake them safely. So this is a thing to consider if you're worried about the safety of driving around the island. In addition, there are many people who prefer to travel by motorbike or bike, so you have to be careful, especially if you're not used to driving in places with lots of motorbike traffic or bike lanes. Now, what are the things you need to know about driving in Sardinia? Which side of the road do we drive? This is a key thing to know before you start driving. Now, if you're coming from North America, it's the same. So we drive on the right side of the road as in the rest of Italy and in continental Europe. If you're coming from the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia or South Africa, you will have to drive on the opposite side of the road from what you're used to. Sorry about that. The legal age for driving in Sardinia is the same as the rest of Italy. You need to be at least 18 years old. What documents do you need? You need a valid driver's license. If you're coming from any of the European Union countries, your regular driver's license will be perfectly fine. But if you're coming from outside the European Union, you will need an international driving permit. You may or may not be asked when picking up your car rental in Sardinia, chances are that you will never be stopped by the police when driving around the island. But if you are, they will ask for it. And if you don't have it, you'll get a fine. And if your car rental agent asks for the international driving permit and you don't have it, they can refuse to give you a car. So remember this, you need to have insurance to drive In Sardinia. All cars circulating in Italy, and that means in Sardinia as well, need to have insurance. Rental car companies usually offer basic insurance. For peace of mind. I always recommend getting full coverage insurance, which is what comes with Discover Cars, which is my recommended company. It's a third party booking site that I use for car rental. The speed limits in Sardinia Speed limits in Sardinia change all the time. You need to keep an eye on the road for signs that point out what the limit is and for speed cameras. The speed limit in cities is usually 50 kilometers per hour. But there are some areas within the city where the limit is 30 kilometers per hour. That would be the the case for the entire city of Olbia. Outside urban areas, the speed limit varies and depends on the road. It can be just 50 kilometers per hour. On narrow country roads, it can go up to 70 or even 90. On provincial roads marked as Strada Provinciale or SP, or state roads marked at Strada Statare or SS. In Italian, the limit increases to 110 kilometers per hour on the freeway. Now there are no highways in Sardinia. Highways which are called autostrade in Italian, or another word would be toll roads. Locals can often be seen driving well above the speed limit. That wouldn't be me, though. I always respect the speed limit. First of all, it's dangerous. There are always awful intersections at times even on the freeway. And there's a good reason that the speed limits are kept low. Secondly, there often are speed cameras and police checkpoints. And while the locals know where they are, you won't. The last thing you you want is to go back home with lots of souvenirs and a fine for going above the speed limit. Wear your seatbelts. Yes, wearing your seatbelts by Italian law is a must. Some locals still pretend not to know. It is mandatory to wear the seat belts in the back seat of the car. But if the police stops you and all passengers are not wearing the seat belt, even in the back seat, they will be fined. Now, what are the road conditions in Sardinia? The conditions of the roads in Sardinia can vary a lot by location, but in general, road maintenance is not the best. Some roads may have potholes or depressions, often unmarked. So it's better to drive slowly in order to avoid damage to the wheels and the suspensions of the vehicle. Watch out for curves too. Many small roads in Sardinia have sharp curves that you need to take slowly, keeping an eye for cars coming in the opposite direction. In rural areas of the island, there are plenty of unpaved roads. You can drive on those Roads with most cars and you won't need an SUV or a crossover car, but a car will, with a very low engine. Won't do well on those. Get used to the windy roads and hilly roads when driving in Sardinia. The island is actually quite mountainous. The roads reflect this. There are a lot of steep uphill or downhill roads, plenty of windy roads. A friend of mine, when he visited in Sardinia years ago, swore to me that as we were driving around the island that we were never going to find a straight road. Yeah, that's actually quite the case here. And as I said before, there are no toll roads in Sardinia, which means that you don't have to pay any toll, which makes it much cheaper than driving around the island compared to the rest of Italy. What we like in highways, we make up for in roundabouts. There are plenty of roundabouts in Sardinia. People coming from the rest of Europe are usually quite used to it. But if you're coming from North America or Australia, not know how to use it in roundabouts in Italy, you always have to give way to anyone who's coming from your left. The idea is that you don't stop entirely unless there is a sign that says so. Just slow down as you keep an eye on the road to make sure that nobody is coming from your left. You have to keep your headlights on outside of cities, another legal requirement of Italy. And no matter the time of day, as soon as you get out of a city, you have to, you have to turn on your headlights. Don't ask me the reason for this, I really do not know it. Don't fully trust road signs, especially in rural areas. Many signs in Sardinia are not updated, so you may find incorrect directions times no directions at all. Sometimes the sign is literally at the intersection you need to take, which is difficult to see. Which means that if you are approaching an intersection and you know that you may have to turn, you really need to slow down because. Because it's easy to miss. You have to follow your gps, which means when renting a car in Sardinia, pick one that has a GPS system or use your GPS on your phone. Super, super important. Don't get frustrated. If people tailgate you allow them to overtake. Most drivers in Sardinia are fairly respectful and not aggressive at all. The pace here is quite relaxed, so unless somebody is super, super aggressive, just don't worry about it. You will notice that some people do not respect the safe distance. This is certainly true in urban areas, but also sometimes outside of cities. Some roads are very narrow, but that won't stop some Drivers from tailgating. You try not to get anxious. If they do, and at the first opportunity you have, allow them to overtake and in general, drive defensively. One thing that you have to keep in mind is that you may encounter herds of sheep in rural Sardinia. This is very common if you go to places like the Jara Plateau, which you may visit. If you go to Sunuraji, which is one of the most beautiful archaeological sites on the island. Even in Lakuni, and frankly sometimes even close to Kalari, there are herds of sheep. I have been known to call the Puritans Municipale, the local police. When there have been flock of sheeps just in the city. I'm not kidding. Only park where it is permitted. There are different parking spots in Sardinia and Italy. They are distinguished by different color stripes. Blue stripes are paid parking spots where you can park paying an hourly rate and at times a daily rate. The cost varies, so it's. It's not important that I report it now. Usually you'll find a machine where you can pay. You'll need coins, but you normally can pay also by by card. What stripes means free parking spots and yellow lines are used for parking spots. Specific. Certain specific categories such as disabled people, police service cars, vehicles with special permits. Keep in mind that sometimes the white lines are also used for carico, scarico, load, unload. So beware of any sign that has a specific symbol for somebody loading a car and a specific timing because you cannot park there. Keep in mind that you can get fined by parking on the blue stripe zones without paying or the yellow parking zones without a special permit. If you park your car on a narrow street, I recommend to fold the rear view mirrors so to avoid avoid any damage to your car by other cars that are passing. Finally, honestly, whenever you're visiting a city, find the best parking spot. Find a dedicated car park in the area close to the city center because parking is usually quite limited. I also want to mention something about the Zeta Limitato ztl. It's usually limited to the historic city center, well marked and there are traffic cameras placed near the main access point. Usually you can find a list of the limited traffic areas in the website of the Comune, the municipality of the city. If you go to my to my blog and read my post on driving in Sardinia, you will see that I that I sent. I share links to the information that two sites that offer information on ZTL IRIS in Sardinia. You just need to put the input to input the name of the town or city that you wish to visit and in the search bar and it will pull out the information you need. I do not recommend parking in ZTL traffic areas because parking lot is usually very limited. The roads are so narrow and driving there is just not pleasant. These are areas that are best explored on foot. A few more things that I want to remind you Alcohol limit when driving in Sardinia Generally speaking, it's best not to drink when you're driving. In any case, the blood alcohol limit is 0.05% which depending on your body weight and what you eat, it's very easy to go over. Don't talk on the phone unless you have a hands a hands off device in your car. Always stay off your phone. You'll be fined if you're found on the phone while driving. Also, it's not safe. What should you do if you ever have an accident in Sardinia? The number to call for emergencies is 112. It's the number to call for any kind of emergency in Sardinia for police, firefighters and health related emergency. It's free to call from any phone on the island. Now this brings me to the end of today's episode. Before I share the topic of the next episode, let me remind you once again that if you ever need more help planning your trip to Sardinia, you can book a one hour travel consultation with me. The link for that is in the episode description, so make sure to read that. Of course there's my blog, Streetly Sardinia that has even more tips to plan your trip. Next week I will be sharing all my tips to get around the island by public transport. Finally, if you like my podcast, share with your friends who are coming to Sardinia. Give it a five star rating and a good review. And until next week, goodbye Sam.