A crescent of sand two kilometres long, whose thin grains with their particular dark amber colour, sometimes reddish, sometimes golden, are mixed with shells, set between the protected marine area of Capo Caccia and the head of the Argentiera. The beautiful and deep bay of Porto Ferro is the northern limit of the Riviera del Corallo, a coastal enclave of Sassari, twenty kilometres from Alghero. Inside it "protects" one of the widest beaches of the impervious coast of Nurra, selected as one of the most beautiful in Sardinia by the Touring Club Italy, and the most 'sustainable' by the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education), awarded the Blue Flag for 2016-18.
The inlet, where some rocks appear here and there, is bathed by clear waters with emerald green and iridescent blue hues, and is framed at each end by headlands of reddish trachyte punctuated by Mediterranean scrub, backed by a beautiful pine forest. The trees, along with sand dunes covered with sea lilies, separate the beach from the beautiful scenery of Lake Baratz, the only natural lake on the island. Three towers, built in the seventeenth century by Spanish against the Saracen threat, watch over the town from above: Bantine Sale (or Torre Mozza) to the south, Negra and Bianca (or Airadu) to the north. Nearby, the medieval village of Barace stood, whose inhabitants traded salt.
The beach, never crowded, has a range of parking and dining options. The seabed slopes gently from the shore, and frequent wind and high waves make it a destination for lovers of surfing and windsurfing. The northern part, near the White Tower, is frequented by nudists, inserted by Skyscanner, an English language holiday and travel web portal, in fifth place among the most beautiful nudist beaches in Europe.
North of Porto Ferro, also in the territory of Sassari, you will find the enchanting Porto Palmas, also a Blue Flag beach, and Cala dell'Argentiera, surrounded by the industrial archeology scenario of a mine that was very active for centuries up until 1962, and exploited for its rich reserves of lead, silver and zinc. The ghost mining village creates an evocative atmosphere, with its cove of sand mixed with gravel, where the sparkles of the sea contrast with the brown of the surrounding rocks. To the south of Porto Ferro, inside the marine area of Capo Caccia, lies the tranquillity of Mugoni, an expanse of two kilometres of light and soft sand that plunges into the emerald green sea, completely sheltered inside the bay of Porto Conte. Behind it, a pine and eucalyptus forest create a tropical paradise setting. This is one of the endless attractions of the coast of Alghero, which stretches for about 90 kilometres. Some of the unmissable beaches include: Le Bombarde, the most famous; the beach and the delightful coves of the Lazzaretto, the three kilometres of soft sand of the 'town' Lido and the sandy dunes covered with centuries-old junipers of Maria Pia. And then there is Punta Negra, Cala Dragunara, from where boat trips leave to visit the Grotta di Nettuno, the beaches of Capo Caccia and the coves along the road to Bosa: Cala Bona and Burantì.
