The La Maddalena Archipelago is the cluster of about 60 granite islands and islets off the northeast tip of Sardinia, the whole of it protected as a national park. This is the water people have in mind when they say Sardinia looks Caribbean: white sand over pale granite, shallow enough to read the bottom from the flybridge.
It sits an easy hour or two north of Porto Cervo, which is why a Sardinia yacht charter so often pairs the two. The archipelago is where the swimming and the quiet anchorages are, and it is the half of the week most guests remember.
What to see and do in the archipelago
Budelli is the famous one, thanks to the Spiaggia Rosa, the pink beach colored by crushed coral and shell. The beach itself has been closed to landing for years to let it recover, so this is a look-from-the-water stop rather than a swim ashore, and guests should know that before the day starts.
Spargi has Cala Corsara on its south side, which is the anchorage most captains rate highest in the whole park for a lunch stop: shallow, sandy, sheltered from the north. Santa Maria and the channel between it and Razzoli give you more of the same with fewer boats.
Caprera is the second-largest island and the greenest, joined to La Maddalena town by a causeway. Garibaldi spent his last years here and his house is now a museum, which makes a good half-day off the boat when guests want something other than another beach. Cala Coticcio on its east coast is worth the detour.
Anchorages, permits and park rules
The whole archipelago is a national park and it is actively managed. Access is charged per yacht per day on a scale that rises steeply with length, some zones are buoy-only, and the most protected areas are closed to anchoring altogether. The rules also change between seasons.
This is genuinely the part of a Sardinian charter where the crew earns its money. A good captain will have the current zoning, will have bought the permits in advance, and will plan the day around which bays are legal and sheltered that week. It is not something to work out on the morning.
Holding is generally excellent in the sand patches and poor on the weed, so anchoring here rewards a slow approach and clear water. The mistral is the wind that matters. When it blows the south-facing bays on Spargi and Santa Maria stay comfortable while the northern sides become unusable.
Fitting La Maddalena into an itinerary
The archipelago is normally three or four nights of a seven-night Sardinian week, sandwiched between the Costa Smeralda at the start and either a return south or a crossing to Corsica at the end. Distances inside the park are tiny, often 20 to 40 minutes between anchorages, which is exactly the low-transit rhythm most guests want.
From the northern islands, Bonifacio in southern Corsica is about 15 miles across the strait. It is a spectacular arrival through the limestone cliffs, but the Strait of Bonifacio is the windiest stretch of water in the western Mediterranean and the crossing is always weather dependent. We plan it as an option, never as a fixed promise. Our 8-day Sardinia and Corsica itinerary shows the full route.
