Cagliari, Sardinia - I hit the brakes hard and we screeched to a halt about 6cm from the nose of a large dog. I was about to congratulate myself on not making a Sardinian dog rug out of him when … bang! A little blue Fiat rear-ended us. As my frustrated, fatalistic co-victim and I edged our cars on to a grass verge for a long exchange of insurance details in the dark, the offending mutt meandered off.
This was a low point during our week-long stay outside Arzachena in rural northern Sardinia, just a Ferrari test-drive away from the chi-chi Costa Smeralda – that sliver of sparkling coastline that’s a designer theme park for ostentatious wealth.
The playboys’ paradise of the so-called Emerald Coast centres on the resorts of Porto Cervo and Porto Rotondo. It was dreamt up in the 1960s by the Aga Khan.
Only a short drive into the stark granite backdrop that jabs harsh fingers into blue skies brings you to San Pantaleo, a thriving village that would have shrivelled away if left to depend on sheep and the cork oaks that flourish here.
Now it’s a tourist stop for gelato, drinks, and craft shops for visitors en route to gawp at how the other two percent live.
Just down the mountain from San Pantaleo, our villa, Lu Lioni, is not in the Porto Cervo league but pretty dapper nonetheless.
On the road from Arzachena to Porto Cervo, we stopped for a tasting and tour at Surrau, a family-run vineyard that produces a dozen wines, including vermentino and the little-known cannonau, a variety of grenache.
Antonello showed us the production line, including the cool cellars where the wine rests in oak barrels.
From the road, we took to the water on a boat trip to Arcipelago de La Maddalena, a spectacular national park comprising seven main islands that were once hilltops in the valley between what is now Sardinia and Corsica.
Until 2008 the main island was home to a Nato naval base and off-limits, so tourism is in its infancy.
Daily cruises depart from Cannigione. We swam and snorkelled in turquoise waters, explored the islands on land, and enjoyed the way the wind has carved granite outcrops into weird shapes.
It’s also possible to hit the shops in the main town, La Maddalena.
If jumping out of boats appeals, there are plenty of watersport outfits dotted along the coast, offering scuba, snorkelling and whale- watching with fin and sperm whales all year round, while bottlenose dolphins and basking sharks can also put in an appearance.
Orso Diving, at Poltu Quatu, is long-established and reasonably priced for day trips.
For windsurfing, kite-surfing and sailing, Porto Pollo and Isolla dei Gabbiani – a bay and almost-island – offer ideal conditions.
Of course, beaches are what draw many to the Costa Smeralda and in the north there is great variety, from long stretches of white sand, backed by dunes, at Berchida in Siniscola to the smaller rugged coves such as Spiaggia del Principe, near Romazzino, which have a more intimate feel, clear water and rocky outcrops that are great for spotting fish with snorkel and mask.
Cliff-walking in the Costa Smeralda is limited by the number of exclusive resorts and private villas on this stretch of coast.
So head down the east coast, to the Golfo di Orosei and the Gennargentu National Park.
And there are other ways to stretch your legs such as exploring the 7 000 Stone Age sites, nuraghi, that pepper the island. The circular huts of piled stone are not always spectacular but all possess a haunting quality.
Another way to get closer to the rugged landscape is on horseback. At Centro Ippico in Cala di Lepre, outside Palau, we took a two-hour morning trek through the thick maquis to the waterside and the lighthouse of Capo d’Orso (Bear Cape), so called because the elements have sculpted a large rock formation into the shape of a bear.
The Independent on Sunday
IF YOU GO
GETTING THERE
For the Costa Smeralda, Olbia is the best airport. A number of different airlines fly there from the main European hubs, including Heathrow, Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam.
STAYING THERE
Sardinian Places (sardinianplaces.co.uk) offers a two-week stay at Lu Lioni.
VISITING THERE
Surrau Vineyard (vignesurrau.it).
Orso Diving at Poltu Quatu (orsodiving.com).
Porto Pollo watersports (portopollo.it)
MORE INFORMATION
sardegna.com