Photo spot in Sardinia & the Costa Smeralda
Cala Goloritzé
A white pebble cove under a 140-metre limestone spire, at the foot of the Golfo di Orosei — boat in, or an hour of steep path down.
About Cala Goloritzé
Get directionsGoloritzé is the most graphic cove in Sardinia: an aguglia — a needle of rock — standing clear of the cliff, an arch at the water's edge, and pebbles so pale the sea above them turns almost fluorescent. From the water it reads as one composition; from the beach you shoot up the spire and use the arch as a frame.
Getting there is the decision. A boat from Santa Maria Navarrese or Cala Gonone takes an hour or so and can only anchor offshore — the last stretch is by tender or by swimming. On foot it is about an hour down from the Su Porteddu trailhead on the Golgo plateau, and rather longer back up, on rock, in heat.
The cove is a protected site with a daily visitor cap and a small entry fee, and the numbers are enforced in high season. Book or check the day before, and treat this as a session you plan around rather than add to another one.
Best time to shoot
Morning, before the boats fill the anchorage; late afternoon light on the spire
Tips
Daily numbers are capped and there is an entry fee — check and book ahead. Boats anchor offshore, so anything you bring gets wet; the walk down is an hour and the walk back up is longer.
Other spots in Sardinia & the Costa Smeralda
Spiaggia del Principe
The Costa Smeralda in one frame: rounded pink granite, white sand and water that reads jade close in and deep blue further out.
Porto Cervo — the marina and the Piazzetta
Whitewashed arcades, bougainvillea and a harbour of large yachts — the built half of the Costa Smeralda, and the one that works in hard light.
La Maddalena archipelago by boat
Granite islands with sand in every gap: Cala Coticcio, Spargi and Budelli — a day on the water and the only way to shoot the coves without a crowd.
Alghero — the sea walls at sunset
A Catalan old town on a bastion above the water, with honey-coloured stone that takes the last light straight off the sea.
Ready to book?
Our concierge team will hand-pick 2-3 photographers who know Cala Goloritzé — free of charge.