Photo spot in Sardinia & the Costa Smeralda
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.
About La Maddalena archipelago by boat
Get directionsThe archipelago is a national park of granite islands twenty minutes off Palau, and the good frames are all from the water or from a landing that only a boat reaches. Cala Coticcio on Caprera and the anchorages around Spargi give white sand, clear shallows and rock that turns from grey to gold in the last hours of the day.
A skippered boat for half a day is the practical unit: it lets the photographer work from the tender or from the rocks while the light moves, instead of racing a ferry timetable. Book it well ahead in July and August, and agree the route with your photographer rather than the crew — the best cove for photographs is not always the best one for swimming.
Park rules matter here. Landing is restricted on some islands and forbidden on others, Cala Coticcio is guided and capped, and Spiaggia Rosa on Budelli can only be seen from the water. Check the current rules before promising anyone a specific beach.
Best time to shoot
The last three hours of daylight, when the granite warms and the day boats head back
Tips
Landing rules differ island by island and change — check before you promise a beach. Half a day with a skipper beats a scheduled ferry for a shoot.
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.
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.
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 La Maddalena archipelago by boat — free of charge.