5 Days in Southern Sardinia: Cagliari, Villasimius & Chia Itinerary

Five days is enough to see a genuinely representative slice of southern Sardinia — but Villasimius and Chia sit on opposite sides of Cagliari, not along one continuous coastline, so the route that actually works looks different from a simple loop. Here’s the itinerary we’d recommend, built around basing yourself in Cagliari for the full trip, plus an alternative for travelers who’d rather split their nights between the coast and the city.

Why Cagliari as Your Base

For a first five-day trip to the region, keeping one base in Cagliari is the most realistic plan. Villasimius is roughly an hour east; Chia is roughly 45 minutes to an hour southwest. There’s no efficient way to drive directly between them without backtracking through or near Cagliari, so treating both as day trips from one central base avoids unnecessary driving and the packing and unpacking that comes with changing hotels.

A rental car is strongly preferable for the beach days in this itinerary. It’s not strictly impossible to attempt this by public transport — both Villasimius and Chia do have bus connections from Cagliari — but coordinating two separate day trips around bus schedules adds real complexity and limits how much of each place you can comfortably see in a day. If you’re set on going car-free, budget more time per destination and check current timetables carefully before building your days around them.

The 5-Day Itinerary

Day 1: Historic Cagliari

Start in Castello, Cagliari’s hilltop historic quarter — narrow streets, Bastione di Saint Remy for the city’s best viewpoint, and the cathedral and surrounding piazzas. This is a walking day more than a driving day, and a good one for adjusting to the city before venturing further out. Our full Cagliari guide covers this in depth, including nearby viewpoints and historical sites worth working in.

View through the Bastione di Saint Remy toward the city of Cagliari

Day 2: Markets, Food, and Poetto

Spend the morning exploring the San Benedetto market vendors, currently operating from the temporary covered market in Piazza Nazzari while the historic market building is renovated. Because that arrangement may change, verify the current location before visiting. Afterward, explore the food scene around the Marina district, then head to Poetto in the afternoon — Cagliari’s own beach, a short bus ride or drive from the center. This pairing gives you both the city’s food culture and a proper beach afternoon without leaving Cagliari itself, easing you into the rhythm of southern Sardinian beach days before the longer drives later in the trip.

Day 3: Villasimius Day Trip

Drive east — typically 1 to 1.5 hours depending on traffic, with summer months running toward the longer end of that range. Villasimius offers several distinct beaches within a short drive of each other, along with the Capo Carbonara protected area for snorkeling. A single day is enough to see one or two beaches properly rather than rushing between all of them; our full Villasimius guide breaks down the individual beaches and helps you choose which to prioritize given the time you have.

Coastal tower above a clear-water cove near Villasimius in southern Sardinia

Day 4: Chia Day Trip

Drive southwest — typically 45 minutes to an hour, again longer in peak summer traffic. Chia’s dune landscape and lagoon make it a genuinely different day from Villasimius, with a quieter, less developed feel. As with Day 3, focus on one or two beaches rather than trying to cover all of Chia’s coastline in a single visit; the full Chia guide covers each beach individually along with the lagoon and Torre di Chia.

Sand dunes and clear water along the coastline at Chia in southern Sardinia

Day 5: Flexible Cagliari Day

Keep this day open. Depending on your departure time, energy levels, and what you didn’t get to on Day 1 or 2, this could mean a slower morning in a Castello café, a return trip to Poetto, or simply packing without rushing. Building in a flexible day like this matters more than it might seem — the previous two days involve real driving, and treating your last day as genuinely open rather than another scheduled outing makes the whole trip feel less rushed.

Alternative: Splitting Your Stay

If you’re more beach-focused than city-focused, consider this variation: nights 1–2 in Cagliari (covering Days 1–2 above), then nights 3–4 based in either Villasimius or Chia — not both. Trying to fit stays in all three places into five days creates more packing and backtracking than the trip is worth; picking one coastal base for your second half lets you actually settle in, see more of that area’s beaches without a return drive each day, and enjoy an evening there rather than driving back to Cagliari every night.

Which one to pick comes down to what you’re after: Villasimius offers a livelier, more resort-town feel with more dining options within walking distance; Chia offers a quieter, more scenic, dune-and-lagoon character with less in the way of a town center to return to. Both guides above cover this in more detail if you’re weighing the two.

For more on each stop along the way, see our full guides to Cagliari, the best beaches near Cagliari, Villasimius, and Chia — or head back to the Cagliari & South destination page for everything else in the region.