Once on the top of Monte Urpinu Park from viale Europa observation platform (100 meters above the sea), you enjoy unequalled panoramic view: Castello district with its fortified walls, Cagliari ponds, Golfo degli Angeli and the surrounding hinterland, as far as Sette Fratelli mountains.
Our tour continues to the Poetto beach: it is truly vast and closed off at one end by the Sella del Diavolo (Devil’s Saddle Headland). A legend has it that the particular shape of this limestone headland comes from an epic fight between angels and demons that took place in the skies over the Gulf of Cagliari. During the fight, Lucifer was unsaddled by his horse and lost his saddle, which fell on the land, giving it its particular shape.
It is the longest beach in Sardinia and the main coastal resort for the cagliaritani. It stretches for around 9 km. The sea can be blissfully crystal-clear when the much awaited north-westerly mistral wind is blowing.
Close to Poetto is Molentargius Saline Nature Park that includes the ancient salt mines (saline), whose use is certified by documents dating back to the Roman period, and the Molentargius pond itself, with its protected wildlife. Home to flamingos and other species of residential and migratory birds. With their pink plumage, long legs and necks, and strongly hooked bills, flamingos cannot be mistaken for any other type of bird.
At the end you discover the basilica, the sanctuary and the convent of Our Lady of Bonaria that are built on the hill south-east of the city centre.