Felix Hotels_Residence Hotel Costa Serena_Porto Pollo

Holidays in Costa Serena - Palau in 2025

Felix Hotels – Costa Serena is a 4-star seaside residence hotel in Costa Serena in the municipality of Palau. Felix Hotels – Costa Serena is a 4-star residence hotel by the sea in Costa Serena, in the Municipality of Palau. Located by the sea, surrounded by Mediterranean vegetation, and a short distance from the beautiful Costa Serena beach, the Residence Hotel enjoys a panoramic position. It is just a few kilometers away from Palau, where ferries depart for the island of La Maddalena, and other renowned locations such as Porto Raphael and Porto Pollo, a paradise for windsurfing and kitesurfing enthusiasts.

Palau, the seaside village

The village of Palau was founded at the end of the 19th century in a cove on the northeastern coast of Sardinia. Overlooking the La Maddalena Archipelago and near the renowned Costa Smeralda, it offers unique panoramas.

Not far from the village, on a granite promontory shaped by the wind that characterizes this area, stands the natural sculpture that symbolizes Palau: the Roccia dell’Orso (Bear Rock). The fascinating and evocative landscape of Capo d’Orso is characterized by tafone tombs and remains from the Neolithic era. From the heights of the rock, one can admire the crystal-clear waters, beneath which lie shipwrecks from various eras, and the islands of La Maddalena and Caprera. Other interesting sites to visit include the Nuraghe Luchìa, located on a hill from which you can glimpse the Strait of Bonifacio, and the Giants’ Tombs of Li Mizzani and Sajacciu.

What to see around Costa Serena and Palau and the beaches of the northeastern Sardinian coast

Punta Sardegna
A white lighthouse on a 13-meter-high square tower overlooking the Strait of Bonifacio stands like a sentinel at the northernmost promontory of Sardinia, marking the northernmost point of the Gallura coast and the entire Island. It’s the Punta Sardegna lighthouse, a tourist destination just a kilometer from Palau. Built in 1913 by the Civil Engineering Corps, since 1995, it has housed the Coastal and Underwater Natural Environment Observatory (Oceans). 

Porto Rafael
The small and charming tourist settlement of Porto Rafael was founded in 1960 by Spanish nobleman Rafael Neville de Berlanga del Duero. Here, the green Mediterranean vegetation frames the white houses of the small village and the crystal-clear sea of the La Maddalena Archipelago, which it overlooks. Porto Rafael is built on two levels that converge in the renowned square, called ‘the swimming pool of Porto Rafael,’ from where you can admire the islands of the La Maddalena Archipelago. Located on the northeastern coast of the Island, just a few kilometers from Palau and Porto Cervo, the heart of the Costa Smeralda, it is the ideal destination for lovers of relaxation and nightlife, but also suitable for families.

Cala di Trana Beach
Cala di Trana Beach can only be reached by sea or via trekking routes that immerse visitors in the captivating natural landscape. Located in Punta Sardegna (Palau), it is one of the most beautiful beaches in all of Sardinia, a perfect destination for adventure and tranquility lovers. The beach is accessible through a medium-low difficulty trekking path, not recommended for small children, families with strollers, or pets.

Sciumara Beach
Located west of Palau, Sciumara Beach is characterized by medium-coarse sand and a shallow sandy seabed. It appears as a crescent rich in colors, where the green of the Mediterranean vegetation blends with the cream-colored sand and the various shades of blue of the water. Adding to the beauty of this place is the distant view of the island of La Maddalena.

Porto Faro
In the heart of Palau and not far from the homonymous village is the small cove of Porto Faro. This little beach is named after the white lighthouse that dominates the small inlet in the Punta Palau area. Here, the Mediterranean vegetation reaches almost to the golden sandy beach, with a shallow sandy seabed often interrupted by rocks, facing the entire La Maddalena Archipelago National Park. Porto Faro is a beach that remains uncrowded even during the summer, making it ideal for those seeking peace and relaxation.

Porto Pollo and L’Isuledda (Isola dei Gabbiani)
In the center of the island’s northern coast, halfway between Palau and Santa Teresa Gallura, lies one of the most popular destinations for sailing, windsurfing, and kitesurfing enthusiasts: Porto Pollo Beach. Surrounded by Mediterranean vegetation, characterized by white sand and multiple shades of blue and turquoise sea, Porto Pollo Beach connects the mainland to the Isola dei Gabbiani (or Isuledda), a peninsula surrounded by crystal-clear water and dominated by lush greenery. Thanks to the constant wind that blows through this area, the two ‘isthmus beaches’ – Porto Pollo and Arenaria Beach – are a natural playground for water sports enthusiasts.

Culture, natural monuments, and archaeology: what to discover

Roccia dell’Orso
The wind that dominates Sardinia often creates real natural works of art. This is the case of one of the most famous attractions in northern Sardinia: the Roccia dell’Orso (Bear Rock). A massive natural sculpture that remarkably resembles the silhouette of a bear with its head facing the sea. This natural monument towers more than 120 meters high above the territory of Palau and attracts thousands of hikers every year, who admire the breathtaking panorama of the La Maddalena Archipelago from what is considered the bear’s head.

Giant’s Tombs of Li Mizzani
The territory of Palau offers numerous archaeological testimonies such as the Giant’s Tombs, characteristic funerary monuments of the Nuragic civilization in Sardinia. One of particular significance, due to its reduced size and a ‘wrong’ structural element, is the Giant’s Tomb of Li Mizzani. It is located in the locality of Monte Canu, about seven kilometers from the town center.

Nuraghe Luchìa
Another important archaeological testimony is the Nuraghe Luchìa, strategically positioned in a hilly and wooded area at the foot of Monte Canu, from where you can see the entire plateau up to the Strait of Bonifacio. Here, it is still possible to observe the base and remains of the prehistoric village.

Talmone Battery
Located on the northern coast of the island, at Punta Don Diego, between the beaches of Palau and Costa Serena, the Talmone military fortress guards the stretch of sea that separates the island of Spargi from Sardinia in a landscape made of epic granite, Mediterranean flora, and sea. Built in the early 20th century, it consists of about fifty forts, small forts, and military batteries scattered throughout the Maddalena Archipelago. Abandoned after the 1947 Treaty of Paris, the Talmone Battery remained in disuse until 2002, when it was entrusted to the FAI. The Municipality of Palau and the FAI allow visitors to access this site, ensuring its public opening. The Talmone Battery can be reached with a half-hour walk through the rich Mediterranean scrub.

What to eat in Palau

In the territory of Costa Serena and Palau, there is a strong food and wine tradition that, thanks to the quality of the ingredients, traditional recipes, and the skill of Sardinian chefs, is now perfectly recognized as typical Gallurese cuisine.

Traditional dishes

Among the first courses, the queen is undoubtedly the “suppa cuata,” but it is a must to try “li puligioni dulci,” a sweet version of the classic ravioli in which even the sauce is particularly sweet, “li chjusoni,” handmade gnocchi, and “li fiuritti,” a kind of handmade tagliatelle.

The bread focaccias with pork cracklings are found in Gallura under the name “Uggiaddini,” in the sweet version they are rich in sugar and filled with raisins. Another typical dish not to be forgotten is “Lu Pan’a Fitti”, made with spianata or leftover bread boiled in meat broth and seasoned with local olive oil,Pecorino cheese, parsley, and cinnamon. Not to mention the “Màzza frissa”, “lu Casjiu furriatu”, and “ Lu Coccu cu l’ociu casjiu”.

Main courses

Among the traditional main courses, the typical “porceddu” (roast suckling pig) is indispensable, as well as “carri e coggjiu” (typical of the All Saints’ lunch, consisting of pork and savoy cabbage), “la faa e laldu” (fava beans, sausage, and lard cooked with wild fennel), “la rivea” (lamb or kid offal cut into pieces and cooked on a slow spit), and finally “Caulada.”

As for fish dishes, grilled and fish soups made from fresh fish, calamari, lobsters, shellfish, and mollusks are excellent and enhance the menus of the area’s fine restaurants.

Desserts

 The rich tradition of typical sweets in this area is characterized by a wide variety: “Acciuleddi e meli”, made with fried dough first passed through honey and then through orange peel, “Li Cucciuleddi e meli” with a filling of honey, breadcrumbs, chopped walnuts and almonds, orange peel, cinnamon, pepper, and clove, “li Uriglietti,” made with violated dough, fried, passed through honey and sprinkled with sugar. Also, “Casjatini,” the little cheesecakes, “Pidichitti,” “Rujoli,” “Niuléddhi,” “Papassini,” and “Frisjoli Letì,” and the “Frisjoli longhi,” typical of carnival. Not to forget “la crema gadduresa,” a delicious spoon dessert.

Cheeses

The rich tradition of cheeses and ricotta from the area satisfies all palates, from those who prefer gentle flavors to those who prefer aged or smoked cheeses.

The Culurgionis

The culurgionis, fresh pasta stuffed with potatoes and pecorino cheese, are the first dish par excellence in Ogliastra. There are different variations depending on the town, in Bari Sardo the filling is made of potatoes, cheese, garlic and mint. Closed by hand and pinched along the edges, they depict ears of wheat. Once cooked, they are traditionally served with tomato sauce and a sprinkling of grated pecorino cheese.

The Pistoccu bread

The typical bread of Ogliastra is the pistoccu. The shapes vary from circular to rectangular. In Bari Sardo, where the Galanias Hotel and Retreat is located, su pistoccu is traditionally oval. Like the more famous pane carasau, this bread is baked and cut in half, horizontally, to be toasted again in the oven while still hot. It is enjoyed softened with water, broth or sauce and is a must with pecorino cheese and tasty Sardinian salami.

The land of Vermentino di Gallura

The climatic factors, combined with the characteristics of the territory of Palau and the whole Gallura region, play a fundamental role in the success of viticulture, making this area internationally appreciated for producing high-quality wines. Vermentino di Gallura has the distinction of being one of the four Italian white wines and the only Sardinian wine to have obtained the DOCG label.

Several historic wineries in the area have exported and made Vermentino known internationally. 

Also renowned is Moscato di Gallura, one of the most delicate and beloved dessert wines produced in Sardinia, and Nebbiolo, a particularly fragrant and soft red wine.

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