North-West · Città metropolitana di Sassari

Things to do in Erula

Things to do in Erula, Sardinia: Romanesque Santa Vittoria di Su Sassu, Erula and Spiene nuraghi, domus de janas and Gallurese culture.

Erula, Sardegna — © Gianni Careddu · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

All Adventure and sport Culture and traditions Families and kids Food and wine Nature and hiking Sea Wellness

We are gathering the first experiences for this area. Check back soon, or tell us about an operator you know.

Erula is a small Anglona village of around 700 people, on a wooded plateau full of springs on the border with Gallura. It is one of Sardinia's youngest municipalities: once part of Perfugas, it became independent in 1988. Its houses, scattered along a main street more than a kilometre and a half long, recall the Gallurese stazzi, the isolated farmsteads its first settlers came from. It is a place for silence, countryside and crowd-free nuraghi.

What to see in Erula

Santa Vittoria di Su Sassu

This Romanesque church, in Perfugas territory but tied to Erula's parish, was consecrated in 1120: its dedication parchment is among the oldest documents on Sardinian churches. On the apse you can read the puzzling inscription "Operaiu Malu a Fora l'eremita". The Su Sassu area was once a vast forest roamed by red and fallow deer.

The nuraghi

Nuraghe Erula crowns a rise in the middle of the village. The Nuragheddu, left unfinished with its stones scattered around, shows how nuragic towers were built. At Nuraghe Spiene a bronze votive boat with a stag's head was found in 1925; it is now in the National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari and appears on the village coat of arms. Roman coins were found at Nuraghe Sotgiu.

Domus de janas and Roman traces

At Bulguni and Fustilalza there are domus de janas, rock-cut tombs dating back to the Neolithic. In the hamlet of Sa Mela, a milestone was found from the Roman road linking Tibula to Carales, today's Cagliari.

Things to do in Erula

Erula is perfect for walking or cycling across the plateau, among woods, pastures, springs and scattered hamlets, in search of nuraghi and domus de janas. It is also a quiet base for exploring Anglona and nearby Gallura, Lake Coghinas and the museums of Perfugas. Browse the hikes and activities offered by local operators just below.

History

People have lived here since the Neolithic, and the area was densely settled in the nuragic age. A small hoard of Punic coins showing the goddesses Tanit and Kore points to Carthaginian trade; in Roman times the road to Carales passed through. In the Middle Ages it belonged to the Giudicato of Torres and then to the Doria family. In the 18th century around fifty families of Gallurese shepherds from Tempio, Aggius and Bortigiadas lived here; the present village grew in the 19th and 20th centuries around the parish church, consecrated in 1932.

What to eat and buy

Life here revolves around sheep farming: sheep's cheese, ricotta and meat are the village's flavours, in a pastoral tradition with Gallurese roots.

Festivals and traditions

Although it lies in Anglona, Erula speaks Gallurese, brought by its founding families, and many families still live on their country estates. Festivals centre on the parish church and the churches of the hamlets, such as San Giovanni Battista at Sa Mela and San Giuseppe at Oloitti.

Nearby

Perfugas, with the Predio Canopoli sacred well and the archaeological and palaeobotanical museum, about 15 minutes away.
Lake Coghinas, on the border with Gallura.
Chiaramonti, with the Doria castle.
Castelsardo and the beaches of Valledoria, about 40 minutes away.

Getting there and when to go

Erula is about an hour's drive from Sassari. The nearest airport is Olbia, about an hour and a quarter away; Alghero-Fertilia is just over an hour. The nearest ports are Olbia and Porto Torres. Spring and autumn are the best seasons for hiking.