North-West · Città metropolitana di Sassari

Things to do in Usini

Things to do in Usini, Sardinia: Vermentino wineries, S'Elighe Entosu rock tombs, San Giorgio di Oleastreto, andarinos pasta and folk festival.

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

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Usini is a farming village of about 4,000 people in the Coros area, at around 200 metres, about 10 km from Sassari and 25 km from Alghero. The surrounding hills are covered in vineyards, olive groves and artichoke fields, and the village belongs to Italy's Wine Cities network thanks to its award-winning Vermentino. It is worth a visit for its wineries, prehistoric necropolises and medieval old town. Ideal for wine lovers, village food and archaeology, right next to Sassari.

What to see in Usini

The old town

The medieval village, recorded as Usune in the condaghi (monastic registers), grew around the Corrau and Usineddu districts; from the 18th century it expanded around Piazza Castello. The 19th-century Casa Diaz and Casa Derosas are set aside for ethnographic displays on rural life.

The churches

The parish church of Santa Maria Bambina, completed in 1825, holds statues and a polychrome wooden altar. The church of Santa Croce, once Santa Maria de s'Ena Frisca, is one of the villagers' best-loved monuments. In the countryside, about 8 km away, stands San Giorgio di Oleastreto, a 12th-century church that was the medieval parish; nearby are the remains of a Roman bridge.

The S'Elighe Entosu necropolis

This necropolis of domus de janas (rock-cut tombs, “fairy houses”) dates from the late Neolithic. Tomb V keeps carved details reproducing the inside of pre-Nuragic huts. The area has more tombs at Chercos, Tomestighes and Sos Baddulesos, and nuraghi (Bronze Age stone towers) such as Monte Unturzu.

Things to do in Usini

Wine is the main experience: winery visits and tastings among the Vermentino vineyards, perhaps paired with a bike ride or walk through olive groves and artichoke fields. The necropolises are ideal for guided visits, and the village is a handy base for exploring Sassari and the Coros. Discover the experiences offered by local operators just below.

History

The oldest traces date from the Ozieri culture (3800–2900 BC), followed by the Nuragic and Roman ages. In the Middle Ages the village of Usune appears in the condaghi; later it was a fief of the Centelles, Cano-Cedrelles and Manca families, and in the 17th century the barony became the county of San Giorgio. In 1796 the villagers signed an anti-feudal pact and joined the uprisings against Sassari.

Food and shopping

Usini's Vermentino is the star product, together with olive oil and artichokes. Try wood-oven bread and traditional sweets: sos germinos, sos biscottos tostos and sas trabeas. Andarinos, hand-made fresh pasta, are a village symbol.

Festivals and traditions

May brings the Wine Competition. In summer the Andarinos festival celebrates fresh pasta, and in August the International Folklore Festival fills the village with costumes, music and dance. In December “Ajò a Ippuntare” is a wine-tasting trail through streets and cellars.

Nearby

Sassari: Piazza d'Italia and the Sanna Museum, about 10 km away.
Ossi: the Mesu 'e Montes necropolis.
Uri: the Santa Caterina nuraghe and Lake Cuga.
Ittiri: the town of red trachyte.
Cargeghe: the Romanesque church of Santa Maria di Contra.

Getting there and when to go

Alghero-Fertilia airport is about 25 minutes by car, as is Porto Torres port. Spring and early autumn, with the grape harvest, are the best times; summer offers food festivals and folklore.