Planargia and Montiferru · Provincia di Nuoro

Things to do in Bortigali

Things to do in Bortigali, Sardinia: a stone village in the Marghine, Orolo nuraghe, the Santu Padre trail, local cheeses, festivals and tips.

Bortigali, Sardegna — © Gianni Careddu · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0

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Bortigali is a village in the Marghine area, in the province of Nuoro, nestled at about 500 metres in a natural amphitheatre at the foot of Monte Santu Padre, a few minutes from Macomer and the SS131 highway. It has one of the best-kept stone historic centres in central Sardinia, dozens of nuraghi and a trail up one of the island's most panoramic peaks. It's ideal if you love authentic villages, hiking and religious traditions that are still deeply felt.

What to see in Bortigali

Historic centre

Narrow lanes with traditional paving, decorated rural houses and over 80 late-Gothic doorways and windows, known as Catalan-Aragonese, carved in local red trachyte. Along Corso Vittorio Emanuele stand early-20th-century townhouses. Bortigali is also one of the few Italian villages with a water mill still in working order.

Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli

The pink-walled parish church holds 16th-century paintings attributed to the Maestro di Ozieri, one of the leading painters of the Sardinian Renaissance. The village has five more churches, including Sant'Antonio, set inside a cave.

Orolo nuraghe

The highlight of a territory with over 40 nuraghi, rock-cut tombs, dolmens and a giants' tomb. Orolo has a two-storey central tower and a bilobed addition; a spiral staircase of 56 steps climbs to the top, with sweeping views.

Santa Maria 'e Sauccu

A country sanctuary that lies in Bolotana's territory but belongs to Bortigali's community, surrounded by some fifty muristenes, small houses where pilgrims stay during the novena.

Things to do in Bortigali

The sentiero Natura (nature trail) climbs from the village towards Monte Santu Padre (1,026 m), passing the rural hamlet of Mulargia with its old stone millstones. From the summit you can see from the Gennargentu to the Sulcis, all the way to the sea at Bosa. The mountain is popular for paragliding and hang-gliding, and griffon vultures sometimes soar past its cliffs. Round off the day at the Orolo nuraghe and with a stroll among the old doorways. Below you'll find experiences offered by local operators: book your excursion.

History

The area has been inhabited since the Neolithic and was important in Roman times; tradition recalls an early Punic-Roman settlement called Berre, while the village of Ortucale appears in a 12th-century condaghe (monastic register). Part of the Giudicato (medieval Sardinian kingdom) of Torres, then of Arborea and the Aragonese, it was held by several feudal families, including the Borgias. In 1795 it joined the anti-feudal uprisings. Sardinia's first dairy cooperative was founded here in 1907; during the Second World War the village hosted the island's military command, and in 1943 Radio Sardegna began broadcasting from here.

Food and what to buy

Bortigali is cheese country: the historic cooperative makes pecorino, casizolu (a stretched-curd cheese) and sa fresa 'e attunzu, a soft cow's-milk cheese typical of autumn.

Festivals and traditions

Sant'Antonio Abate: mid-January, with a huge bonfire made by burning the tuva, a hollow tree trunk.
Holy Week: the rites are the most heartfelt event of the year.
Santa Maria 'e Sauccu: 7–17 September, recorded since 1606, with processions, confraternities and around a hundred riders.

Nearby

Silanus, with the Santa Sabina complex.
Macomer and the Santa Barbara nuraghe.
Birori, with the Sa Bogadas dolmen.
Bolotana, for carpets and the Badde Salighes forest.

Getting there and when to go

Bortigali is a few kilometres from Macomer, along the SS131 Carlo Felice highway. Alghero-Fertilia airport is about an hour and a quarter away, Olbia about an hour and a half, Cagliari-Elmas about two hours. Spring and autumn are perfect for hiking; September for the Sauccu feast, January for the bonfires.