NORTHERN SARDINIA DIVING HOLIDAYS

While you can dive all year round in Sardinia, many dive centres are closed during the winter months between November and April. In the summer months, the sea temperatures remain consistent between 19 and 25 Degrees Celsius, making Sardinia one of the best diving destinations in the Meditteranean. With a number of wrecks dotted around the island, and a vast array of caves and grottos just waiting to be explored, Sardinia is home to morays, lobsters, conger eels, stone fish, barracudas, octopus, crabs, lots of nudibranches and large schools of groupers.

The area features pristine waters and amazing visibility and interesting swim throughs with enormous granite rocks, wrecks, caves, overhangds and densely populated drop offs however, sightings of large species are limited. The dive centres which operate from the northern tip of Sardinia take divers out on excursions along the coast and to the Maddalena Archipelago National Park which is one of the Meditteranean's best marine reserves and features some of the best dive sites in the world. The wide shallow areas between the islands are no deeper than 70 metres and make Sardinia particularly great for macro photography and sightings of crustaceans and beautiful corals and sponges.

More than 40 dive sites, consisting of sheltered islands and islets, can be visited around the coast of northern Sardinia and the Maddalena Archipelago National Park and the Lavezzi Marine Reserve which is nestled between Corsica and Sardinia and is known for its huge blocks of granite.

Sardinia's small towns and narrow streets offer a number of quaint shops, relaxed bars and restaurants that are just waiting to be explored while a variety of stunning beaches are also dotted around the coastline. The coastline and inland also are just waiting to be explored on foot with an endless array of walking trails on the cliff tops, between the olive trees and amongst the wildflowers.

A number of historic monuments, forts and tombs are also really worth a trip and after a busy day diving and exploring the area is host to a myriad of beautiful local restaurants that serve typical Italian pizza and pasta accompanied by delicious Sardinian wine!