Porto Flavia

Porto Flavia

Porto Flavia
4.5
Points of Interest & LandmarksLookouts
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
About
Porto Flavia is one of Sardegna’s wonders. This extraordinary monument of industrial archaeology looms over an enchanting coastline, gifting visitors with a breathtaking vista of the thousand-shaded blue Masua sea, and on the evocative Pan di Zucchero sea stacks, a natural monument 133 metres (440 ft) tall. A genuine engineering masterpiece which improved miners’ life condition and reduced mineral transportation times and costs. The port was given its name by engineer Cesare Vecelli. He gave the port his daughter’s name. The port was operational until the 1960s.
Duration: < 1 hour
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  • Girasole Marzia
    Rome, Italy331 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A pleasant discovery
    We book a week in advance, so you don't risk getting all the way there and maybe making a mess. The visit lasts 1 hour, the guide is a well-prepared boy and above all available to the countless questions of my younger son. The environment is cool so it is a visit that can easily be done in the summer, to alternate the hot days at the seaside. I highly recommend it
    Visited April 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written April 29, 2024
  • 2Happytraveler
    Konstanz, Germany111 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Historic site
    We drove to Warung Beach and booked a 1-hour boat tour (2 or 4 hours were not offered), which was absolutely sufficient. Very impressive tour with a new rubber dinghy to Porto Flavia and various caves along the coast with an Italian/English guide. Around the corner at the end of the free parking lot, a gravel track led to the former mine. The 1-hour tour in English through the upper tunnel is impressive. Unfortunately, the balcony with a great view was closed, which was pointed out before payment.
    Visited May 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written June 8, 2024
  • DiBi76
    Chiavari, Italy83 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A dive into glorious history
    We visited this beauty despite nn being completely accessible. Thanks to the professionalism of the Guide who was able to tell in a concise and clear way how much Porto Flavia represented in Sardinian mining history. A glorious past that seems so far removed from today's situations, a crazy wit, despite the historical distance. It is a visit to learn more about the Sardinian reality, landscaped a jewel that takes your breath away.
    Visited August 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written August 16, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles906 reviews
Excellent
537
Very good
239
Average
57
Poor
29
Terrible
44

These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
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dellangelo54
Turin, Italy17,803 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2023 • Couples
It is difficult to imagine a port built on a cliff overlooking the sea. I discovered it thanks to a nice report by Alberto Angela (visible on You Tube) and during my tour in southern Sardinia I didn't want to miss it. An unforgettable experience thanks also to the excellent guide (only guided tours that last about 50 minutes are allowed) who provided us with lots of information. The view that appears when you reach the end of the tunnel is truly impressive.
Google
Written September 17, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nicola P
Sinnai, Italy164 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2023 • Family
Today after many years of waiting I managed to visit this place
Located near Pan di Zucchero.
So the guided tour was quite interesting, starting by telling the origins of the mine and then explaining how it was excavated and the reason for the name Flavia.
In total the route is 600 meters.
Before entering they give you a helmet which you must keep on your head at all times.
There are points along the way
which show equipment of the time such as the Santa Barbara.
It's a shame that in recent days the lower wing that takes you to the balconies has been closed, otherwise it would have been even more interesting.
The visit allows you to take photos, but does not allow you to shoot videos while the guide speaks due to copyright issues.
Overall it was still a good experience even if the visit was a little short in my opinion.
I plan to return one day in the future, perhaps this time hoping to find the downstairs usable.
Google
Written September 24, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alfie
London, UK143 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2023 • Friends
I came for the tour, but unfortunately, it was all booked. When we called on the call, they mentioned it was available, but the way up there was so lovely that we enjoyed every bit of it. If you were fortunate like ourselves, and you couldn't find a ticket. You can enjoy swimming or having a little picnic under the shades—a highly recommended trip.
Written April 30, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Marco M
10 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2024 • Couples
We visited the tunnel with 2 other couples including 2 unaccompanied girls. I didn't like the behavior of the guide who, when the girls were away, scolded the girls' parents for not having accompanied them and not having entered with them in front of the other "customers". During the journey we found another member of the staff, and the guide also complained about the fact that the girls had received a discount at the ticket office that they were not entitled to, still in front of us. This is all unprofessional.
We paid €10 each and received a helmet (not even a flashlight to see where we were walking) to walk half a kilometer and when we asked the guide questions we had the feeling that it was his bad day (he answered listlessly).

I recommend everyone to go and see the cave of San Giovanni in Domusnovas, much better.
Google
Written April 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Rochdek
Conca Specchiulla, Italy4 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Family
1) You will most certainly get lost and lose at least 1 hour. You will have to find the museum's parking lot by going through a small road on the side of the mountain. There are many different sections with no signs telling you where to go.
2) When you arrive at the ticket office, the guide, Marie, is very arrogant and will talk to you very unprofessionally, explaining how wrong you are.
3) The website is usually down, and when it does work, you have to take tickets one by one. For big families, forget it.

I am a big traveller, going through more than 60 countries now, and this was by far one of the worst overall experiences I ever had.
Written August 20, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alessandro Masotina
Legnano, Italy73 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Couples
Place of cultural and landscape interest of considerable importance. Absolutely recommended to visit it.
Unfortunately the organization of the tour is of very poor quality. You are accompanied by a Guide who explains exhaustively but extremely fast and another person who closes the group who continues for the entire duration of the tour to push asking to be compact in order to speed up.
The visit lasts 50 min and once you arrive at the panoramic area from which you can see the stack of Pan di Zuccero, the Guide runs towards the entrance without giving the opportunity to take pictures (if not 5 minutes to the panorama) or to stop to look at the excavations or silos inside the gallery, disperse the group in the darkness of the cave.
In summary 5 stars to the place to visit, 1 star to the organization, much aimed at raising funds and careless of visitors
Automatically translated
Written July 14, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

davide c
13 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
Porto Flavia is well-known now, and deserves this attention. Sore notes: First of all the dirt road and parking are definitely to be fixed and redeveloped, the craters and the few spaces could ruin your day. The management of the ticket office is unclear and amateurish, and they do not know the languages well. The sea below is crystal clear but the accesses are few and poor, the municipality must improve them. Happy notes: the tour lasts about an hour, and is worth a visit, you are creating a balcony in the outlet to the sea that will improve the quality of the site.
Automatically translated
Written July 31, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Charalampos G
Aspropyrgos, Greece1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021 • Couples
We arrived at porto flavia and we waited to the line for 45 minutes to buy a ticket and make the tour. The hour was 10:00 a.m and the lady at the ticket shop just told us the place is booked until 16:00 p.m. We waited at the line so much time and we come all way from Greece. No respect to the tourists. Nothing. Sardinia isn't a good place for tourists cause italian people have no good manners.
Written August 19, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Aga223
Katowice, Poland43 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2012 • Friends
This is an amazing place - both for its location and its history. Getting there (you need to get to the village called Masua) you will enjoy breathtaking views of the coastline and then you can learn about astonishing history of Porto Flavia as well as mining industry history on Sardinia. The visit is guided and the guide tells about the place in a really interesting way, with great passion. Unfortunately the visits are guided only in Italian, so if you don't speak Italian you really have to go there with someone who does, as the information given by the guide is really great and makes sense of the visit.
Written September 12, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Simon T
Perth, Australia184 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2017 • Friends
Porto Flavia is fascinating and beautiful on many levels. The role that engineering technology played on changing the economics of this loading port (and the associated mine) and the impact that had on the local community is vividly displayed and brought back to life.
The subtext is that this heavy industrial activity can also be beautiful architecture and culture and even (as is undoubtedly the case here) enhance the beauty of a place which already has incredible natural beauty. I have seen literally the majority of the Italian coastline and Masua is one of the most beautiful parts in my opinion - Porto Flavia adds to that.
The facade itself is reminiscent of the image of the giant statues of long dead kings guarding the approach to Gondor in Tolkein's Lord of the Rings.
To top it off the views from inside the dock out over Scoglio Pan di Zucchero (Sugarloaf Rock) are absolutely breathtaking.
Written April 28, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Porto Flavia - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2025)

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