This is one cruising ground across two countries. Of the 533 boats here, 490 are on the Sardinian side and 43 on Corsica, and the water between them — the Strait of Bonifacio — is the point of the whole region. On the southern side of the strait sits the Maddalena archipelago, seven islands of pink granite and white sand, and on the northern side the cliffs of Bonifacio with the town built on top of them.
Two things govern how you plan a week here, and both are specific enough to get wrong.
The first is the permit. Every pleasure craft visiting the Maddalena archipelago needs a park permit from the National Park Authority, available for one, seven, fifteen, thirty or a hundred and twenty days from the park, some ports and authorised agencies. On top of that there are strict protection zones: around the islets of Bisce, Nibani, Mortorio, Le Camere and Soffi, at the south-eastern end of the group, navigation, anchoring and landing are all forbidden. The current framework for the 2026 and 2027 seasons is Ordinanza 33/2026 from the La Maddalena Coast Guard, with the seasonal measures running from 1 June to 30 September.
The second is the wind. The Strait of Bonifacio has a well-earned reputation for increasing the prevailing wind by one or two Beaufort numbers in the strait itself and downwind of it. A forecast that reads comfortably on the Costa Smeralda can mean something quite different in the middle of the crossing, and the mistral is the wind that does it.
The fleet averages 14.1 metres with a 2020 build year — the newest in our Mediterranean listings — and splits almost evenly between 226 monohulls and 223 catamarans. Most of it lies around Olbia and the Costa Smeralda at Portisco, Cala dei Sardi and Cannigione, which puts the archipelago within an hour or two of handover.
