Lu' Hotel Carbonia ★★★★

The Lu' Hotel Carbonia is situated on the way into the town of Carbonia, not far from the south-west coast of Sardinia. Contemporary and impressive from the outside, you feel at home as soon as you walk in. The hotel reception staff make you feel welcome as soon as you enter, and the modern hotel has a very comfortable feel. Each of the 66 bedrooms and suites is decorated in a bright and refined style, with wooden furniture that nicely complements the warm and gentle colour scheme of the walls and textiles. The spacious and airy rooms offer king-size beds, generous bathrooms and lovely views over the swimming pools and gardens, as well as the surrounding town. Soft bathrobes and slippers are the icing on the cake. You really feel at home, only it is more luxurious!

Just like the bedrooms, the hotel’s lounges and restaurant are also filled with natural light and a peaceful, tranquil atmosphere. For supper, you can enjoy tasty Mediterranean dishes in the impressive dining room of the restaurant, with high ceilings and large windows that provide panoramic views of the illuminated gardens as night falls. For a more romantic setting, there is also the softly lit terrace next to the swimming pool. The food looks as delicious as it tastes; everything is a real work of art, each dish is a visual and gastronomic delight.

For a little break in the afternoon, you can choose to go and try out the fitness room or succumb to a moment of pure relaxation with an expert massage at the spa (depending on how sporty, or not, you happen to be feeling). I must admit, we ended up in the spa every day. Here, the traditional stone floor, multi-coloured mosaic walls and well-designed lighting create an atmosphere that is at once welcoming, invigorating and intimate. Hot tub, sauna, hammam and sensory showers… you’ll leave this shrine to well-being feeling radiant inside and out. We did!

The town of Carbonia is an excellent base for exploring the southwest coast of the island. At the reception, the hotel staff will be happy to help you organise car hire and tell you about good places to visit. Don’t miss out on the beautiful windswept beaches and the Piscinas dunes, half an hour from the hotel by car. Like a real mini desert, they are some of the highest dunes in Europe. You can reach them from the sea or across an earthen track. Grey, light yellow and orange in places, the sand forms a sharp contrast to the deep green countryside of the Costa Verde, with the silence broken only by the wind and the sound of crickets.

One of our favourite parts of our trip was visiting the neighbouring island of Sant’Antioco, where you’ll find little pink houses standing like flamingos by the water. In the south, the cliffs at Sperone offer magnificent views of the volcanic islets of Vacca, Vitellino and Toro. On a fine day, you can even see the coast of Africa.