Guide · Getting there

Porto San Paolo to Tavolara by ferry or boat tour

Porto San Paolo faces the island across a short stretch of sea, and it is where the island's own ferry and most of the slow wooden boats leave from. Here is how the crossing works and which boat suits your day.

Check availabilityfrom $87 · free cancellation

Editorial team, tavolaraboattour.comUpdated October 20, 20266-minute read40 sources

The tour for this guide PortoS.Paolo: Half Day Traditional Boat Tour Tavolara Molara 4.9 (621 reviews) 4 hours from$93per person Check availabilityFree to cancel until 24 hrs before your boat

Quick answer

01Shuttle: Daily, no booking: out at 09:30, 10:30, 11:30, 12:30 and 13:30, back at 13:00, 15:30 or 16:30.¹
02Ticket office: Via Molara 11, a few metres from the port.²
03Guided excursion: 2 hours, a swim of about 30 minutes in the Molara pools, then you stay on the island.³
04Boat tour: This page's pick: vintage boats for 4 hours with three swim stops, from $93.
05Speed limit: Every boat off Porto San Paolo keeps to 5 knots or less.⁴

Why Porto San Paolo is the natural starting point

Porto San Paolo sits on the mainland directly opposite the island, and the regional tourism board names it as the place boats leave from.⁵ It began as a settlement of fishermen from Ponza who worked from small boats, and today it has accommodation, services and a modern tourist port, with about 15,000 people in summer.⁶ ⁷

From the village, ferry services leave every day for Tavolara and for the smaller islands of Molara, Molarotto, Piana and the Isola dei Cavalli.⁸ The protected area runs an information point here too, and lists the island ferry company among its services.⁹

If you are wondering how to get to Tavolara Island without a tour, this is the answer: drive or take a bus to the village, buy a ticket and cross on the shuttle. If you want swim stops, the Molara pools and a skipper who knows the coves, book one of the boats that leave from the same harbor instead. Either way, the crossing itself is short, and from the deck you watch the island's grey walls rise higher with every minute.

A day on the shuttle

From Via Molara to the island and back

First thing

Ticket at Via Molara

The office is a few metres from the port.²
09:30

First shuttle out

Then every hour until 13:30, no booking needed.¹
On arrival

Spalmatore di Terra

A little harbor, places to eat and a few houses.¹⁰
13:00

First return

For a morning visit.¹
16:30

Last listed return

Most of the day on the beach and trails.¹

The shuttle: times and how it works

The island's own Tavolara ferry is run by Tavolara Traghetti e Gite, whose ticket office is at Via Molara 11, a few metres from the port.² Its shuttle runs every day without a booking, leaving at 09:30, 10:30, 11:30, 12:30 and 13:30, with a choice of return at 13:00, 15:30 or 16:30.¹

The return fare includes a small contribution to the Marine Protected Area for every passenger, and children up to 3 travel free.¹¹ The operator's site gives no season or year for its timetable, so check the times at the office or on its site before you build a day around them.

You land at the Spalmatore di Terra, which has a little harbor, places to eat and a few houses.¹⁰ Choose your return before you go: the early boat back suits a morning swim, while the 16:30 return gives you most of the day on the beach and the trails.¹ The beach by the landing is small, so on a busy afternoon walk a little way along the shore for space, and keep an eye on the time: missing the last boat back is the one mistake that turns a lovely day into a long wait.

Four ways across

Shuttle, excursion, evening boat or tour

Option	Booking	Out	Back
Shuttle	Not needed	09:30 to 13:30, hourly	13:00, 15:30, 16:30
Guided excursion	Required	09:00 or 09:45	13:00 to 17:30
Evening boat	Via Da Tonino	19:30	22:30
Vintage boat tour	Online	Check availability	4 hours later

Times as the ferry operator and the GetYourGuide listing state them, read 2026-10-20; the operator gives no season.¹ ³ ¹² ¹³

Boats from the village

Three ways to spend the day from Porto San Paolo

This page's pick

Vintage half day

Three swim stops

Hours: 4
Ashore: Walk on Tavolara
Price: from $93

See this boat

Porto San Paolo: Half Day Boat Tour to Tavolara and Molara

Up to 10 guests

Classic boat

Family-run, ask for Max

Hours: 4
Molara: 50 minutes
Price: from $93

See this boat

From Porto San Paolo: Tavolara & Molara Vintage Boat Tour

Full day

Maria 1899

Restored wooden boat

Hours: 7
Group: Up to 12
Price: from $162

See this boat

Decision helper

Shuttle or boat tour?

Choose by how you want to spend the day

I want a beach day on the island I want the pools and the island I want several swim stops I want a whole day on deck I want dinner on Tavolara

The shuttle

Out from 09:30, back as late as 16:30, no booking.¹

The guided excursion

About 30 minutes at Molara, then ashore on Tavolara.³

The vintage half day

Three stops, including Molara and a walk ashore.

Maria 1899

7 hours with up to 12 guests.

The evening boat

Out at 19:30, back at 22:30.¹³

The small village of Porto San Paolo was formed by a community of people from Ponza who practiced fishing with small boats, and who settled on its shores.

Area Marina Protetta Tavolara Punta Coda CavalloSource 6

The guided excursion via the Molara pools

The same company runs a guided excursion of 2 hours, which needs a booking.³ ¹⁴ It leaves at 09:00 or 09:45, follows the coast past Porto Taverna, Cala Girgolu and the flat rocks, and stops for about 30 minutes to swim in the natural pools of Molara.³ It reaches Tavolara at 11:00 or 11:45.³

After the excursion you stay on the island and return on one of the company's ferries; its excursions page lists returns at 13:00, 15:30, 16:30 and 17:30.¹² The fares page lists only the 09:45 departure, so confirm the times when you book.¹⁵

It is a good compromise if you want a taste of the pools and a long afternoon ashore without paying for a full private day. Bring a mask, because the stop at Molara is short, and pack lunch or plan to eat at the landing. If you would rather not carry a bag all day, travel light: a towel, a mask, sunscreen, water and something to eat are all you need, and there is no waste collection service on the island, so take every scrap of rubbish back with you.

Map

Tavolara, Molara and the coast from Olbia to San Teodoro

Where the boats leave from, the islands and their landing places, and the beaches that face them.

Map of the coast of north-east Sardinia from Olbia and Golfo Aranci to San Teodoro, with Tavolara and Molara offshore — Olbia to San Teodoro

Map of Tavolara, Molara, Molarotto and the small islands off Porto San Paolo — Tavolara and Molara

Map of the beaches between Capo Ceraso and La Cinta, facing Tavolara and Molara — The coast facing the islands

1
Olbia marina (MOYS)
This site's tour checks in here at Dock A, Berth A44, and several other boats to the islands leave from the same marina.
In Google Maps ↗
2
Golfo Aranci
A port 20 minutes from Olbia, facing Tavolara, where dolphin trips and some island boats start.¹⁶
In Google Maps ↗
3
Figarolo
A pyramid-shaped limestone islet off Cala Moresca, where the dolphin trips look for a pod of bottlenose dolphins.¹⁷
In Google Maps ↗
4
Porto San Paolo
The village opposite the island: the ferry office is in Via Molara, and wooden boats leave from the floating docks.²
In Google Maps ↗
5
Tavolara
A limestone and granite mountain rising from the sea, 560 m high and 4 km long, in Olbia's territory.¹⁸ ⁵
In Google Maps ↗
6
Molara
The second largest island of the protected area, uninhabited, with its pools on the south-west side.¹⁹ ²⁰
In Google Maps ↗
7
San Teodoro
The harbor where the dinghy tours of the archipelago set off each morning.
In Google Maps ↗
8
Capo Ceraso
A headland passed on the way out from Olbia; a disused military road leads to its old fortifications.²¹
In Google Maps ↗
9
Spalmatore di Terra
The landing place, with a little port, places to eat, a few houses and the protected area's info point.¹⁰ ²²
In Google Maps ↗
10
Punta Cannone
The summit, reached by a guided trek and a short via ferrata; climbing on the island has been restricted since 2025, so ask the operator first.
In Google Maps ↗
11
Punta Timone
Site of the NATO radio station built in 1961; the protected area's map marks a military area with no entry.²³ ²⁴
In Google Maps ↗
12
Piscine di Molara
Clear pools among granite rocks, with an anchoring zone for boats up to 30 m.²⁰ ²⁵
In Google Maps ↗
13
Molarotto
A small granite rock in the integral reserve, home to a lizard subspecies found nowhere else.²⁶
In Google Maps ↗
14
Isola Piana
An island off Porto San Paolo with little beaches of fine greyish sand.²⁷
In Google Maps ↗
15
Isola dei Cavalli
A small island with a beach of fine, firm sand and shallow water.²⁸
In Google Maps ↗
16
Spiaggia del Dottore
The first swim stop of this site's tour and of several other boats.
In Google Maps ↗
17
Porto Istana
A bay of four beaches at the foot of Capo Ceraso, twenty minutes by car from Olbia.²⁹
In Google Maps ↗
18
Porto Taverna
Dunes with a pond behind them, where water birds can be seen.³⁰
In Google Maps ↗
19
Cala Girgolu
Known for the turtle-shaped rock called La Tartaruga.³¹
In Google Maps ↗
20
Cala Brandinchi
Very light sand and turquoise water almost opposite the island; access is booked from 1 June to 30 September.³² ³³
In Google Maps ↗
21
Lu Impostu
One kilometre of white sand dunes with junipers, the twin of Brandinchi.³⁴
In Google Maps ↗
22
Capo Coda Cavallo
A strip of granite land sheltered by Tavolara, with Molara and the islet of Proratora in front.³⁵
In Google Maps ↗
23
La Cinta
San Teodoro's most famous beach, an arch of fine white sand facing the island.³⁶
In Google Maps ↗

Open the map in Google Maps

Checklist

Before you cross

Plan

Choose your return boat before you leave
Buy the shuttle ticket at Via Molara
Book the guided excursion in advance

Pack

Water and lunch, or money for the landing
Sunscreen and a hat for the beach
A mask for the Molara stop

Price check

Tours from Porto San Paolo for your group

Pick a boat and the number of travelers

Vintage half day4 hoursfrom $93 Classic boat4 hoursfrom $93 Sunset aperitif3 hoursfrom $118 Maria 18997 hoursfrom $162

People 2

Total from$185

pp from $93

Check availabilityfree cancellation

Totals multiply each trip's lowest per-seat GetYourGuide price by your party size, converted at the day's ECB rate; the booking page shows the exact sum.

Video

Sardinia 🇮🇹Porto San Paolo / Isola di Tavolara / Boat trip to the Island / Europe Travel

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Wooden boats and half-day tours from the village

This page's pick is the half day on vintage boats from Porto San Paolo. It lasts 4 hours with three swim stops: a hidden cove, Tavolara itself, where guests can go ashore and walk on the beach, and the natural pools of Molara. Snacks, fresh fruit, soft drinks and a prosecco toast come on board, and it is rated 4.88 from 621 reviews.

A family-run classic boat leaves the middle arm of the village's small floating harbor; ask for Max. Its 4 hours take in Spiaggia del Dottore, the bay and cliffs of Tavolara, Molara with a coffee break and Sardinian pastries, and Isola Cavalli. It takes up to 10 guests and starts from $93.

For a full day, the Maria 1899 leaves from the three floating docks, where you meet at a green box with flags on the left. The same meeting place serves the sunset trip that spends 100 minutes at Molara with an aperitif, swim and snorkel as the sun goes down.

Getting to Porto San Paolo

From Olbia, the ferry company tells drivers to take the SS125 towards San Teodoro and Nuoro, turn left at the Porto San Paolo roundabout down Viale Nenni to the sea, then right into Via Molara for the car parks.³⁷ It is a short, easy drive, and the village is small enough to walk from the car to the boats.

Leave time to park in high summer and to find your pier, then have a coffee by the water while you wait. Check on your booking which dock your boat uses, because the ferry office, the floating docks and the village pier are separate places along the shore. Closer to the village, two small islands sit just offshore: Isola Piana, with little beaches of fine greyish sand, and the Isola dei Cavalli, whose beach of fine, firm sand is ringed by shallow water.²⁷ ²⁸ Both belong to Loiri Porto San Paolo and lie inside the protected area, and the classic boat from the village ends its trip with a swim at the Isola dei Cavalli.³⁸

If you are staying in Olbia and do not want to drive, compare the boats that leave from the city's marina instead. This site's own tour checks in there at 9:00 AM and is back at 1:30 PM.

Evenings on the island

Tavolara is not only a day trip. The ferry company runs an evening boat for dinner on the island, leaving at 19:30 with a single return at 22:30, booked by calling the restaurant Da Tonino.¹³ Book well ahead in summer and confirm the boat when you reserve the table.

In July the island hosts the film festival Una notte in Italia, and audience and crew travel on boats from Porto San Paolo.³⁹ The festival's own site says the boats leave the village pier from 18:30 until the seats for the public are full, and return after the screening.⁴⁰

Whichever boat you take, keep to the rules of the protected area. Every boat in the stretch of sea off Porto San Paolo must keep to 5 knots or less, whether passing, landing or leaving.⁴ That slow approach is part of the pleasure: the island grows ahead of you, and the water under the bow turns from blue to green.

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