Guide · Rules at sea

The Tavolara Marine Protected Area, zone by zone

Every boat trip to Tavolara and Molara takes place inside a marine reserve with its own law. Knowing the zones tells you where you can swim, where boats may anchor and why some water stays empty.

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Editorial team, tavolaraboattour.comUpdated October 20, 20266-minute read64 sources

The tour for this guide Tavolara boat tour with snorkeling 4.9 (1,145 reviews) 4 hoursFrom the MOYS marina, OlbiaSnorkel gear included from$87per person Check availabilityFree to cancel until 24 hrs before your boat

Quick answer

01What it is: About 15,000 hectares of sea from Capo Ceraso to Cala Finocchio, around Tavolara, Molara and Molarotto.¹
02Zone A: Full reserve: no swimming and no boats except the reserve's own.²
03Zones B and C: Swimming allowed; motor boats at 5 knots within 300 m of the coast.³ ⁴
04Anchoring: Never on Posidonia; in zones B and C only on sand or pebbles or in marked areas.⁵ ⁶
05Banned everywhere: Jet skis, spearfishing and towed water sports.⁷ ⁶

What the protected area is and who runs it

The Tavolara Marine Protected Area covers the coast of north-eastern Sardinia from Capo Ceraso to Cala Finocchio and includes the islands of Tavolara, Molara and Molarotto, about 15,000 hectares of sea in all.¹ Its full Italian name, Area Marina Protetta Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo, is the one it uses on its own website and documents.

It was first identified as a reserve by a law of 1982 and established in 1997 by ministerial decree.⁸ Since 1 January 2004 it has been managed by a consortium of Olbia, Loiri Porto San Paolo and San Teodoro, the towns on its shore.⁹ Its own count of the sea surface is 15,280 hectares.¹⁰

The reserve exists for what lies under the surface: meadows of Posidonia seagrass, coralligenous reefs below 30 metres, groupers and the seabird colonies of the islands.¹¹ ¹⁰ ¹² For a visitor it means two things: a sea that is looked after for its wildlife, and a set of rules that every boat, guide and swimmer has to follow. Visitors are part of that picture too, and the reserve runs information points in San Teodoro, Porto San Paolo and on Tavolara, where you can ask about the rules before you head out.¹³

How the reserve came about

From the first law to the yearly rulebook

1982

Identified by law

Law n. 979 of 31 December names the area.⁸
1997

Established

Ministerial decree of 12 December.⁸
2004

Consortium of towns

Olbia, Loiri Porto San Paolo and San Teodoro take over.⁹
2014

Definitive regulation

Regulation n. 299, decreed on 3 December, sets the rules.¹⁴
2025

Annual rulebook

The Disciplinare is adopted and updated each year.¹⁵

Zones A, B and C explained

The rules are set by a definitive regulation, n. 299, issued by the Ministry of the Environment by decree on 3 December 2014.¹⁴ It divides the sea into three zones: zone A, the full reserve; zone B, the general reserve; and zone C, the partial reserve.¹⁶

Zone A is the strictest. Navigation is not allowed there, and neither is swimming; only the managing body's staff, authorised researchers and guided scuba visits on fixed routes may enter.¹⁷ ³ ² On the water you will see these areas from a distance, and your skipper will route around them. Think of zone A as the reserve's untouched core: you admire those rocks and islets from a respectful distance, and the rest of the protected sea is still yours to swim in.

Zones B and C are where boat days happen. Swimming is freely allowed there, subject to the orders of the maritime authority, and motor boats may move at no more than 5 knots within 300 metres of the coast and no more than 10 knots between 300 and 600 metres.³ ⁴ In the stretch of sea off Porto San Paolo every boat keeps to 5 knots or less.¹⁸

Caps on visitors

How many people the rules allow

people

Passenger limits from the 2014 regulation and the daily total for rental and charter boats from the 2025 rulebook.¹⁹ ²⁰ ²¹

The zones at a glance

What is allowed in zones A, B and C

	Zone A	Zone B	Zone C
Swimming and snorkeling	No	Yes	Yes
Motor boats	No	5 knots within 300 m	5 knots within 300 m
Anchoring	No	Sand or pebbles only	Sand or pebbles only
Tour boats	No	With a permit	With a permit
Watching dolphins	No	Authorised tours	Authorised tours

From the 2014 regulation and the reserve's zoning page and brochure, read 2026-10-20.¹⁴ ³ ¹⁷ ⁴ ²² ⁶ ²³ ²⁴

Decision helper

Can I do it here?

Common questions on the water, answered by the rules

Zones B and C only

Swimming is forbidden in zone A.³

Never

Anchoring on Posidonia is banned everywhere.⁵

Never

Banned throughout the reserve.⁷

Not closer than 100 m

And for no more than 20 minutes.²⁵ ²⁶

The military zone is off-limits.²⁷

In the MPA all the allowed and forbidden activities are managed in detail by a definitive regulation (n°299) issued by the Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio del Mare, with a decree dated 03/12/2014

Area Marina Protetta Tavolara Punta Coda CavalloSource 14

Swimming, snorkeling and anchoring

In the regulation, swimming includes the use of a mask and snorkel, fins, boots and gloves, so snorkelers follow exactly the same rules as swimmers.²⁸ Guided snorkeling by professionals is capped: no more than 2 boats at one site at the same time, and no more than 10 people per guide in the water.²⁹

Anchoring is banned anywhere in the reserve on Posidonia meadows, other seagrasses and the coralligenous formations the managers have identified.⁵ In zones B and C it is allowed only on sandy or pebbly seabeds and in areas specially marked and equipped.⁶ The services map shows such anchoring zones at the Molara pools for boats up to 30 metres, and at La Cinta and the Spalmatore di Terra for boats up to 40 metres.³⁰

Tour boats often tie up instead of anchoring. The reserve keeps two mooring buoys at Molara and two at Tavolara for operators who carry passengers.³¹ Inside the mooring fields, diving, anchoring, free navigation and fishing are not allowed.³² If you rent a boat yourself, ask at the rental desk where the buoys and anchoring zones are before you leave, and carry a mooring line long enough to reach a buoy.

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.³³
In Google Maps ↗
3
Figarolo
A pyramid-shaped limestone islet off Cala Moresca, where the dolphin trips look for a pod of bottlenose dolphins.³⁴
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.³⁵
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.³⁶ ³⁷
In Google Maps ↗
6
Molara
The second largest island of the protected area, uninhabited, with its pools on the south-west side.³⁸ ³⁹
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.⁴⁰
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.⁴¹ ⁴²
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.⁴³ ⁴⁴
In Google Maps ↗
12
Piscine di Molara
Clear pools among granite rocks, with an anchoring zone for boats up to 30 m.³⁹ ³⁰
In Google Maps ↗
13
Molarotto
A small granite rock in the integral reserve, home to a lizard subspecies found nowhere else.⁴⁵
In Google Maps ↗
14
Isola Piana
An island off Porto San Paolo with little beaches of fine greyish sand.⁴⁶
In Google Maps ↗
15
Isola dei Cavalli
A small island with a beach of fine, firm sand and shallow water.⁴⁷
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.⁴⁸
In Google Maps ↗
18
Porto Taverna
Dunes with a pond behind them, where water birds can be seen.⁴⁹
In Google Maps ↗
19
Cala Girgolu
Known for the turtle-shaped rock called La Tartaruga.⁵⁰
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.⁵¹ ⁵²
In Google Maps ↗
21
Lu Impostu
One kilometre of white sand dunes with junipers, the twin of Brandinchi.⁵³
In Google Maps ↗
22
Capo Coda Cavallo
A strip of granite land sheltered by Tavolara, with Molara and the islet of Proratora in front.⁵⁴
In Google Maps ↗
23
La Cinta
San Teodoro's most famous beach, an arch of fine white sand facing the island.⁵⁵
In Google Maps ↗

Open the map in Google Maps

Checklist

Behaving in the reserve

Do

Swim only where your skipper stops
Take all your rubbish home
Report animals in distress to the reserve

Do not

Touch, feed or take anything from the sea
Anchor over seagrass if you rent a boat
Approach the military zone

Video

A dive into the waters of the "Tavolara - Punta Coda Cavallo" Marine Protected Area

Nothing loads from YouTube until you press play.

Limits on tour boats and rental boats

Passenger and guided-tour boats may not enter zone A, and they need a specific permit from the managing body to work in zones B and C.²³ They may moor, with that permit, only to buoys placed to protect the seabed.⁵⁶

There are also caps on numbers. Each licensed tour boat may carry no more than 100 passengers, and the 2014 regulation fixes the total carried each day on authorised passenger boats at 800 people.¹⁹ ²⁰ For rental and charter boats, the 2025 rulebook sets a daily total of 1,923 people.²¹ That rulebook is adopted and updated every year, so check the current edition if you plan to hire a boat.¹⁵

For a guest on a tour none of this needs any action: your operator holds the permits and knows the limits. It is worth knowing, though, when a skipper waits for a free buoy instead of dropping anchor wherever there is space: that is the rule at work, not a delay.

Dolphins and whales: the watching code

Bottlenose dolphins are seen often in the reserve, according to San Teodoro's tourism office, and Risso's dolphins and sperm whales have also been sighted.⁵⁷ The regulation bans whale and dolphin watching in zone A and allows it in zones B and C only with the managing body's authorisation, aboard guided-tour boats.²⁴

Around any cetacean it draws two bands: an observation band within 100 metres and an approach band within 300 metres.⁵⁸ Boats may not come closer than 100 metres, swimming is not allowed in the observation band, and no boat may stay there more than 20 minutes.²⁵ ²⁶ Speed in both bands is limited to 5 knots.⁵⁹

Feeding the animals, throwing anything into the water and approaching them head-on are all forbidden.⁶⁰ If you see a turtle or a dolphin in distress, call the reserve on 0789/203013, or the emergency numbers 1530 or 1515.⁶¹

The military zone at Punta Timone

Part of the island is closed for another reason. In 1961 a NATO military base was built at Punta Timone, and the last residents of the island had to leave because of it.⁴³ The Ministry of Defence lists the unit as the Stazione VLF NATO Tavolara.⁶²

The reserve's own map marks a military area with no entry under an ordinance of Olbia's Coast Guard from 1967.⁶³ A Navy report states that the easement zone is off-limits to tourists and bathers and that approaching it by any means is strictly forbidden.²⁷ Because there are military installations in the protected area, the reserve's rules may be specifically waived to balance protection of the environment with the defence of the State.⁶⁴

Tour skippers know these lines, so on a booked trip there is nothing to do. If you hire a boat, ask the rental company to mark the restricted water on a chart and stay well away from it. A good chart from the rental desk, a phone with an offline map and a cautious margin are all you need to stay on the right side of the line.

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