Arzachena (In Gallurese Alzachèna) is a Municipality of about 13,000 inhabitants, in the historical region of Gallura; it is 83 m. a.s.l. and it is 25 Km far from Olbia and 45 Km far from Tempio Pausania. The town plays an important role by the economic point of view, since it is a dynamic world as well as Olbia, regarding above all tourism and receptivity.

Situated in the North-West of Sardinia, it is easy to reach by car along the last kilometers of the “Orientale Sarda” street (S.S. 125), that connects Olbia to Palau.

Arzachena’s municipal area includes 88 Km of coast: all of them are full of bays, inlets and beaches, low sand shores interrupted by ravines, granite rocks of different colours and humid zones, very interesting by a naturalistic point of view, such as the lagoons of Saloni, situated in the end of the long inlet called “Golfo di Arzachena” (Arzachena Gulf).

Arzachena extends on a very broad area and it wholly includes the famous “Costa Smeralda”, ideated in 1962 by the Ismaili prince Karim Aga Khan IV. The administrative divisions constituting the Municipality are several indeed: there are very renowned well equipped tourist resorts such as Porto Cervo, Poltu Quatu, Cannigione, Baja Sardinia, Abbiadori.

Toponym “Arzachena” might date back to centuries ago in Asia Minor, where a lot of people left their motherland looking for a new land, so they joined this territory. Another fascinating hypothesis gives to the toponym Arseguen a greek origin: as a matter of fact, Homer’s Odyssey mentions the city of Αρτακια as the main town of the Lestrigoni people, who are likely to have lived in this part of the island.

There are several Nuragic monuments available near the town, attestations of the vitality of this civilization in this land: NuragheAlbucciu, close to a granite rock where a Tomba dei Giganti full of old coins and Punic engravings have been recently brought to light; the little temple of Malchittu, dating back to XVI-XIV century B.C. (Middle Bronze Age); the Tomba dei Giganti of Li Lolghi; the necropolis of Li Muri, noticeable attestation of the culture of the so called “Circoli di Arzachena” (“Circoli” are megalithic circles), the Tomba dei Giganti of Coddu Vecchju, pertaining to the village of the Nuraghe La Prisgiona.

With regard to the environment, worth mentioning are Rio San Giovanni near Cannigione, which flows into Arzachena Gulf, creating one of the main humid zones of Northern Sardinia, the Saloni Lagoons, where several marsh birds have got their habitat, such as herons, grey herons, wild ducks, coots, common waterhens and rare sultana birds. Occasionally, also pink flamingos choose these lagoons.

Moving towards the inland area the landscape is full of stazzi, old Gallura dwellings which fifty years ago were still the focal point of rural life, placed among oak-groves and olive-tree woods.