Island with a fine shoreline of beaches and caves, reached by a causeway which has superseded a Roman bridge (traces still visible). There are impressive remains of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians. Funerary urns at Tophet contained sacrificed corpses of first-born children. The African martyr Sant’ Antioco is thought to be buried among tombs and catacombs of a large necropolis on the western side. There are also atmospheric ruins of a temple and a fort.

Local restaurants specialize in seafood – mullet, sea bream and eels are on offer – and the fish soups ziminu and sa cassola are renowned. From Calasetta the ferry takes you to Carloforte, a pretty little town, formerly a Phoenician settlement.