How to Get from Sicily to Sardinia: Ferry, Flights & Routes

The quickest way to get from Sicily to Sardinia is a direct flight from Palermo or Catania to Cagliari, and the only direct ferry is Grimaldi Lines' once-a-week Palermo–Cagliari sailing, which leaves Palermo on Sundays at 09:00 and arrives in Cagliari at 21:00. In the other direction the ship leaves Cagliari on Saturdays at 17:00 and docks in Palermo at 05:00 on Sunday. Everything else, including the long way round through Naples or Civitavecchia, involves two crossings and a night or two on the mainland.

Which option suits you depends on whether you are bringing a car. Without one, fly. With one, plan your trip around the Sunday ship, or accept the detour via the mainland.

Quick facts (checked October 2026)

• Direct ferry: Palermo–Cagliari, Grimaldi Lines, once a week each way, about 12 hours. Timetable published to 31 December 2026.
• From Trapani: no Trapani–Cagliari ferry is listed by Grimaldi Lines or Tirrenia at present.
• Direct flights: Ryanair flies Cagliari–Palermo; Ryanair and Aeroitalia fly Cagliari–Catania. All three run through the winter 2026–27 timetable.
• With a car, if Sunday does not work: Palermo–Naples, then Naples–Cagliari, both with Grimaldi Lines.
• Fares: the Palermo–Cagliari route is a regulated public-service line with published maximum fares; a deck passage costs at most €28.65 in low season and €33.75 in high season, before VAT and port fees.

Is there a ferry from Sicily to Sardinia?

Yes, but only one. Grimaldi Lines runs Palermo–Cagliari all year as a public-service route, which is why it survives on so little traffic. The timetable published on the operator's route page, valid until 31 December 2026, is:

• Palermo to Cagliari: Sunday, depart 09:00, arrive 21:00 the same day.
• Cagliari to Palermo: Saturday, depart 17:00, arrive Sunday 05:00.

So the same ship makes a round trip each weekend: the overnight run from Sardinia, then the daytime crossing back. The Palermo departure is a full day at sea, roughly 12 hours, crossing the open Tyrrhenian Sea with no stops. Bring a book.

The Grimaldi Lines ferry Europa Palace, the ship named on the operator's Palermo–Cagliari route page. Image: VIRGOnoSHAKA69, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Older guides and some booking sites still mention a Trapani–Cagliari ferry. Tirrenia's own site now lists only Genoa–Porto Torres and Civitavecchia–Olbia for Sardinia, and Grimaldi's route list has no Trapani sailing. If you see one offered, check it against the operator's own timetable before you plan around it.

What the ferry costs

Because the route runs under a public-service contract, Grimaldi publishes the maximum fares it may charge. For non-residents, per person and per crossing, they are (checked October 2026; VAT and port fees are added on top):

High season in 2026 covers 1 to 7 April, 1 June to 30 September and 19 December to 7 January. Residents of Sicily and Sardinia pay less. These are ceilings, not the prices you will see: special rates on the booking site are often lower, so compare dates either side of the one you want.

On the overnight sailing from Cagliari a cabin is worth the extra; you arrive in Palermo at 05:00. On the daytime run from Palermo a seat is enough for most people.

Boarding in Palermo and Cagliari

Grimaldi asks foot passengers to be at the boarding area at least one hour before departure, and drivers to check in at least two hours before. Both ports use fast check-in: you show your ticket to the Grimaldi staff at the boarding point rather than queuing at the ticket office. Both ports are next to the city centres, so if you are on foot you can walk or take a short taxi ride from your hotel.

Palermo seen from the gulf, with the port cranes and Monte Pellegrino behind. Image: Maria Izzo from Stockholm, Sweden, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Can you fly from Sicily to Sardinia?

Yes, and for most people without a car it is the better choice. Cagliari airport's published timetable (checked October 2026) shows:

• Cagliari–Palermo: Ryanair, five flights a week in the summer 2026 timetable. In the winter 2026–27 timetable there are flights on Fridays and Sundays and on most Mondays, with extra flights over Christmas and New Year.
• Cagliari–Catania: Ryanair and Aeroitalia. Between them they keep the route going through the winter, with flights on several days each week.

Cagliari's timetable has no flights from Trapani or Comiso. If your Sardinian base is in the north, you can fly to Cagliari and drive or take the train north, or connect through a mainland airport to Olbia or Alghero. Schedules change every season, so check the airline before you book anything else around the flight.

The apron at Cagliari-Elmas airport, the only Sardinian airport with direct flights from Sicily. Image: Carlo Dani, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Cagliari airport is at Elmas, on the edge of the city. It has its own railway station, Elmas Aeroporto, on the line into Cagliari, so you can reach the centre without a car.

Elmas Aeroporto railway station, which links Cagliari airport with the city. Image: Nicola Secci, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Going the long way: through Naples or Civitavecchia

If you have a car and the Sunday sailing does not fit your plans, you can cross back to the mainland and take a second ferry to Sardinia. It takes longer than the direct ship, but on some days of the week it is the only way.

Via Naples (two Grimaldi crossings). Out of the July–September peak, Grimaldi sails Palermo–Naples on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 11:00 (arriving 19:30) and on Thursdays and Saturdays at 20:30 (arriving 07:00 the next day). Its Naples–Cagliari ship leaves on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 19:00 and reaches Cagliari at 10:00 the next morning. One workable combination: leave Palermo on Thursday at 20:30, arrive in Naples on Friday at 07:00, spend the day in the city, then board the Friday 19:00 sailing and arrive in Cagliari on Saturday at 10:00. Between 13 July and 13 September Palermo–Naples sails at 12:00 instead, so recheck the connection for summer dates.

Via Civitavecchia. If you are driving up the peninsula anyway, Grimaldi runs Civitavecchia–Cagliari on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 20:00, arriving the next morning. To reach Civitavecchia from Sicily you cross the Strait of Messina and drive the length of the mainland, which is a road trip in its own right rather than a transfer. For northern Sardinia there are also crossings to Olbia and Porto Torres from Civitavecchia, Livorno and Genoa.

Which option should you choose?

• No car, short trip: fly Palermo or Catania to Cagliari. It is by far the fastest option.
• Your own car, flexible dates: take the Sunday ferry from Palermo and plan the rest of the trip around it. It saves two crossings and a day or more.
• Your own car, fixed dates: check whether the Sunday ship fits. If not, go via Naples, choosing sailings with a sensible gap between them.
• Rental car: many rental contracts restrict taking the car on a ferry, so check yours. It is often simpler to return the car in Sicily, fly, and rent another in Sardinia.
• Motorhome or campervan: the direct ferry carries them, charged by length; book early for summer.

Via Roma, Cagliari's waterfront avenue, faces the port where the ship from Palermo docks. Image: Eduard Marmet, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

When is the best time to go?

The ferry runs all year, but the timing of your trip still matters.

• June to September is high season on the ferry fares and the busiest time on Sardinia's beaches. Vehicle space on the single weekly sailing can sell out, so book as soon as your dates are fixed.
• April, May and October are the easiest months. The island is quieter, and the ferry fares are in the low-season bracket (apart from the first week of April).
• Winter is fine for city breaks in Cagliari and Palermo, and the Sunday ferry keeps running. A 12-hour crossing of open sea in winter can be rough, and sailings can be delayed or cancelled in bad weather, so leave a spare day before any onward flight.

Cagliari's Castello quarter on its hill above the city, a short walk from the port. Image: Giova81, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Tips for the crossing

• Bring snacks and water for the daytime run. Twelve hours is a long time at sea, and you will be glad of your own supplies whatever is open on board.
• Book cabins early for the overnight sailing. The Saturday night ship from Cagliari has a limited number of cabins.
• Bring photo ID. You do not have to give a document number when booking this domestic route, but keep your passport or ID card with your ticket.
• Pets can travel; to keep one in your cabin, book a standard cabin and add the pet-in-cabin option.
• Check the timetable for 2027. The current timetable runs to 31 December 2026. Grimaldi usually keeps the same pattern, but look on its route page before booking a trip for next year.

For more about planning a trip that combines Italy's two biggest islands, read our guide to Palermo's street food and our tour of Arab-Norman Palermo.