Luxury Car Rental in Palau

In Palau, the wind is in charge. The mistral blowing in from the Strait of Bonifacio has been carving the granite for millennia, shaping it into forms that look deliberate — most famously the Bear Rock, which watches over the town and the archipelago from some 120 metres above the sea like a stone sentinel. This is the Gallura at its wildest: no polished salons, just a horizon crowded with islands, currents and knife-edged light.

Ahead lies La Maddalena and its archipelago; behind, granite hills dotted with discreet villas. Palau is where most people park the car and board the ferry — a shame, because the roads around it are among the finest in northern Sardinia: the descent of the SS133bis, the coast road to Porto Pollo, the climb to Monte Altura. With the right machine, Palau stops being a stopover and becomes the destination.

From Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport it is 41 km, around 55 minutes: north up the SS125, then down into town on the SS133bis, which throws the archipelago wide open across the windscreen over its final kilometres. You can take the car at the terminal the moment you land and savour that run as the first taste of your holiday — or have it delivered in Palau itself, at your hotel, your villa or the ferry port for La Maddalena.

We also deliver to Porto Rafael, to the quay where your yacht is moored, or to your berth at Porto Pollo: our WhatsApp concierge agrees the meeting point and timing with you, down to the minute. Return is just as flexible — at a different location, or at the airport on the day you fly home. Requirements and conditions are provided at the quotation stage.

Start with the Bear Rock: drive up to the car park below the summit, then walk ten minutes through the granite and you are inside the postcard, the Strait of Bonifacio spread out before you and Corsica visible on clear days. Nearby, the Fortress of Monte Altura is a late nineteenth-century stronghold set into the rock: visits are guided, and the narrow panoramic road that climbs to it is half the pleasure in itself.

Porto Rafael must be earned on foot: park above the village and walk down to the little square by the water, where whitewashed houses gaze across at La Maddalena. Then comes Porto Pollo, the isthmus of the wind: kites and sails on one side, the Isola dei Gabbiani on the other, and a light that turns golden in the late afternoon. End the day at La Sciumara, the beach at the mouth of the Liscia just outside town — perfect for one last swim before dinner.

The SS133bis descending into Palau demands precision, not just power: the Porsche 911 Carrera is the ideal instrument — compact, communicative, capable of turning every run down to the harbour into a small ritual. Every Stuttgart alternative available in the area is gathered on our page for Porsche rental in Palau.

For long days out to Santa Teresa Gallura and back, a grand tourer such as the Ferrari Roma pairs elegance with real substance; if Porto Pollo and the coves at the end of the gravel tracks are the goal, the Defender 110 carries boards and duffel bags anywhere without a second thought. The fleet counts over 100 models and 150+ variants; to plan the route, start with our guide to the 10 most beautiful roads in Sardinia to drive in a supercar.