Sardinia · Nuoro
Mamoiada
The Barbagia village where the Mamuthones come out on January 17, twelve men in black sheepskins carrying thirty kilos of cowbells.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Mamoiada is on our list
It holds Città del Vino.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Jun, Sep–Nov
- By car
- 2 h 41 min from Cagliari
- Population
- 2,367
- J10°
- F13°
- M14°
- A17°
- M22°
- J28°
- J34°
- A32°
- S26°
- O22°
- N16°
- D12°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Mamoiada sits at 644 meters in the Barbagia di Ollolai, fifteen kilometers south of Nuoro on a granite plateau under the Gennargentu. The village is known for two things. The first is the Mamuthones, masked figures who walk in two parallel lines through the streets on the feast of Sant'Antonio Abate on January 17 and on the Sunday and Tuesday of Carnival.
Each Mamuthone wears a black carved wooden mask, a heavy sheepskin and roughly thirty kilos of cowbells on his back, escorted by the Issohadores in white masks who lasso onlookers from the crowd. The Museo delle Maschere Mediterranee, opened in 2001, sets the rite in a comparative Mediterranean frame. The second thing is Cannonau. Mamoiada's granite hills produce some of the highest-rated Cannonau in Sardinia, with a handful of small estates working old bush-trained vines at altitude.
How to get there
From Cagliari (CAG), about 2 h 55 min by car.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Museo delle Maschere Mediterranee
Museum opened in 2001 documenting the Mamuthones and Issohadores alongside masked carnival traditions across the Mediterranean basin.
Carnevale di Mamoiada
Annual masked procession on January 17 and Carnival Sunday and Tuesday, with Mamuthones in black sheepskins and Issohadores in white masks.
Cannonau di Mamoiada
Roughly 30 small estates producing Cannonau on granite slopes between 500 and 800 meters, several with cellar visits by appointment.
Sa Perda Pinta
Neolithic standing stone carved with concentric spirals, found in 1997 near Boeli and displayed at the village's mask museum.
Chiesa di Sant'Antonio Abate
Parish church and ritual starting point of the January 17 Mamuthones procession, with the bonfire at the heart of the feast.
From the guides
Where to eat
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
AbbameleTrattoria
Abbamele holds three Gambero Rosso prawns and a Slow Food snail.
Before you sit down: how to order at a restaurant, how to spot a tourist trap, what aperitivo is and how the Italian bar works.
Living here
Could you live here?
Mamoiada is at the end of the road.
- A village of 2,367. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Nuoro, is 33 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Nuoro, a city of 33,054, is 33 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
- Population 2,367, down 7.3% since 2015
- Nearest city Nuoro, 33 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Nuoro, 15 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Ordinary homes in excellent condition in the center: €730 to €890 per m² to buy, €2.20 to €2.70 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Very remote
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 100% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 4, very low hazard
- Olbia airport (OLB), 1 h 41 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Cagliari, 2 h 41 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
Under 1% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, against 9% across Italy. There are 204 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 24% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Nuoro province ranks 78th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Nuoro, 15 km as the crow flies. It has a children's emergency room too. The nearest major one is in Alghero, 94 km away. The nearest IB school is Ambrit International School, 324 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Sardinia International School, 85 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 0.86% a year in property tax, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. 7% pensioner tax: this town qualifies, for someone with a foreign pension who has lived abroad for five years: 7% on foreign income, for ten years.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Sardinia spends about €1,790 a month, €530 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €539 a year for water, on the Sardinia average.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone D, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from November 1 to April 15, up to 12 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. The national maps show no residents in a high or medium flood zone. Under 1% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
MAMUTHONES
Black-masked figures in sheepskins with thirty kilos of cowbells, walking in two lines from January 17 through Carnival Tuesday.
CANNONAU
High-altitude granite-grown Cannonau, with around 30 small estates including some of Sardinia's most awarded producers.
SA PERDA PINTA
Neolithic carved menhir with concentric spirals, discovered in 1997 and now central to the village's prehistoric collection.
Common questions
- What is Mamoiada known for?
- Mamoiada is the Barbagia village where the Mamuthones come out on January 17, twelve men in black sheepskins carrying thirty kilos of cowbells.
- Where is Mamoiada?
- Mamoiada is a comune in the province of Nuoro, in Sardinia, at 644 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Mamoiada?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Olbia (OLB), about 1 h 41 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Mamoiada?
- Best in Apr–Jun, Sep–Nov. July is the warmest month, averaging 34 degrees, and March the wettest, with about 11 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Mamoiada?
- Ulassai, Orroli and Santu Lussurgiu.
- How many people live in Mamoiada?
- 2,367 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Mamoiada a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Mamoiada is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Nuoro, is 33 min away. The nearest city, Nuoro, is 33 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Nuoro, 15 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 100% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 644 m
- Population: 2,367
- Surface area: 48.83 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
The ranked lists
Lists Mamoiada appears in
Similar
Towns like Mamoiada
What all six share with Mamoiada: under 3,000 people
Ulassai
Province: Ogliastra
both inland in Sardinia · both high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
Orroli
Province: Cagliari
both inland in Sardinia
Santu Lussurgiu
Province: Oristano
both inland in Sardinia
Cuglieri
Province: Oristano
both inland in Sardinia
Fanano
Province: Modena
both high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
Castiglione di Sicilia
Province: Catania
both high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
The letter
Mamoiada is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter: the photo, what is worth eating, and when to turn up. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Mamoiada comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.
The nearest town we have written up is Monte Argentario, 291 km away. Read its letter →
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.