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Oristano, Sardinia
Coat of arms of Oristano

Sardinia · Oristano

Oristano

The old capital of the Giudicato di Arborea, city of Eleonora and the Carta de Logu, host of Sa Sartiglia equestrian joust at Carnival.

Picked by Peter Benei

Letter to come

Why Oristano is on our list

It holds Bandiera Blu, Città dell'Olio and Città della Ceramica.

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About the letter

Visiting

Best time
May–Oct
By car
1 h 20 min from Cagliari
By train
Station in the comune
Population
30,067

When to visit

Best · May–Oct

  • J14°
  • F16°
  • M17°
  • A19°
  • M23°
  • J29°
  • J32°
  • A32°
  • S28°
  • O24°
  • N19°
  • D15°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

Going to the sea? How to find the free beaches in Italy.

Why come

Oristano sits at the mouth of the Tirso river on the Campidano plain, five meters above sea level, looking onto the gulf that carries its name. The city replaced the ancient Phoenician-Roman port of Tharros and became the capital of the Giudicato di Arborea in 1076, the central-western Sardinian state that survived from 900 to 1420. Eleonora d'Arborea governed as regent from 1383 to 1403 and issued the Carta de Logu, one of the most advanced medieval law codes in Europe, in force on the island for four centuries.

Each Carnival the city stages Sa Sartiglia, an equestrian joust at the star whose lead rider, Su Componidori, is dressed and masked according to a fixed sixteenth-century ritual. The Torre di Mariano II and the Antica Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta mark the medieval center. The coast at Torregrande, six kilometers west, carries the Bandiera Blu rating.

How to get there

From Cagliari (CAG), about 1 h 34 min by car.

There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.

Coming by train into Cagliari? Oristano is about 1 h 18 min away by road.

Every town within reach of Cagliari airport.

First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.

Oristano, Sardinia
Oristano, Sardinia

What to see

  • Torre di Mariano II (Torre di San Cristoforo)

    Late thirteenth-century medieval tower built by Mariano II d'Arborea on Piazza Roma, one of the surviving fragments of the old city walls.

  • Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta

    Medieval cathedral on Piazza Duomo, rebuilt in the eighteenth century, with the octagonal bell tower retaining its earlier majolica-tiled cap.

  • Antiquarium Arborense

    Civic museum with the most important collection of Punic-Roman finds from Tharros and medieval material from the Giudicato of Arborea.

  • Piazza Eleonora d'Arborea

    Central square named for the giudicessa, with the 1881 statue of Eleonora holding the Carta de Logu, surrounded by Liberty-era palazzi.

  • Torregrande

    Coastal marina six kilometers west of the city, named for the late-sixteenth-century Spanish watchtower, with a Bandiera Blu beach.

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.

  • Craf da BananaRistorante

    One Gambero Rosso fork (77/100), at Craf da Banana.

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?

Oristano is a city.

  • A city of 30,067 people, and a provincial capital: the services are here, not a drive away.
  • A station of its own, so the rest of Italy is a train ride away.

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.

How we choose a town, and every town by these rules.

  • Population 30,067, down 3.5% since 2015
  • Train station in the comune
  • A national health service hospital in the comune · how healthcare works in Italy
  • Homes in the center: €1,050 to €1,500 per m² to buy, €7.20 to €9.60 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.

More about living here

  • A local hub
  • Pharmacy in town
  • High school within a 30-minute drive
  • Full fibre reaches 85% of homes
  • Primary school in the comune
  • Earthquake zone 4, very low hazard
  • Cagliari airport (CAG), 1 h 34 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
  • Regional capital Cagliari, 1 h 20 min drive

If you are moving here

Oristano

Who lives here

3% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, China and Senegal, against 9% across Italy. 36 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe, mostly the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom. There are 377 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 18% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Oristano province ranks 72nd of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.

Health and schools

There is an emergency room in the comune. It has a children's emergency room too. The nearest major one is in Alghero, 81 km away. The nearest IB school is Ambrit International School, 391 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Chatterbox Schools and College, 90 km away.

Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.

Taxes

A home that is not your main one pays 1.01% a year in property tax at the 2025 rate, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. The town adds between 0.69% and 0.8% to your income tax, depending on your income, with nothing due on income under €10,000. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.

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.

What it costs to live in Italy.

Climate and risk

It is in climate zone C, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from November 15 to March 31, up to 10 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. 6% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods, 14% in a high or medium one. They show no residents in a high landslide zone.

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

  • SA SARTIGLIA

    Carnival equestrian joust at the star with a sixteenth-century ritual: Su Componidori, the lead rider, is dressed and masked publicly before the ride.

  • ELEONORA D'ARBOREA

    Regent of the Giudicato from 1383 to 1403, who promulgated the Carta de Logu, the legal code that governed Sardinia for four centuries after her death.

  • THARROS

    Phoenician-Roman port city on the Sinis peninsula, predecessor of Oristano as regional capital, archaeological site with theater, baths and Punic remains.

Common questions

What is Oristano known for?
Oristano is the old capital of the Giudicato di Arborea, city of Eleonora and the Carta de Logu, host of Sa Sartiglia equestrian joust at Carnival.
Where is Oristano?
Oristano is a comune in the province of Oristano, in Sardinia, at 5 meters above sea level.
What is the nearest airport to Oristano?
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Cagliari (CAG), about 1 h 34 min by car.
Can you get to Oristano without a car?
Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
When is the best time to visit Oristano?
Best in May–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 32 degrees, and December the wettest, with about 11 rain days.
Which other towns are like Oristano?
Alghero, Tortolì and La Maddalena.
How many people live in Oristano?
30,067 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
Is Oristano a good place to live?
Oristano is a city of 30,067 people, the kind of place Part 3 of our Where to Move in Italy series is about. There is a national health service hospital in the comune. Full fibre reaches 85% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 5 m
  • Population: 30,067
  • Surface area: 84.57 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 Oristano appears in

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Similar

Towns like Oristano

What all six share with Oristano: over 10,000 people · near sea level

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