The tiny village of STINTINO , on Sardinia's northwestern tip, was until recently nothing more than a remote jumble of fishermen's cottages jammed between two narrow harbours. Fortunately its discovery by the tourist industry has not drastically altered it, and it remains a small, laid-back village and the only centre in the tongue of land forming the western arm of the Golfo di Asinara . Most of the sunning and swimming takes place further up the coast at La Pelosa, but the only cheapish accommodation in the area is in Stintino itself: the simple Lina at Via Lepanto 38 (tel 079.523.071; L90,000-120,000/46.48-61.98), overlooking the Porto Vecchio; the smarter and more central Silvestrino at Via Sássari 12 (tel 079.523.007; L150,000-200,000/77.47-103.29), which has an excellent trattoria that specializes in lobster soup; and the small and neat Geranio Rosso , Via XXI Aprile (tel 079.523.292; L150,000-200,000/77.47-103.29), which has a pizzeria on site - the last two require at least half-board in summer. It's worth finding out about renting apartments in and around Stintino, available for as little as two or three days and costing about L40,000-75,000/20.80-39 per person, depending on the season: contact Stintours (tel 079.523.160) on Lungomare C. Colombo for information and bookings, where you can also rent cars , mopeds and bikes . Between two and six buses a day go to Stintino from Sássari, and there are organized bus trips from Alghero in the summer months.

Four kilometres up the road from Stintino a collection of tourist villages clutter up the otherwise idyllic promontory of La Pelosa - reached by taxi or rented transport from Stintino. Hotels and self-catering apartments back some of Sardinia's most deluxe beaches , with views out to the isles of Piana and the larger, elongated Asinara , the only known habitat of a miniature white ass from which the island takes its name, and previously a prison-island. In summer, you can explore it on daily boat excursions from Stintino, leaving at about 9.30am, returning at 5.30pm; the full visit including swimming-stops and guide costs around L55,000/28.60.