There are really only two decisions to make in Alghero, and the second one is about a car.
Stay inside the walls and you get the town: the lanes, the restaurants at your door, and the evening on the ramparts thirty seconds from your bed. Stay on the Lido, ten minutes north, and you get the beach, easier parking and more modern rooms.
Everything else follows from whether you are driving.
The old town
This is where I would stay, and where most people should.
The centro storico is small, walled, and almost entirely free of traffic. You are inside a grid of very narrow lanes in honey coloured stone with the sea on three sides, the cathedral in the middle and the ramparts along the western edge. Every restaurant worth eating in is within five minutes. The evening walk on the walls starts at your front door.
The rooms tend to be conversions rather than purpose-built hotels: high beamed ceilings, tall wooden shutters onto a lane, terracotta floors, three or four rooms in a building. Some are lovely and some are dark, because a lane two metres wide does not let in much light. Ask which floor and which aspect before you book. A room facing the sea over the wall costs meaningfully more and is worth it once.
The catch is parking, and it is a real one. Most lanes have no vehicle access at all. What access there is tends to be resident-only at fixed hours. If you are arriving by car, book somewhere that explicitly includes a space, or plan on a paid lot outside the walls and a walk with your luggage over cobbles. This catches more people out here than anything else.
Noise is the other consideration. The lanes carry sound upward and the restaurants run late. Light sleepers should ask for something off the main restaurant streets.
The Lido
North of the old town, along the beach, and a genuinely good option rather than a compromise.
The Lido is a long sandy seafront with a promenade, palms and oleander, and low modern hotels set back behind them. It is about a ten minute walk into the old town along the water, which is a pleasant walk rather than a chore.
What you get: a beach directly outside, rooms that are newer and often larger, balconies with actual light, easier and cheaper parking, and better value in general. What you give up: the atmosphere of being inside the walls, and the small pleasure of stepping out of your door into a medieval lane.
This is the right answer for families, for anyone with a hire car, and for anyone who wants to swim before breakfast.
Further out
Beyond the Lido and inland toward Porto Conte there are agriturismi, country hotels and a few resorts in the farmland: olive trees, vines, quiet, and space.
These are lovely and they are entirely dependent on having a car. Not just for getting into town for dinner, but for everything, because the bus network out there is thin. Reckon on driving twice a day.
Worth it if you want the countryside and are planning to drive to Bosa and the beaches anyway. Not worth it if you imagined strolling to dinner.
There are also a couple of places right on the bay at Porto Conte, which put you next to the calmest swimming on this coast and twenty minutes from the town.
A note on the agriturismi
Sardinia does agriturismo better than almost anywhere in Italy, and the country around Alghero is full of them.
The proposition is simple: a working farm with a few rooms, dinner cooked from what the farm produces, and a set menu you do not choose. That last part is the point. You sit down and things arrive: cheeses, cured meat, a pasta, a roast, something fried and sweet at the end, and a carafe of the house wine that came from the field you can see.
It is very good value and it is a lot of food. Book dinner when you book the room, because they cook for the number of people expected and turning up hopeful does not work.
The catch is the same as everywhere out here. You are driving to it in the dark on unlit country roads, and somebody has to not drink.
What it costs
Alghero is meaningfully cheaper than the Costa Smeralda and a little cheaper than Cagliari.
In the shoulder months a good double in the old town is reasonable and the Lido is better value again. August is the exception: prices roughly double, the good old town rooms go months ahead, and the town is at its most crowded. If you are coming in August, book early and expect to pay for it.
Winter is very quiet and a fair number of places shut altogether, so check rather than assume.
Practical things worth knowing
Lifts. Old town buildings mostly do not have them, and the stairs are steep and narrow. If that matters, ask explicitly. A great many listings do not mention it.
Air conditioning. Standard now in the Lido hotels, less certain in the older conversions. In July and August it is not optional.
Breakfast. Often not included in the old town conversions, which is fine, because the bars in the lanes do it better and cheaper.
Arriving. The airport bus comes into Via Catalogna, which is a short walk from the old town gate and a slightly longer one to the Lido. Full arrival detail is in getting to Alghero and getting around.
How to choose, quickly
First visit, no car, want the atmosphere: old town.
Family with children: the Lido, for the beach outside and the space.
Hire car for the whole stay: the Lido, or the country if you want quiet.
Two nights only: old town, without question. You will spend all of it in the lanes and on the walls.
August, booking late: the Lido, because the old town will be gone.
Whichever you choose, you are close to the beaches, which are on a public bus from either. Those are covered in the best beaches in Alghero.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the best area to stay in Alghero?
The old town for atmosphere: walled, traffic-free, with the restaurants and the evening rampart walk at your door. The Lido, ten minutes north along the beach, for newer rooms, easier parking and swimming outside your hotel. Both are good; the choice is mostly about whether you have a car.
Is it better to stay in Alghero old town or the Lido?
Old town if you want to walk everywhere and be inside the walls in the evening. The Lido if you have a hire car, are travelling with children, or want a beach outside the door. The walk between them takes about ten minutes along the seafront.
Can you park in Alghero old town?
Barely. Most lanes have no vehicle access and what exists is largely resident-only at fixed hours. If you are driving, book accommodation that includes a parking space or plan to use a paid lot outside the walls.
Is Alghero expensive?
Less than the Costa Smeralda and slightly less than Cagliari. Shoulder season is good value in both the old town and the Lido. August roughly doubles prices and the best old town rooms are booked months ahead.
Do you need a car if you stay in Alghero?
Not if you stay in the old town or the Lido. The town is walkable and the main beaches are on a local bus for about a euro. You need a car for Bosa, Porto Ferro and the inland country, which is why hiring for two days of a week often beats hiring for all of it.
Read also: The Best Beaches in Alghero | Where to Eat in Alghero | Victoria’s Complete Guide to Alghero
