Sun Drenched Luxury at Valle dell Erica Resort Sardinia

One thing I love about my job in travel is the spontaneity of finding out that I am traveling somewhere last minute. This was the case for my most recent press trip to Sardinia. With only a couple of weeks notice, I suddenly found myself on an Easy Jet flight from Gatwick jetting off to the sun-drenched isle of Sardinia.

The trip was to write an article about La Licciola Hotel, a 5 star hotel in North Sardinia, which is part of the Valle dell Erica Resort. Now I know this is a ridiculously jammy aspect of my job, and I know I am a very lucky lady. But I love to share my travel experiences with you all.  So allow me to tell you about the 4 nights I spent at Valle dell Erica Resort, Sardinia…

We arrived at La Licciola mid afternoon after a winding bus journey through the beautifully rugged landscape of inland Sardinia. Having only been open since May 2013, the hotel was immaculate from the approach and within minutes of arrival, I had a charming Sardinian waiter pouring me a glass of Prosecco. Not a bad start!

We sipped our prosecco in the lobby bar which had double doors overlooking a stylish sun terrace with chic white furniture and stunning views of the Archipelago islands. Corsica was also visible too, and is actually a really popular day trip from the hotel I would have loved to do. One thing that struck me about the view that there wasn’t a single other building in sight. The location of the hotel felt truly exclusive and like a real escape from the rest of the world.

After a judgement-free glass of prosecco and numerous mozerella balls (oh my these were DELISH) we were treated to a grand tour of the hotel including a sneak peak at the incredible presidential suite. After sufficiently drooling over the suites, views and and pool area, we were dropped off by buggy (yes buggy) to our rooms. The rooms were huge, the bed was super king size and the walk in jungle shower had the biggest head I had ever seen in my life! Truly luxurious.

It didn’t take me long to get a feel for La Licciola. The hotel vicinity was scattered throughout charming wild gardens and was the perfect example of understated luxury. It had a real rustic charm to it and I loved how all of the construction and features of the hotel were made using traditional Sardinian materials and craftsmanship.

After an indulgent al-fresco breakfast of omelette, cappuccino and fruit salad, I had a few hours to laze by the pool before my massage at the Thalasso Spa Centre. The fresh water pool spread across 3 levels and was surrounded by large sunbeds and ever stunning views of the ocean – a totally 5 star pool area. If I’ve only got time for one treatment, I make sure it’s a full body massage, so that’s exactly what I went for. It was the perfect wind down before testing out the outdoor thallaso pools attached to the spa. Pretty good morning right?

Come nightfall the hotel had an amazing relaxing ambience live acoustic music echoing around the grounds. We sat out on the terrace and kicked off our night with a Aperol spritzer and listened to the music. Next came the food, which to be honest, could do with a whole blog post to itself. But ill let the photos do most of the talking.

Our meal on the first night was nothing short of amazing. That’s because it was an absolute gastronomic 5 course feast! We ate at a traditional a la carte Sardinian restaurant in the hotel and kicked things off with the best anti pasti and ravioli I’d ever had! The ravioli was freshly made in front of us using traditional techniques, which was fascinating to watch. The meal also included tasting dishes of local delicacies including zuppa gallurese (cheese and stale bread) and Ghisatu (slow cooked mutton in a ragu stew) Both sound questionable I know, but they were honestly amazing!

On our last night we found out we were having a surprise BBQ on the beach, which was a definite highlight of the trip. We began our seafood feast with a glass of champagne and ended it with an out-of-this-world crème brulee. Following a blissful candlelit dinner just 1 meter from the lapping shore, we wrapped up our last night with a bit of salsa dancing! With a live band playing latin music and a very sassy instructor, we let our hair down and danced till the early hours!

My stay at the 5* La Licciola was luxurious, relaxing and authentically Sardinian. I’d recommend this hotel in a heartbeat. Thanks to all the staff at La Licciola and Delphina Hotels for helping me round off the summer in style!

Want to know more about my trip? Find out exactly what I got up to on my tour of North Sardinia right here.

Are you planning a trip to La Liccolia or Valle dell Erica Sardinia? What did you think of my experience? Comment in the box and let me know!