Population: 41,095
Altitude: 15 m. above sea level

The town of Olbia is situated on a plain, in the farthest point inland of the Gulf of Olbia, on the north-eastern coast of Sardinia, in front of the island of Tavolara. It is an important town in this area and has a busy port and airport. In fact, the Olbia port is the busiest on the whole island with thousands of visitors arriving every day, particularly in summer.

The town is believed to have been founded in Punic times (VI century B.C.) and became an important trading settlement during the Roman Era. The many archaeological remains to be seen are testimony to this flourishing Roman period, such as the thermal baths, the aqueduct and the impressive public buildings. It was the main port for the arrival and departure of the Roman ships, which supplied the city of Rome with wheat.

In the 1960s Olbia experienced a genuine demographic boom linked to the rapid development in the tourist industry of the whole Gallura region. The economy is based on tourism, but also boasts a healthy food industry and an important fishing and mussel farming sector. The territory has been inhabited by man since Neolithic times and there is fascinating testimony to the Nuragic civilisation.
The Nuragic complex of Cabu Abbas is particularly interesting, as is the Sacred Well of Sa Testa.
Visitors can admire numerous remains from the Roman Era, such as the town's defence wall and the thermal baths.

The remains of the Medieval castle of Pedres lie to the west of the town. The castle stands in a strategic position on a granite hill and is visible from all over the surrounding plain.
Visitors should not miss the church of San Simplicio, the oldest, most artistic and important religious monument in the Gallura region, and clear testimony to the diffusion of Christianity in Sardinia.

It is stands apart from other Romanesque churches because its facade reveals architectural influences from the regions of Tuscany and Lombardy. The interior area is divided by pillars and columns, which support the beamed roof and the vaults of the side aisles. On the walls there are some stones from the Roman road which led to Telti and numerous Roman gravestones from the nearby necropolis. Besides the cultural and archaeological places of interest, the whole territory offers an extraordinary natural environment with coastal areas of rare beauty and a magnificent marine panorama.