The super Sardinian hotel scented with honey where you can dine on the beach

by Andrea Marta

In Sardinia, every corner has its own scent. That of the helichrysum that grows wild, of the Mediterranean scrub blazing under the sun, of the salt that settles on the skin. It is an island you experience with your senses and recognise at the very first breath. From north to south, its character is strong: the landscape changes, its scents change, with the constant mistral wind mixing them until they almost create a single fragrance. And sometimes it happens that this fragrance becomes the very protagonist of ideas and the soul of a place.

In Porto Rotondo, just before the road ends in the sand, at the Hotel Abi d’Oru, one of the first to be built in this area, even before sight, it is the sense of smell that opens the door. The air smells of aromatic plants, warm sand and sun-drenched woods. A fragrance that is not worn but perceived. And that guides the guest through a sensorial experience designed to connect with Sardinia in an intimate and profound way. There is nothing ostentatious in this soft architecture that embraces the Marinella bay, visible while dining at the restaurant: everything here speaks Sardinian, naturally. And then there is another detail, almost invisible yet immensely powerful: the very air has a precise, persistent scent, describing the soul of the place even before words do.

It is the hallmark of the Olfactory Project, launched last year by perfumer Luca Maffei to restore the island’s profound identity. An essence that smells of helichrysum and juniper, saffron and ancient woods, amber and sea breeze. An invisible signature guiding the stay experience and found everywhere: in diffusers, in artisan candles, in cocktails inspired by the territory – where strawberry tree honey and citrus notes blend with helichrysum soda or Cannonau vermouth – and even in the dishes, conceived to portray Sardinia also through smell (last year themed dinners were also organised). The aim is to make you feel at home, in a Sardinian home, where every detail carries an emotional and identity-driven function.

Fifteen bee families

A thread that paves the way for another symbolic project: The Abi Bees, where honey becomes a vehicle for storytelling, a tool for social inclusion and a gastronomic ingredient. Within the hotel’s large park live fifteen bee families, tended to daily among more than 5,000 native plants.

The honey they produce is offered to guests either pure or within a tasting paired with local cheeses and guided by a Honey Menu, which selects five organic varieties, some produced by enterprises belonging to the GICOIAS project, dedicated to providing employment for young people with psychological disabilities through beekeeping.

A gesture of care also found in the bread created by pastry chef Andrea Tortora: a profound dough with natural leavening, cocoa, cocoa beans, and wildflower honey. An attention to sweetness that continues with the artisanal gelato, whose signature cup – called precisely Abi d’Oru (golden bee in Sardinian) – combines Sardinian ricotta and acacia honey. For children, who can discover this world through lessons and encounters, there is also a welcome ritual: a bee-shaped soft toy on the bed and a “gold coin” to be exchanged for the first ice cream of the holiday.