Scotland and Sardinia

 Our son called to say that their children will be back from Spain and out of school in late August; would we like to come visit?  Late August in Washington, DC, is hot and humid.  But what if the visit was the start of another longer trip?  Would that make a DC visit more attractive? We have never been to Scotland, although it has been under consideration for a few years.  In early September the main tourist season in Scotland should be ending, and the weather still acceptable.  We have made reservations for when we initially arrive and for the last day before we leave.  In early September, Scotland tourist season is apparently still quite busy.

Once in Europe, what other destination might be attractive?  Something further south?  I looked at cruises, but nothing quite fit. What about Sardinia?  Sort of off the usual tourist route.... but attractive.

Sardinia is a semi-autonomous part of Italy. The main tourists there are other Europeans, many from Italy itself.  Finding flights to and from Sardinia without multiple stops, airline flight changes, hours spent in terminals, and rechecking of luggage was difficult.  If you are rechecking luggage, that means you are going through security all over again. But I have practice at this and found options: KLM Dutch going there via Amsterdam and Swissair returning via Zurich and London.  These flights are scheduled only 1-2 days per week.  Sardinia has two main international airports.  We fly into the south end of the island, Cagliari, and fly out from the north end of the island at Olbia (necessary in order to get the needed flights).  So, it will happen, two weeks in Scotland and twelve days in Sardinia.

Now to practice some Italian on Duolingo; surprising how different it is from Spanish.

Frustration! Our flight from Glasgow to Amsterdam was cancelled which means we miss the connection to a direct flight from AMS to Cagliari.  We have had to reschedule to an earlier day and a book a flight with an additional stop in Rome.  This also affects hotel reservations and rental car reservations.... but I got it done.

Post script:    Then our KLM flight was delayed, then cancelled again.  Instead of arriving in Sardinia at 18:30 on Saturday, we arrived at midnight on Sunday.  Because we were late, our vehicle rental was cancelled; also, our luggage was lost, and the weather was unusually warm with a significant haze.  Our worst trip ever.