Grotta del Bue Marino Tickets: the Cave, the Boat and the Bundles

You can only see the Grotta del Bue Marino on a guided visit, and you get there by boat from Cala Gonone, so you need two things: a seat on a boat and a cave ticket for the visit time that matches it. The cave ticket for 2026 is €10.50 for an adult in spring and autumn and €12.50 from June to September, with the boat paid separately. The simplest way is a booking that includes both: Nuovo Consorzio Trasporti Marittimi’s Grotta del Bue Marino boat trip (Nuovo Consorzio Trasporti Marittimi) covers the boat, the ticket and the guide in two hours, from €25 a person (checked October 2026).

Check dates for the boat and cave visit

What the visit is

The Grotta del Bue Marino is a sea cave in the cliffs south of Cala Gonone, in the territory of Dorgali. Visits are guided only and run for the Comune di Dorgali. The route is the south branch: about 800 m on a walkway, about one hour, with visits on the hour and up to 120 people on each. Inside you walk past stalactites and stalagmites and along underground lakes, with the guide explaining how the cave was formed. The walking route is easy and suits most visitors; shoes with grip are a better idea than beach sandals.

The name comes from the Mediterranean monk seal. Local people called it the bue marino, the “sea ox”, for its heavy build, and the cave was one of the last places in Sardinia where the seals found refuge.

The 2026 cave ticket

On a phone, swipe the table sideways for the prices.

These are cave-ticket prices only; the boat is extra. Ask at the ticket office who qualifies for the reduced rate.

Buying the ticket and the boat separately

You can buy the cave ticket at the ticket office in front of the boarding pier in the port of Cala Gonone. Pick a visit time that matches your boat: the crossing from Cala Gonone takes about 20 to 30 minutes, and the visits run hourly. The boat crossing is a separate fare. Doing it this way makes sense if you want to set your own times or are combining the cave with another boat. The Cala Gonone boat trip guide explains how the harbour works.

Boat and cave together: which bundle

The bookings on GetYourGuide that include the cave combine the boat and the entry ticket, so there is nothing to match up. Pick by how much of the day you want to give it:

Book the version that fits your day:

Prices, ratings and review counts from GetYourGuide, checked October 2026. Operators price by season, so treat them as the shape of the market, not a quote.

From 1 October to 2 November 2026 the cave ticket alone is €10.50, so the 2-hour trip (Nuovo Consorzio Trasporti Marittimi) is the boat and the ticket for one price. The cave and Cala Luna trip (Nuovo Consorzio Trasporti Marittimi) suits a half day; the Cala Luna boat trip guide covers the beach itself.

The full-day cruises do not include the cave

If you are booked on a full day along the gulf, the cave is not in it. Agostino Charter’s dinghy excursion to Cala Mariolu and Cala Goloritzé (Agostino Charter srl) and Nuovo Consorzio’s Gulf of Orosei cruise with Cala Goloritzé (Nuovo Consorzio Trasporti Marittimi) both list the Grotta del Bue Marino ticket as excluded. To see the cave and the far coves, do the cave on a separate, shorter trip, or read the Cala Goloritzé boat trip guide for the long days.

On foot from Cala Fuili

From Cala Fuili, the cove south of Cala Gonone, a path reaches the cave in about 40 minutes. It arrives at the north branch, which is not the one on the guided visit. To walk the south branch you go by boat.

The end of the 2026 season, and 2027

The boats to the cave run every day from Easter to All Saints (1 November), and the 2026 cave-ticket prices run to 2 November 2026, so the last visits of 2026 are around 1 and 2 November. On 26 October 2026 the Nuovo Consorzio trip still showed departures from 27 October 2026. The 2027 season starts at Easter, 28 March 2027. Staying in the village makes an early or a late visit easy; the guide to where to stay compares Cala Gonone with Dorgali. The cave fits into a morning or an afternoon, which leaves the rest of the day free for something inland: the Gorropu Canyon home page covers the gorge inland from Dorgali, one of the deepest in Europe.

Check dates and book

How these facts were checked

The visit route, length, duration and group size, the 2026 cave-ticket prices and periods, and where to buy come from the Comune di Dorgali and the 2026 tariff of the Nuovo Consorzio Trasporti Marittimi in Cala Gonone, which also gives the crossing time and the Easter to All Saints service. What each bundle includes and excludes, ratings and first open dates come from the GetYourGuide listings, read on 26 October 2026. Prices and timetables change by season, so check them for your dates.