Mallorca Attractions
City of Palma de Mallorca
With a population of over 300,000, Palma is the only real city of the
Balearics yet its slow pace of life is quite distinct from the Spanish city's of
the mainland.
The centrepiece of its beautiful historic quarter with grand
Renaissance mansions and Baroque churches is its Gothic cathedral which took
over 500 years to build and as an attraction compares favourably with the better
known cathedrals of Spain.
Most of the main sights of Palma are contained within the city walls and it's
easy to explore on foot. If you can be there after nightfall it is a spectacular
sight to see the floodlit Cathedral and the Almudaina Palace from the
waterfront. As well as the historical interest of Old Palma there is also good
shopping for the day visitor and a pleasant café culture to enjoy.
Cathedral of Palma
As is the case all over Spain, Palma's Cathedral, Sa Seu, was constructed on
the site of a former Arab mosque. According to legend, whilst sailing to Majorca
in 1230 to recapture it from the Moors, Jaime I's fleet was hit by a major
storm. He prayed to the Virgin Mary and vowed that if he survived the storm he
would build a church in her honour. Work on it began in 1306 and has continued
to this day with controversial touches added in the 20th century by Gaudi.
Bellver Castle
Bellver (meaning "beautiful view") Castle dates from the 14th century and is
unique amongst Spanish castles thanks to its circular design. Built originally
as a royal fortress located above the city, it attracts many visitors these days
thanks to its magnificent views across the Bay of Palma towards the airport and
beyond. The easiest way there is to take a taxi or to walk up through the woods
behind the El Terreno part of town.
Beaches of Mallorca
The island of Mallorca has outstanding beaches along all of its coastline.
And with over 300 days of sunshine a year you can't go far wrong in choosing
this island paradise for your beach holiday destination. Here we've added a list
of Mallorca beaches. The larger beach resorts with excellent sand include
Magaluf and Palma Nova to the west of Palma and
Puerto Pollenca and Alcudia on the
north coast.
Sierra de Tramuntana
Standing at 1445 metres above sea level, Puig Mayor is the highest point in
Mallorca. Relatively few visitors leave their beach resorts so don't appreciate
what a mountainous island they are on. A day spent driving down the
northwest coast
from Pollenca to Andratx is simply stunning with notable stops at Sa Calobra
where you must follow a coastal path through tunnels in the cliffs to the
amazing limestone gorge at Torrente de Pareis. You must also visit the village
of Deia which has long been known as an artist's hang out where the likes of the
poet Robert Graves and the artist Joan Miró resided. The monastery at
Lluc is
another important stop and you'll love all the villlages you pass through en
route notably Banyalbufar and the quaint beach resort of
Sant Elm with the
island of Dragonera just off it.
Train from Palma to Soller
A great day out from Palma is to take the train to
Soller. This narrow gauge
train has covered this route through the Serra de Tramuntana mountains since
1912. The one-hour trip leaves Palma from the rail station in Cala Eusebi Estada
near the Plaça de Espanya. The journey is beautiful as the vintage train goes
through some stunning countryside with orange, lemon and almond trees
everywhere. On arrival in Soller you can get on Mallorca's first electric tram
which will transport you at a snail's pace to the Port of Soller 5km away. There
are different summer and winter timetables for this service. You can check the
Soller Train Website
for details.
Caves of Drach
Mallorca has some spectacular caves at various locations around the island.
Probably the most spectacular are the
Caves of Drach (Coves del Drach) at
Portocristo. Today they represent one of the island's top attractions in which
four spectacular chambers with thousands of stalactites are made even more
impressive by the top quality lighting arrangements. A mini concert takes place
on one of the underground lakes and visitors can take a boat ride steered by a
gondolier at the end of the visit. Two other impressive cave are the
Caves of Hams and the
Caves of Arta
Valldemossa
In 1838 Frederic Chopin and George Sand arrived in Mallorca to continue their
love affair in this idyllic town in the Tramuntana mountains just 18km from
Palma. Today in Valdemossa you can still buy the book "Winter in Mallorca" which
George Sand wrote there in spite of the fact that it has little to say of a
positive nature about their stay on the island. Apart from the natural beauty of
the town, the principal architectural attraction is the Royal Carthusian
Monastery which contains a selection of interesting museums dedicated to a
variety of themes as well as the monk's cell where Chopin and Sand spent their
brief time here. See Also:
Mallorca Theme Parks
Magaluf for Children
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