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Attractions
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 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 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.
Mallorca Theme Parks
There are several excellent waterparks in
Mallorca. The largest is Aqualand in L'Arenal which has a great selection of
water slides located in beautiful gardens. There are buses there from the
centre of Palma, otherwise get on the motorway from Palma to Santanyi and come
off at exit 13.
Aqualand Magaluf (Ctra Cala Figuera) is just on the outskirts of the resort
and has ample waterslides including several which are specially designed for
children. Just across the main road is the Western Water Park which has the
highest slide in Mallorca and has quite a few shows to keep everyone amused.
Of the two this one is better geared towards younger children whilst teenagers
will prefer Aqualand.
 One
other waterpark of note is the Hidropark in Alcudia (Avenida Tucan) which has
a good range of slides for all ages and is adjacent to a 54 hole mini-golf
course.
Another massive attraction near Magaluf
and Palma Nova is Marineland at Costa d'en Blanes which has a great selection
of sea creatures on display including dolphins, penguins and sharks. The
dolphin school and shows are great entertainment.
For those looking for something more active and
thrilling there is the outdoor adventure park Jungle Parc which is located in
Santa Ponsa. It has 2 adventure courses which take you from tree to tree by
means of rope bridges, swings, slides and more.
There is also the La Reserva Parc Natural which
offers a whole range of outdoors activities such as rock climbing, trekking
and flying foxes. Courses can be arranged for private groups and this can
include team building activities if required. This Park can be found in
Puigpunyent only a short distance from Palma and Magaluf.
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