This post has been a long time coming as I actually visited Mallorca late last year, however the trip did not go to plan. In fact, the trip was fraught with problems which has perhaps stalled my thoughts.

However, I have decided to post now, as Mallorca is a beautiful Spanish island and I think its well worthy of a visit.

The reason we went to Spain was to attend the wedding of a friends daughter in Barcelona. Prior to the wedding we had six glorious days in Mallorca. However, the morning of the wedding I came down with terrible gastro. I missed the stupendous event and was gutted. Then, my father in law’s health deteriorated so we cancelled our trip to Tunisia which was supposed to follow on from Spain. So all in all, my European/African adventure was reduced to 10 days and I never got to the wedding…sad.

Now I’ve got that off my chest, I’ll move onto a more positive vibe, and tell you why you should visit Mallorca.

First, we flew Emirates, our favourite airline, from Auckland to Dubai, stopping over at the W Dubai – The Palm. I’ve recently written a blog on hotels I’ve stayed in Dubai, so if you are looking for accommodation recommendations in Dubai, click here. After a good rest, we continued on our way to Barcelona, then a short flight to the small island of Mallorca.

Cap Rocat Hotel

We stayed at Cap Rocat, outside of Palma, the most beautiful hotel, I’ve ever stayed in. It was originally an ancient fortress located in a secluded part of the Bay of Palma. It was never used as a fortress and has now been re-purposed as a hotel. It’s not just any hotel, it is one of the ‘Small Luxury Hotels of the world.’ It’s stunning, unique and dreamy.

Arriving at the hotel, we crossed the moat and the hotel entrance came into view. Wide steps took us down to a sunken courtyard, the heart of the hotel. Breakfast was served in the courtyard, and in the evening the lighting of the fortress created a magical ambience, where we devoured delicous tapas paired with outstanding wines.

Tapas in the courtyard

Our tapas dining experiences in the courtyard is just one of three restaurant options at Cap Rocat.

The Beach Club

The second restaurant in the hotel was the Beach Club, overlooking the Mediterranean Ocean. A more romantic location would be hard to find, and as it happened a young man proposed to his bride in front of us. Tables dotted over the rocks, beautifully lit, providing intimate dining nooks. The food, predominantly seafood was fresh and local. As the sun went down, the candles flickered, and the full moon shimmered on the water. This popular spot takes reservations from outside the hotel, so book well in advance.

La Fortaleza

The third and most famous dining option at Cap Rocat is La Fortaleza. The chef’s passion at this Michelin starred restaurant is to produce avant-garde food, using local produce. Our multi-course evening (I think there were about 10 courses) was spectacularly presented with food combinations and flavours I had not experienced before. Unfortunately, we ate there on our first night when we were still jet lagged, so we didn’t do this fine dining experience justice. So if you go to La Fortaleza make sure you have stamina for the most amazing degustation meal.

Our room at Cap Rocat

Our room at Cap Rocat, was not a room but a stand-alone villa with great indoor, outdoor flow, and an elevated cabana over-looking the ocean. It was spacious, with separate sleeping and living areas. While we couldn’t walk to the ocean from our villa, there were several areas where the ocean could be accessed. In true Mediterranean style, steps guided swinmmers down over rocks to the tepid, clear blue ocean. The fortress also had an infinity pool, overlooking to the ocean, surrounded by deliciously comfortable day beds. A food and beverage service made poolside even more enjoyable.

Palma – Mallorca

Having pulled ourselves away from Cap Rocat we ventured into the capital of Mallorca, Palma or more precisely the Old City of Palma. It’s a maze of narrow streets, steeped in history with a pronounced Arabic past. Most of the streets in the city quarter are cobbled with a diverse range of architecture including Renaissance, Baroque and Gothic. I did a historic tour, on foot with a guide for a couple of hours which was well worth. It is so satisfying learning about the history of a town, rather than walking aimlessly around .

The highlights of Palma’s Old City were the Cathedral of Mallorca, the Royal Palace of La Almudaina, the Banys Àrabs and Convent de Santa a peu.

As you can imagine, the most notable building in the old city was the 14th-century Cathedral of Mallorca, also known as the Cathedral of Santa Maria (‘La Seu’ in Catalan). The cathedral dominates the city skyline. It was built on the site of a previous mosque, which was built on top of the original Christian church, which speaks volumes about the history of Mallorca. The construction of the Cathedral was a long and slow process beginning in 1229, but was not finished until 1601. Then, in 1901 restoration work was carried out by local architect, Antoni Gaudi, architect of the famous Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

Opposite the cathedral is another very large historic monument, the Royal Palace of La Almudaina. It was built as a Moorish palace before being taken over by the King of Spain. It’s a mix of Islamic and Gothic architectural styles. The palace is still the official residence of the Spanish royal family in Mallorca, but they only use it for functions, preferring to stay in a more modern palace nearby. Visitors can look around the royal apartments, decorated with tapestries, furniture and artworks from its vast history. There are also lovely views from the terrace and gardens.

Another historical site worthy of a visit is the Arab Baths (Els Banys Àrabs). It’s one of the few remnants of Palma’s 300 years of Moorish occupation, when the city was known as Medina Mayurqa. The baths were built in the 10th century as part of a grand manor house. You can see the remains of the caldarium (steam room) with light streaming through the roof and tepidarium (warm room) with its vaulted ceiling.

However, despite the magnificent Cathedral of Mallorca  and these incredible bath house ruins, my most memorable place in Mallorca was the Covent de Santa Clara a peu. Here, in this unassuming looking building lives an order of cloistered nuns. Cloistered nuns seperate themselves from the external world, do not leave their residence and cannot be seen. However, to assist with income they bake sweet biscuits and sell them. To buy the sweet treats you enter a side door of the convent where there is a turnstile. You ring the bell to notify the nuns you are there, place your money on the wooden turnstyle and spin it. The turnstile is returned with biscuits in cellophane wrapping and the transaction is complete. The small salty-sweet, crunchy biscuits are delicious.

The nuns are famous for these biscuits, with people traveling from afar to buy them. One of the nice touches at Cap Rocat, was a small container of these biscuits in our room, with a note explaining they were made by the local cloistered nuns.

Outside of the old city of Palma there’s also a lot to see. You can stroll along the water front, one of its biggest attractions of Palma and walk for miles enjoying the along the luxury yachts, palm trees, sandy beaches and seafront bars and restaurants, but for me it’s all about the old city.

It’s also worthwhile exploring the east and west coasts, but be warned the traffic and number of tourists can be a deterrent.

West Coast of Mallorca

Outside of Palma there is a whole island to explore, with over 300 beaches and many quaint and charming villages. You could spend a couple of days exploring as we did, or if you had more time and are beach lovers, a couple spend weeks.

One day we headed up the west coast of the island visiting Valldemossa, Dela and Soller, stopping at several of the beaches on route. The west coast of Mallorca is dramatic with narrow and windy roads taking you to great heights above the ocean. However, we underestimated, even in September, how any tourist would still be about and how congested the narrow roads would be. It was impossible to get a park in Valldemossa, as it was at many of the beaches. My advice is to go early in the morning.

Having said that the town of Valldemossa is a great place to visit and is only about 20 minutes from Palma. It’s in the Tramuntana mountains, but feels a world away from the capital. Perched on a hilltop, surrounded by terraced terrain, Valldemossa has car-free cobbled alleys and is rich cultural heritage.

We also stopped at Soller, a great place to relax and enjoy the sun. Soller has a main square lined with restaurants serving seafood and a large bay which was once an old fishing harbour. The town climbs up the hills away from the ocean with rustic stone homes on the hillsides. A vintage tram rolls through the town on the coast, taking sunseekers between the two main beaches.

East Coast of Mallorca

We also spend a day exploring the east side of Mallorca, well known for its many picturesque beaches. The coastline is peppered with shallow bays and inlets.

We visited Calo des Moro and Cala Varques, both divine, but if you are wanting a longer list these are some of the best beaches on the east coast of Mallorca.

Cala Llombards, Cala Figuera, Cala Mondragó, Cala d’Or, Cala Esmeralda, Cala Mitjana, Cala Romántica, Cala Mendía, Cala Anguila, Cala Millor, Cala Rajada. Cala Mesquida, Cala Torta.

Exploe and have fun.