Puigpunent Mallorca Spain

Located on the W corner of the island, Puigpunent is set on a ridge in the craggy, partly pine-clad Tramuntana Mountains.
A pleasant village of about 1,000 people, Puigpuñent is strung along a mountain ridge for around ¾ ml, its mix of old and modern, low-rise, stone and render houses tumbling down either side. Its nucleus is a T-junction with a bar/cafe where things are so low-key that there is often no one behind the bar, let alone in front of it.

Apart from the 700-yr-old church, there is little in the village itself to interest visitors. Mainly German, British, Spanish and American tourists who stay at the village’s 5-star hotel. The emphasis here is on civilised relaxation. Not for those who want nightlife or beaches, although these can be found near Palma. There is a Bus service to Palma, but most visitors hire a car.

The area is popular with mainly German, British, Spanish and American tourists who stay at the village’s 5-star hotel. The emphasis is on civilised relaxation. Not for those who want nightlife or beaches, although these can be found near Palma.

Daytime activities are limited and generally revolve around relaxing by the hotel pool as there is no beach, or exploring the countryside. The village’s 1 hotel has live music most nights.

Nightlife is better suited to nearby Palma which has a wide range of nightclubs, bars and discos, as well as cultural events. There are a few bars/cafe/restaurants in the village, and also a Gourmet restaurant at the village’s 15 Star hotel.Natural-history and cultural tours arranged by the hotel. Soller mountain train.
Shopping consists of just essentials such as a pharmacy, small supermarket and bakery which fulfil basic requirements; also tobacconist. A tiny Tuesday morning market has a few stalls selling fresh produce. Full range of shops in Palma.

Local excursions consist of natural-history and cultural tours arranged by the hotel. Soller mountain train. A 5-hr hiking trip encompassing prehistoric remains, pine forests and olive groves. Monastery ruins. Helicopter flights. Golf. Deya and country estates. Valldemosa (where Chopin stayed), its monastery and historical sites. Pollensa, with its Roman bridge, historical church and chapel with 365 steps.

Deya Mallorca Spain

Deya is a beautiful, old, quiet, stone village perched on steep slopes, surrounded by land cultivated on narrow terraces. An attractive church presides over the houses, which are connected by narrow lanes. It was the home of the poet Robert Graves and is still popular with artists and writers. It also has a small expatriate population and is a favourite of more mature Europeans, wanting the quiet life. Not much happens here and that’s the way they like it. The village’s few amenities are situated along a ¼-mile stretch of the main road running between Soller and Valldemossa.

Locality: Deya is situated halfway along the NW coast, 18½ mls N of Palma, 6¼ mls W of Soller and NE of Valldemossa. It is 23½ mls from the airport. It is positioned on a vast, natural amphitheatre in the mountainside and above the sea. Magnificent country of intense blues and greens, with mountain peaks looming behind.

Deya is popular for quiet, relaxation and appreciation of the scenery holidays. It tends to be popular with predominantly middle-aged couples, with many British and German visitors. Not suitable for those with walking difficulties, as slopes and steps are unavoidable. Children will be hopelessly bored.

Accommodation consists of two upmarket hotels and one or two pensions and a limited selection of privately owned villa’s. A small cove ½ mile downhill provides the main beach in the area. However, tiny but nevertheless appealing beaches can be found at Lluc Alcari and Son Marroig (2 and 3 mls respectively).
Shopping is limited to a couple of boutiques, some galleries for upmarket souvenirs and artists’ studios. One or two shops for basics.

Daytime activities include: museum, artists’ studios. Exhibition gallery in one hotel. By night everything is failry quiet, though hotels arrange the occasional diversion. There are a limited number of restaurants and bars, from tapas and pizza to a la carte in Deya.
Getting around is fairly easy with regular bus service along the Palma/Valldemossa/Deya/Soller/Puerto de Soller route. Car is practically essential to explore outlying areas.

Local excursions include: drive to Valldemosa, with its monastery (briefly home of Chopin); Soller (market on Saturday); Palma. Scenic mountain drive to Lluc Monastery.

Cala D'Or Mallorca Spain

Like most resorts in Mallorca, Cala d’Or (Golden Cove) evolved from a local fishing village after its charms and idyllic setting were ‘discovered’, in this instance, by a group of avant-garde artists who settled here in the 1930s.
They built their white, flat-roofed houses around the picturesque fishing harbour, and soon the word spread. Cala d’Or became a desirable spot to have a holiday home, or for a relaxing seaside vacation. The original village and harbour was situated in one of the small rocky coves with sandy beaches, called ‘calas’, that abound on Mallorca’s east coast.
The resort has now spread out to encompass several of these coves, all now beset with attractive hotels, apartment blocks and villas. It is a very chic resort, recommended for families because most establishments cater extremely well for children. There are numerous adjacent smaller resorts and quaint villages clustered around the calas all along the south-east coastline, connected by a good bus service, which means visitors can make excursions to explore the delights of places like Cala Egos, Puerto Petro, Cala Mondrago, Cala Figuera, Cala Santanyi and Cala Llombarts. The Cala d’Or marina is the heart of the east coast resort area, attracting the fashionable yachting set.

Locality:

Cala d’Or is situated on the SE coast, 8 mls NE of Santanyi, 10 mls SE of Felanitx, 40 mls SE of Palma and the airport. The area is set on a series of 8 or 9 coves that go by the collective name of Cala d’Or. Most are deep inlets edged with grey rocks and pine woods.
Shopping: Cala d’Or is known as the best shopping district on Mallorca, its main shopping street, Avinguda Tagomago, filled with chic boutiques, leather shops and galleries. Designer clothes and shoes, in particular, are available at reasonable prices. For designer wear a good port of call is Irocco on Avinguda Tagomago, and for a classy pair of shoes to match the outfit visit the exclusive Farrutx store near Placa Ibiza. Trendy clothes are available at two Piscies outlets in the town centre. Souvenir shopping is fun with the wide variety of local crafts, traditional pottery and glass, and olive wood carvings available at several stores, and at the Sunday morning flea market in Felanitx. Visitors can also find bargains in designer sunglasses, jewellery and perfume.

Those in self-catering apartments who need sustenance will find all they require at the resort’s biggest supermarket, Caprabo, near the resort entrance.

Cala d’Or’s has a varied range of eateries with upmarket restaurants situated around the marina, which is usually abuzz with a lively international crowd enjoying a variety of cuisines. The centre of town offers fast food outlets, tapas bars, pizza parlours, burger joints and several British pub ‘n grub type establishments. At the marina try the Café Continental for snacks and sandwiches, or Blanco y Negro for pizzas and seafood. Port Petit is a high-class seafood restaurant renowned for quality and service. Aquarius and El Yate are two other good choices for top quality international cuisine at the marina.
By night Cala d’Or is tasteful and stylish, rather than frenetic, centred around the many cocktail bars and discos.

Popular daytime activies are mainly centred around the seven beaches, of which the largest is Cala Gran, all with fine white sand and clear shallow water. The larger beaches have good facilities offering watersports including sailing, windsurfing and scuba-diving. Those wishing to venture further afield can take a ‘champagne cruise’ along the coastline, ride a mini-train to picturesque Cala Mondrago with its two lovely coves, or take excursions to the villages of Cala Figuera, Puerto Petro, Sa Colonia de Sant Jordi or the isle of Cabrera.

Most hotels offer full entertainment programmes for children, and there are trampolines and mini go-karts at Mallorcalandia, as well as mini-golf in the town centre. Cala d’Or is definitely a family-oriented resort, not catering for the 18-30 single set, particularly those who enjoy a wild night-life. The music bars and discos are usually quiet by 2am. The main resort beaches can become enormously crowded, particularly during July and August, and holiday-makers have to be up and about early if they hope to secure a sunbed for the day. It is possible to bus, or hire a car, to travel to nearby less populated beaches and coves, but these are not likely to offer all the facilities of the resort beaches.

Popular Attractions/Activities/Excursions: Arta: The ancient hilltop town of Arta close to the east coast of Mallorca has been occupied for about 3,000 years, and today welcomes visitors to the remains of its Bronze Age settlement at Ses Paisses, just outside the town in a grove of olive, carob and holm oak trees. Arta presents a picturesque sight from the Santuari de Sant Salvador, the chapel-shrine on top of the hill, with its bleached rooftops spilling down the hillside below the battlements of a Moorish fortress. The town is particularly lively on Tuesdays, which is market day. Castell d’Alaro : Mallorca’s most popular hiking trail is the climb from the town of Alaro up to a ruined castle and hilltop chapel, which offers panoramic views of the sea and plains as far as Palma. From Alaro the walk takes about two hours to complete. The castle ruins on the hilltop date from the 15th century and dominate the landscape. At the summit there is a restaurant and bar to refresh weary climbers. On Sundays the trail becomes rather busy.

Excursions: This part of the E coast is not ideal for tours, as the roads tend to be narrow and winding and many of the principal sights are on the opposite side of the island. Caves of Drach and Ham are, however, a convenient half-day trip. Other tours, including Palma, are generally full-day tours. Alcudia old town and Formentor Peninsula. The NW mountains; monastery at Lluc, Soller, Deya, Valldemosa. Boat cruises. Jeep safaris.

Alcudia Mallorca Spain

The resort of Alcudia is situated in the north east coast of Mallorca at the top of a long curving bay with an endless white sandy beach. It is situated 34 mls NE of Palma and the airport by way of a good, mainly straight road.This sprawling, purpose-built resort, together with its neighbour Playa de Muro, stretches for five miles (eight km) either side of the coast road and is particularly popular with British, German and Scandinavian families. It has a fairly relaxed atmosphere; its spectacular beach is the major attraction, though it is also well placed for exploring the attractions around the north of the island.

The activities in Alcudia are mainly focused along the spectacular five-mile (eight km) beach that fronts the resort. All sorts of watersports can be arranged from scuba diving to banana rides.
There are tennis and squash courts in the resort and nearby attractions include a water park, a go-kart track and horse riding stables. Boats trips can be arranged to the stunning Formentor promontory where passengers can snorkel or simply take in the views.

The nearby towns of Pollenca and Alcudia (old town) and the mountain village of Lluc are worth exploring in search of a little culture, while those looking to get away from it all can take a trip to the mountainous western side of the island. Alcudia doesn’t have a distinct shopping centre: shops selling buckets and spades and tourist trinkets line the beach road and the other small shopping areas dotted around the resort also cater for tourists. The satellite resort of Playa de Muro has an upmarket mall with some nice boutiques and the port area has a selection of designer shops.

The supermarkets are good, stocking all the well-known brands along with cheap alcohol and cigarettes. The local market opens on Tuesday and Sunday mornings and the market in Inca, 15 miles (24km) inland, opens on Thursdays. Good buys include the porcelain and leather goods, but bargain hard.

As far as eating options, most restaurants in Alcudia cater for the unadventurous British palate with plenty of fast-food joints and cafés offering something with chips. There are also a few Italian, Indian and Chinese restaurants. The better restaurants are mostly in the port area, where diners can find some decent Spanish, French and seafood restaurants within a lovely harbour setting.

Alcudia has lots of bars, pubs and discos catering for most tastes but this is not the resort for those after some serious clubbing. Many of the hotels offer in-house entertainment ranging from flamenco dancers to comedians.
The resort of Alcudia is not known for its architectural merit; its skyline is dominated by 1960s style apartment blocks. To the relief of many, Alcudia is not the resort for party animals; those looking for some serious clubbing should head for the south of the island.

Local excursions include the nearby old town of Alcudia with medieval streets and Roman remains; Puerto de Pollensa and peninsula of Formentor; monastery of Lluc and onward to Soller, Deya and Valldemosa; Caves of Drach and Hams; Palma; market at inland town of Inca (Thurs); jeep safaris; boat cruises; evening shows.