5 Awesome things to do on Mallorca

Author: Maria Stadler "A World of Destinations"

Mallorca is reputed to be a party island full of Germans and Brits – not really something that would call my attention. However, I decided to give it a try during off-season and visited the Spanish island in November. To my surprise, I loved Mallorca and found it a bit sad that this beautiful island is mainly known as a party tourism destination. The Capital Palma have a lot to offer with natural areas and scenic views of small villages on the island.

Cathedral of Palma

#1 WANDER THE STREETS OF PALMA

Palma has a beautiful old town with lots of shops, bars, restaurants and bakeries. Especially the cathedral and the area around it portray impressive architecture. What I loved most about being there off-season was that there were no tourist crowds. You can easily spend a whole day wandering through the alleys of the old town and discovering cute places and squares.

Cathedral of Palma

View of the "Torrent de Sa Riera"

#2 HAVE A DRINK IN THE BAR "ABACO"

This bar is an insider tip we got from a local. I will guarantee you that you've never seen a place like this before. It's like a combination of garden eden, a museum and a bar. There's also a garden-like outdoor area with fountains and birds. It's prohibited to take photos and only few people know about it, so it's not touristy at all. The ground floor is used as a bar while the first floor is used as a small museum and can be visited as well. The drinks are quite pricey, but one glass of wine is totally worth it. This bar is a unique place and a must-see if you're in Palma.

#3 RENT A CAR AND EXPLORE THE ISLAND

Mallorca has picturesque coasts and beaches, beautiful nature and cute villages. Make sure to rent a car and do a roadtrip around the island. We had our car for two days. The first day we headed north-east to visit Banyalbufar, Esporles, Valldemossa, Deià and Sóller. Initially we planned to go further north but due to the bad weather we decided to head back to Palma earlier. Even though it was raining, the nature was impressive and the green scenery next to the coast looked extremely beautiful!

All those villages are worth visiting and are for sure even more beautiful when the sun is shining.

Banyalbufar

Backstreet in Banyalbufar

On the second day we were luckier with the weather and the rain stopped. We headed south-west to visit Cala Santanyi, Cala Figuera, Cala d'Or, Portocolom and Santuari de Sant Salvador.

Cala Figuera: a cute little Fishing Village

Cala d'Or

Cala Santanyi

With around 16 degrees Celcius in November it was too cold to go swimming. But I loved that there was nobody else on the beach and we had the whole place for ourselves. The calmness and peacefulness of the nature was so relaxing. I suppose that those beaches are full of people in summer so I'm glad to have visited off-season.

#4 TRY COCA DE TRAMPÓ

Coca de Trampó is a local snack which looks a bit like pizza, but it doesn’t taste the same. The dough is different and it’s usually topped with veggies. I always love trying the local cuisine and Coca de Trampó was delicious. You can buy it in most of the bakeries or coffee shops.

#5 WATCH THE SUNSET AT SANTURI DE SANT SALVADOR

Sunset view from Santuari de Sant Salvador

Santuari de Sant Salvador is a place on top of a hill with a stunning view. You can drive up the hill by car and then you're rewarded with this insane view. We were up there all alone and the atmosphere was magical. There’s a lot of plants and wildlife around and we discovered a small herd of goats.

Goats at Santuari de Sant Salvador

Mallorca is definitely worth visiting and it has so much more to offer than just beaches and parties. The island is more crowded in summer so if you don't only go there for a beach vacation, I recommend visiting during shoulder season or off-season. Everything is way calmer and you can experience the true essence of the island without being surrounded by tourists everywhere you go.

As I’m generally a lover of Spain and the Spanish culture I especially loved all the tapas restaurants and the Spanish atmosphere on the island.

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