Mallorca Sights – special Top 3

Mallorca sights – my personal recommendations.

My Mallorca sights are completely different from the normal tips and are in most travel guides mostly in the small print. There are interesting sights to discover in every corner of the island:

Excursions in Mallorca. Today I present to you my three favorites of the special places on Mallorca as a short overview.

Mallorca sights No. 1: Planetarium

The Mallorca Planetarium and Observatory is located in the small town of Costitx in the middle of the island. If you think, “This can’t be the way!” then you are right. The streets are very narrow and at some point you feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere. Therefore tip #1: Choose a small car for this excursion.

You will immediately notice that Costitx is right in the landing path of Palma Airport. It’s a hell of a racket! There is a maximum of one to two minutes between each landing aircraft.

Our guided tour took place on Saturday at 8 p.m. – dawn: killer mosquito time and here they are really numerous and aggressively present. So tip #2: Wear long-sleeved clothing and use mosquito repellent.

The tour lasts about two hours and includes an exhibition with meteorite particles, a demonstration in the planetarium, a mini-seminar on planets, asteroids, etc. as well as, in our case, the view through a telescope of the Moon, Venus and Jupiter. Of course, this always depends on which planets are clearly visible.

The tour is offered in Spanish and English and is conducted by very nice and dedicated volunteers.

All in all, the planetarium gives the impression that it has seen somewhat better times. The financial means seem to be very limited, but the Mallorcan planetarium is the only one in Europe that can project images from telescopes in real time. The passion of the employees makes up for the first impression. Even a model of the lunar module Orion of the Apollo 16 Mission, almost in its original size, has been copied by simple means.

I recommend this trip for stargazers, interested people and especially families with children. Tip #3: Call them beforehand to find out if and when the tour will take place.

http://www.oamallorca.org

https://www.facebook.com/MallorcaPlanetarium/

Camí de Son Bernat, 9 (1.365,74 km)
07144 Costitx
+34 649 99 77 52

Mallorca sights No. 2: Caves

Mallorca has numerous caves and grottos, around 5,000 are said to be there. Most of them are not accessible or are located on private property. In the past, locals, smugglers and pirates used the caves as shelters.
Five of Mallorca’s largest caves are open to tourists and can be visited.
I visited the largest of the caves on the island, the Coves de Àrtà.

 

The Coves of Àrtà are located on the east coast. The entrance is in the northeast of Canyamel Bay on Cap Vermell. The caves can only be entered with a guided tour. The entrance fee is 15 Euro per person and the tour lasts about 30-40 minutes. The temperature inside is quite comfortable at about 18 degrees. I was impressed by the size of the stalactites and stalagmites.

The green, orange and purple discolorations are caused by fungi. The tour is quite touristic. There is a part with music in the background and the stalactites are colorfully illuminated. Nevertheless, I liked it and I can recommend a visit to the Arta Caves as an excursion destination.

Cuevas de Artà – Ctra. de las Cuevas, S/N
07589 Canyamel
+34 971 841 293

Other caves to visit are the Coves del Drac and the Coves dels Hams, both near Porto Cristo. In the interior between Inca and Alcudia you will find the Coves de Campanet. Near Palma is the smallest of the caves to visit, the Coves de Genova.

The tourist portal for Mallorca  provides an overview including addresses and opening hours.

 

Mallorca sights No. 3: Watchtowers and Defense Towers

The watchtowers and fortified towers (Torres) were mainly used as an early warning system between the 15th and 19th centuries and in part as a refuge. At that time, numerous ships came from Turkey and North Africa to plunder, kill or enslave people. This also explains why most of the towns are inland and why, for example, fincas such as the Hotel Can Simoneta are rarely found on the coast.

Just like the windmills on Mallorca, the watchtowers are now declared and protected as a cultural asset.
From about 80 of the original towers, a restoration is probably only worthwhile for about 50 and only 24 of them are currently accessible.
I will now give you some impressions of two very different towers in the north and east of Mallorca:

Torre de Canyamel

This former fortified tower from the 13th century now houses a small museum.  The roof of the tower is also accessible and you can enjoy the view of Canyamel from there. The entrance fee is 4 Euro.

From time to time, concerts take place in the tower or in the courtyard; mostly classical, piano or jazz. The atmosphere is perfect for such events. Certainly a great experience, you can find the events on the  Facebook- Page.

Right next to the tower is the restaurant Porxada de Sa Torre. Specialties of the house are sucking pig and lamb from their own farm as well as almond cake. Some even say they have the best sucking pig in Mallorca. That’s a matter of taste, of course, but we really enjoyed it. Just like the deep red house wine.
The tower is located right on the Carretera Artà-Canyamel and cannot be overlooked.

Talaia dÁlbercutx

The watchtower in the north offers a fantastic view over the island. Access via the Ma-2210 from Pollença to Cap Formentor. Opposite the Mirador Colomer, a long, narrow road leads directly to the tower. Tip: In spring this activity is popular with cyclists and in the high season, many tourists come in their rental cars. Therefore, I recommend taking this route early in the morning hours.

In the immediate vicinity, you will find very photogenic ruins which, however, come from a rather cruel chapter of Mallorcan history. Here were the forced laborers, all Republican prisoners from the Spanish Civil War, who had to build these and other roads.

Do you have more tips for Mallorca sights?

Have you ever heard of Calo des Moro? A real insider tip, supposedly. What’s up with the bay, you’ll find out in my article. How about Mallorca in Spring?

(Translated by Barbara Riedel)