Mallorca Travel: Exploring
the North East - Puig de Maria, Pollença
and Cap de
Formentor
Our second day in Mallorca greeted us with bright
sunshine. After a restful night at Finca Son Pont,
we got ready to have breakfast in this historic
rural hotel. Tables were set up in the shady inner
courtyard and we were going to have breakfast in
the fresh air. We picked up some cereal, yoghurt,
some fresh bread and locally ripened fruits and
joined in the conversation with other couples who
had sat down at the tables next to us. Two other
couples were in town from Germany to attend a large
wedding in Puigpunyent and one couple was visiting
here from Holland, the second time that they were
visiting Finca Son Pont.
Getting ready for a great breakfast at Finca Son
Pont
After a leisurely conversation I took some more
pictures around the property and we packed our luggage,
ready to head on to our next destination. We thanked
Hector, the older gentleman from Argentina, who
is in charge of administering the property. We both
agreed that we could have handled spending some
more time in the rural serenity of this impressive
rural estate.
Shortly before lunch we hopped into our small rental
vehicle and drove the 12 kilometres back into Palma
de Mallorca. Traffic on this tiny island that is
populated by more than 700,000 people (and many
more tourists during peak vacation season) can be
very busy. We connected on the ring-shaped highway
that surrounds the capital of Palma to the C713
highway that connects to the northeastern part of
the island.
One night at the Finca Son Pont was not enough
Our drive was not much more than half an hour and
was flanked all the while by the impressive Tramuntana
mountain chain in the north while the agricultural
plain in the heart of Mallorca was stretching to
the south of us. We exited the highway at the sign
to Pollença, a small town of about 15,000
on the north side of the island.
Our first destination was the Puig de Maria, a
rocky local hill that rises 330 m from the surrounding
landscape. It is crowned by an old monastery that
has been turned into an accommodation facility.
A restaurant and several rather spartan hotel rooms
beckon at the top of this promontory. I had already
called to reserve a room several weeks ago in Canada
and was amazed at the very reasonable price tag
of 22 Euros a night for two people.
Climbing up the stony path of the Puig de Maria
But that price tag came at a steep price: a most
hair-raising drive about three quarters up the mountain
on a very narrow and steep road that featured numerous
180 degree switchbacks. At one point we had misjudged
the angle of a curve and got stuck right in the
middle of the switchback with our wheels turning.
The smell of burning rubber filled the air and I
was afraid we would roll backwards and plunge down
the steep rocky mountain face.
Finally we had reached the end of the road and
could not drive any further. We parked our vehicle
right next to a rock wall, got out and started hiking
towards the top of the mountain. The pathway was
made up of roughly hewn stone and after a short
walk in a pine forest the path came into the open
and we started having an amazing view over Pollença
and the surrounding mountain panorama.
The view towards the Tramuntana Mountains is awesome
The view from here was simply gorgeous. But it
took us another good 20 mintues to reach the top
of the mountain and the former monastery. Once at
the top we took in the phenomenal vista from the
outer courtyard of the former monastery which opened
up towards the Tramuntana Mountains and the northeast
coastline of Mallorca. The jagged and mountainous
Formentor Peninsula was stretching out in front
of us like the back of a prehistoric reptile.
We entered the monastery and walked to the front
of the courtyard from where we had an amazing panoramic
view towards the eastern Mediterranean coastline
of Mallorca. Then we explored the historic monastery
which features a chapel, a small museum as well
as a restaurant with very affordable prices. Unfortunately
we could not get access to one of the hotel rooms,
but from all the information I had, the rooms have
retained the simplicity of the former monk’s
cells. On the western side of the monastery is another
courtyard that provides a great view towards the
landscapes to the west of the Puig de Maria.
Old well inside the monstary on top of the mountain
We bought a couple of cold drinks and joined three
English travelers at a picnic table outside. The
ladies were from Newcastle and were thoroughly enjoying
their getaway. They were planning to spend a few
days in Mallorca to go hiking and enjoy the culture.
They had not even rented a vehicle and were simply
getting around by public bus. They were staying
in the town of Pollença, in a historic hotel
called Hotel Juma and were raving about this little
town. It had taken them about an hour to get to
the top of Puig de Maria, and now they were enjoying
a nice packed lunch.
After our relaxing break we were ready to continue
our journey and started our hike back to our car.
I was already dreading the drive back down the mountain
and was glad my friend volunteered to drive. We
went down the steep serpentine curves at what seemed
like two kilometres per hour, coming to a complete
standstill on the sharp turns. Finally, after about
20 minutes or so we had reached the bottom and drove
into the town of Pollença. Having grown up
in the Austrian Alps, I am used to mountain driving,
but some of these steep, narrow and winding roads
here in Mallorca were definitely challenging my
tender nerves.
Inside the old Monastery on the Puig de Maria
We parked our vehicle and started our walk through
Pollença. After asking a few friendly locals
we managed to find the tourism office where we obtained
assistance in helping us find accommodation. We
were originally planning to stay in the monastery
on top of the Puig de Maria, but after experiencing
the scary drive and the long hike to the top, we
realized we needed a more convenient place to stay.
I could not for the life of me imagine having to
drive that road again, let alone at night, after
dinner out in the town. That was simply too scary
a thought.
The lady at the counter helped us with her local
expertise and when we asked her for reasonable seaside
accommodation, she suggested a few two-star hotels
in Port de Pollença, a harbour town about
six kilometres from where we were. She even made
a phone call for us to check if the hotel had any
availability. And sure enough, the Hotel Goleta
in Port de Pollença had a room for us at
the reasonable rate of 52 Euros.
View of the church of Pollença
With our accommodation choice confirmed, we continued
our stroll through Pollença and came across
the main square, Placa Major, which is anchored
around a parish church from the 18th century. Pollença
itself was founded in 1229 by King Jaume I who reconquered
Mallorca from the Moors and brought back Christian
rule. Several bars and restaurants surround the
main square and the famed Hotel Juma stands at one
of the corners.
Hungry from our adventure, we sat down and ordered
some local delicacies: “pa amb oli”,
which literally means bread with olive oil in the
Mallorcan language, and some delicious Spanish tapas
with potato croquettes, seafood salad, pickled mushrooms
and a Spanish omelette. Sitting on this Spanish
square we took in how the locals and the tourists
alike were enjoying their late lunches.
Pa amb oli
Spanish tapas
I took a short stroll past the parish church through
some of the narrow streets before we headed off
to our hotel in Port de Pollença. The drive
took us along a flat country road into Port de Pollença,
which has a very pleasant Mediterranean sea front
fringed by palm trees, a wide sandy beach and low
rise buildings. Many restaurants, bars, food stores
and souvenir shops line the coastal road and it
was very easy for us to find the Hotel Goleta.
We checked into our room on the 4th floor and although
the hotel was basic, it was clean and had all the
necessary amenities. The most important feature
was the balcony overlooking the seafront promenade
which gave us a great panoramic view over the entire
Bay of Pollença and the action on the waterfront.
We had picked up a few snacks in the supermarket
and sat down on the balcony and enjoyed our seafront
view.
Gorgeous view from our hotel room in Port de Pollença
Towards the evening we were ready for another excursion:
the Formentor Peninsula which forms the northeastern
end of the island. We drove into the bare craggy
mountains and stopped at a spectacular lookout point
called Mirador d’es Colomer from where I could
see the jagged limestone cliffs dropping into the
crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean. A monument
to the Italian engineer Antonia Paretti graces the
lookout point and reminds us of the amazing roadbuilding
expertise required in this mountaineous terrain.
After inhaling this gorgeous panorama we continued
our drive along the winding coastal road, drove
through a narrow tunnel and a few kilometers away
we stopped at the historic Hotel de Formentor, a
luxury hotel, situated on a private bay, that was
constructed in 1929. We walked through the impressive
lobby through the Mediterranean gardens to take
in the stunning views of this bay.
Lookout point over the gorgeous coastline of Cap
Formentor
On we continued to our final destination of the
day: the Cap de Formentor, the northeastern tip
of Mallorca. One of Mallorca’s most well-known
landmarks can be found here: the Lighthouse of Cap
Formentor which sits in a spectacular location,
several hundred metres above the sea. We parked
our vehicle and walked all the way around it and
took in the impressive views of the sea and the
jagged peaks of the Formentor Peninsula.
The scenic beauty of this location captured us
and on our way back we stopped a couple of more
times to catch more glimpses of this phenomenal
coastline. We were both amazed at how such a tiny
place as the island of Mallorca could have such
diverse landscapes and so many picturesque destinations.
The famous lighthouse of Cap Formentor
As the sun was setting we returned to Port de Pollença
and sat down on our balcony to enjoy the sunset.
Our first full day in Mallorca had filled us with
so many impressions and we needed our rest to get
ready for another day of explorations.
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