meg-made it to Mallorca

Mallorca is one of the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Spain. We've always wanted to visit Spain, and was lured to the Balearics by the promise of unspoilt beaches, endless sunshine and tapas! In June we got itchy feet and started looking for last minute bookings and found this absolute gem in Port De Soller, Mallorca. Here is my very lengthy and snap-happy recap of our summer vacay!

We got lucky with the house we booked, it was kind of ridiculous actually! Coming from our tiny shoebox flat in London, we made complete use of the entire four floors and LOVED having so much outside space. And when we weren't outside, it didn't feel far away when the views just streamed through all the windows like this. 

We had five glorious days exploring the beaches on the northern coastline, soaking in some sun, and devouring oodles of fresh (and affordable) seafood. And of course enjoying G&T O'Clock each afternoon watching the sun set (or, as Maddie learned to say, watching the sun go and be a "sleepy bunny into the ocean").

Our holidays are often a food extravaganza, and this was no different. Even a trip to the grocery store was exciting! We went to a big supermarket when we first arrived in Palma and stocked up for the week. When browsing the salami aisle, yes, an entire aisle of salami, we were in awe of the exhaustive range of options! All the local cheeses, the fresh seafood and row after row of hams hanging up, and all so reasonably priced, we were so excited. And so pretty much bought one of everything!! When you see freshly cooked lobsters for €9, you buy! Many! 

PORT DE SOLLER

The town we were staying in was called Port De Soller, a small port town on the North West coast of Mallorca. It is a sweet harbour town that had some touristy aspects but was mostly a local village with a relaxed vibe and rustic architecture. We loved wandering around the little town, swimming on the sandy beach and being charmed by the old fashioned tram that runs between Port De Soller and Soller, which Maddie just adored waving to the passengers!

An afternoon stroll down in the village lead us to a Gin bar. Amazing.

An entire menu of Gins! AKA the best holiday reading you can imagine!

SOLLER

The town of Soller is located about 3km inland from Port De Soller, nestled in a valley of rugged orange groves. The town is built around the town square which is boarded by the gorgeous Saint Bartomeu Church.

Yeah, this will do.

We much prefer wandering off the beaten track a little when we are travelling, rather than frequenting the popular touristy spots, and so we wandered down some cobbled alleyways and found this little local restaurant to have lunch at. 

We had some Tapas of the Land and Tapas of the Sea (too cute), and a Spanish Omelette to soak it all up. I loved being able to eat so many options, which is always a pleasant surprise travelling looking for gluten free food in another language! 

DEIA

We were recommended to visit Deia by three friends, so it was the first beach we went exploring to find. It was a slightly hairy drive, hairpin turns and deals with God when passing oncoming traffic, but totally worth it. After driving through some beautiful mountains we started a steep descent down towards the coast and wound our way down to the beach. The water was spectacular. We couldn't get a table at the nearby restaurant so we just frolicked in the water and played with the pebbles. I'm still not entirely used to rocky beaches, but this was definitely the most spectacular rockpool we've ever seen!

The hillside town of Deia, with the terraced gardens and windy roads.

Sometimes the sunshine can be too much for these young eyes! Keeping it real, there's not always smiles!

ST CALOBRAS

I love being out on the water. I take any chance I can to travel by water, and Mallorca was no different. We took a ferry from Port De Soller to St Calobras as I had seen some pictures of what was waiting at the other side...

The water colour was ridiculous. I have never seen a blue like this before. We have been to the Mediterranean before, and I grew up holidaying in Byron Bay so have spent a fair amount of time around the ocean, but never in my life have I seen ocean like this.  It was such a vibrant blue it looked like someone had tipped a gallon of blue food dye into the ocean. It was just spectacular. These photos don't have any filters!

This is the little Ferry town of St Calobras where the ferry docked in. The water was so clear we could see the schools of fish swimming around the ferry and it was such a gorgeous shade of turquoise. 

Being photobombed by a gull! Mate! 

 To get to nirvana we had to go through two caves which had been cut into the cliffs. We weren't terribly popular taking the pram through but hey, I was determined! It was completely worth the little extra walk and bumpy pram ride. This water was the best swimming of our time in Mallorca. It was pretty crowded at the waters' edge, but we pushed through and enjoyed lapping around the crystal clear watering hole on our own. In addition to the colour of the water being surprising, we couldn't believe how deep and clear it was too. Just a few metres from the shore and we couldn't touch the bottom, no matter how many times we tried. But yet, the entire time I could see my bright pink toenail polish! 

FORMENTOR

We hopped in the car and went beach-hopping one day, exploring a few of the beach towns we'd read about and our favourite pick of the day would be Formentor. Perched up in the northern tip of Mallorca was this very private and tranquil beach. There were the classic beach huts and seaside hotel that I had always pictured for the Spanish seaside,  but was also such a relaxed beach strip that was perfect for a few hours of sandcastle building (yay, sand).

"No no Daddy, no 'wimming"

 We were all so sad to leave our little slice of paradise. Maddie was even sad and as we left and drove away, in the back of the car, she said with such a sad and sweet tone "bye bye holiday house". 

The food was sensational, the beaches were all so different and all so beautiful, the locals were so friendly and welcoming, and the sun, well it shone every single day we were there. It was just gorgeous. I'm so glad we got to experience a little bit of Spain, and now, I want to experience more!