Read reviews of the best Mallorca events
The Diamond Jubilee celebrations may be over in the UK, but here on Mallorca, we enjoyed a quintessential English garden party at La Residencia Hotel in Deia to mark the British monarch’s 60th year on the throne.
A trip to Deià on the north coast of Majorca is a must for anyone wishing to experience the diversity that this beautiful island has to offer.
Palma celebrated its 13th marathon this weekend on what turned out to be a gloriously sunny Sunday. 10,000 runners from 48 different countries competed in the full marathon, half marathon and 10km races. The scenic route along the seaside promenade and through the old town, combined with the great weather and fantastic atmosphere made it a real success.
The beginning of October saw the world’s best dressage riders come to Mallorca to deliver a show-stopping performance at Spain’s first 5* dressage tournament and one of the most difficult dressage competitions on the planet.
Santanyi's weekend market is one of the better markets on Mallorca. It's not a big market, certainly not as big as the sprawling market at Sineu, but it has some interesting stalls with unusual gifts to take home, some fresh local produce and even some clothing and art.
The vibrant photographs are visually uplifting while raising awareness of a grim reality. For each of these colourful compositions are made from plastic collected from beach clear ups. In this case, from Costa Rica.
At risk of ruining one of Mallorca’s best kept secrets, I am going to share my experience of La Fira del Vi de Pollença, in English – Pollenca’s wine fair.
Schools out for summer and the children and their teachers celebrated in Soller style with trips to the local museums and the beach taking the place of lessons. The Port of Soller only has one school and it is an integral part of the community. Their end of term concert had the children singing heartily in the playground, ensuring there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
Nikki Beach are famous for their exceptional parties, and Dubai Meets Mallorca on Saturday 3rd September was yet again another amazing event with a fantastic, fun filled atmosphere.
On a summers evening, I headed deep into the depths of Palma’s old town to join in the fun and frolics of the city’s legendary ‘Tapas Tuesday Tour’, known and advertised as Ruta Martiana on the island.
Sometimes on a weekend, it is nice simply to laze around the house, take a leisurely breakfast and flick idly through the newspaper (or your fancy i-Pad if you are The Frenchman). But not so this weekend! For it is the annual Olive Fair, held in Caimari, in the north west of Mallorca. Named as one of the top ten gastronomic festivals in Europe by The Guardian, it is actually one of the autumn fairs on Majorca that you really shouldn't miss.
On the evening of Friday the 15th there was a gathering of local artisans showing off their wares in the Joan March gardens in front of the Claustro de Santo Domingo.
This professional competition goes across some of the most beautiful sites on the island and is made up of four independent races, each taking place on a different day. This year they celebrated their 25th anniversary... Many happy returns!
The children of Mallorca have twelve weeks holiday in the summer. Summer schools are therefore essential to allow parents to work in the tourist industry and to stop the little ones getting bored of holiday life. The families of the hidden valley have choices - groups based in school buildings throughout Soller, the community centre Ca’n Dulce, or the favoured one of my family – the Tennis & Swimming Summer School.
Before you reach for your top hat or fascinator, this is not Ascot, nor is it actually horse racing as you know it. For in Mallorca, it is trotting races that is the king of sports. The specially bred horses (with a height of 1.5 - 1.7 metres) pull a small and lightweight cart which carries a ‘jockey' around a race track going at speeds you would not think possible. This sport has been popular in Majorca for 200 years and tracks in Palma and Manacor host races once a week.
The square fell silent at 5am on the 2nd August to listen to the Pollenca band play the Patrona anthem, ‘L’Alborada’, as they marched through the main square and crowded streets to start the Patrona celebrations. La Patrona is celebrated with a mock battle fought between the Moorish Pirates and the Pollencin Christians and is a Mallorcan tradition carried on from many years ago.
Every year in Pollensa the town hosts a week of festivities (La Patrona), from around the 20th July and culminating with an epic battle on the 2nd of August. All throughout the week there are concerts, exhibitions, displays, parades and late night parties and the whole festival is accentuated with canon fire, shotguns, bell ringing, trumpets, drums and fireworks.
Easter week or 'Semana Santa' as it is known is a very important time in Soller. The town divides up into fraternities – groups of people attached to a local church who have an affinity to a particular group of penitents. The penitents dress in the robes of their particular fraternity and this includes wearing pointed hats, reminiscent of the Ku Klux Klan, with eye holes cut out and the rest of the face covered.