© J. Rains
© J. Rains
Jet skiing around Palma Bay
Beautiful tour on jet skis from Port Calanova
On a bright and sunny autumn day in October, I was invited to go out on some jet skis with a group of friends as a way of enjoying the last few days of summer in Mallorca. We were lucky enough to organise hiring some jet skis quite late notice with Mallorca Watersports Centre, a company which was previously based on a busy beach in Portals but recently relocated to the up-and-coming Port Calanova.
For jet skiing there are two options to choose from: you can either go out with them on a guided jet ski trip to visit some of the local beauty spots or, if you prefer, you can use the designated area in the bay which is for jet skis and no boats are allowed. We wanted to venture a little further so chose the guided excursion.
It’s no surprise that Port Calanova is fast becoming a hot spot in Mallorca. Situated just around the corner from Palma city centre, the port is nestled perfectly between Cala Major and Illetes which offer some of the prettiest of beaches in the south-west of the island. I loved the intimate and friendly feel to the place on arrival, although the Watersports Centre wasn’t easily seen upon entering the port, a local sitting in a restaurant directed us to walk around to the west side of the marina. So we walked around and were greeted by Tom from the Mallorca Watersports Centre team.
It was actually my first time on a jet ski, but I am a bit of an adrenaline junkie so it’s been on my bucket list for a while. After stripping down to our swimwear and strapping on our life jackets, we hopped aboard our jet skis and received a solid induction about jet skiing and got familiar with our Seadoo GTI 130’s. At this point, I felt a little nervous asking questions, as I knew there were some experienced jet skiers around me but everybody was very patient. I felt the heat of the sun beaming down on my body, but as soon as we slowly went off out into the water, the breeze quickly cooled me down.
After practising the starting, stopping and turning around, we headed east over to Palma Cathedral on a little adventure. We followed our guide for the day and soaked up some of the glorious scenery Palma had to offer. Seeing the city and its coastline from this perspective was a completely unique experience, the freedom you feel slicing through the water and riding over the waves was unlike anything I have experienced before. I was surprised at how nimble the jet skis were and how quickly I managed to get the hang of it, within a few minutes the whole group of us looked like we knew what we were doing!
Being a little curious, I decided to jump on the back of an experienced jet skier to get a feel for what the jet skis could really do. We were jumping over the wake of the boat that was in front and accelerating to feel the power at top speed. Wow, what an adrenaline rush! It wasn’t an experience for the faint-hearted.
On the way back to the port, we went on a little detour to Illetes which was just around the corner from where we began our journey. This part of the coastline offers three stunning beaches with some of the most idyllic turquoise waters I have ever seen. We slowed right down as we got closer to the coastline so we wouldn’t disturb the swimmers and just soaked up the atmosphere peacefully. A perfect ending to a fantastic experience! After some time, we headed back to Port Calanova where we were all offered a beer or glass of wine whilst sharing our different reports of the experience. At this point, Tom gave us a bit more information about the different activities available at the watersports centre too.
Mallorca Watersports Centre have a wide range of water sports activities available, including fly-boarding (65€ for a complete beginner course), jet skiing (from 65€), paddle boarding (10€ for 1 hour rental), kayaking (10€ for 1 hour rental) and there’s even the opportunity to charter boats with and without a boating license. The Watersports Centre opens for the season on the 15th April until the 15th October 2017, 7 days per week from 11:00 until 18:00 daily. They speak English, German, Spanish and French and are able to organise activities for individuals and large groups.
Port Calanova has all the facilities you could ask for, including showers, changing rooms and a swimming pool next to the water. According to Tom, there will be a fitness center coming soon, together with new restaurants and bars. The upgrade of the residence accommodation is currently well underway and due to open in 2017! We will definitely be visiting Mallorca Watersports Centre at Port Calanova again this coming summer for some more water sport adventures.
