Walking in Mallorca: four easy coastal hikes anyone can do
You might not expect it at first, but you can do some beautiful walking in Mallorca. A few weeks ago I did a road trip in Mallorca with the aim of making beautiful and not too difficult walks. From my apartment in Porto Colom I made several trips on the island and in this article I share the four most beautiful coastal routes on Mallorca with you. Enjoy reading!
Table of Contents | Inhoudsopgave
Walking in Mallorca: know before you go!
First of all it is useful to know that it is better not to go on the hikes listed below in the middle of summer when it is very hot. There is hardly any shade on most of the hikes in Mallorca and you can easily get overheated and dehydrated. I made these trips in the first week of October, when the temperature was around 25 degrees Celsius, that was warm enough for me personally for a walk. Take enough drinking water, sturdy shoes, a snack and of course a camera on every walk!
Also read: El Caminito del Rey – deception or must do?
The Bóquer valley near Cap de Formentor
I discovered this walk on the way to Cap de Formentor, the northernmost point of Mallorca. The walk starts on the main road of Port de Pollença, just before the exit for Finca Bóquer. Please note: Google Maps does not have this location, it sent me to Villa Bóquer but that’s not the correct address. Take the main road to Cap de Formentor and at the end of the village you will automatically see the old Finca Bóquer against the hill on your left. Here is a small parking space and the official start of the walk.
The first part of the walk takes you along a wide cobblestone trail towards the Finca. After you have crossed the grounds of the Finca through the gate, you will arrive in the valley surrounded by the foothills of the Serra Tramuntana. The path is not difficult and occasionally you hear rustling in the bushes: these are the goats that graze here. After about twenty minutes you will come to a junction, which is not indicated as such. When you keep to the right you walk to a nice viewpoint over the sea where a bench marks the end of the path. When you go down here to the left, you end up at the beach.
Tip: do not try to cross from the viewpoint to the beach, the small trails that you see here are steep and unstable goat trails that can suddenly stop, so you have to climb back up again. It is better to walk back to the junction and descend to the beach from there. Incidentally, the beach is littered with large stones, which makes it not exactly ideal for bathing, but you can of course take a refreshing plunge into the water. The route back follows the same trail and the total walking time is about one and a half to two hours.
Walk in parc natural de Mondragó
According to the internet, parc natural de Mondragó is one of the hidden gems of Mallorca, but upon arrival it turned out to be untrue, since the parking lot was full of cars. Yet I did not let myself to be discouraged and I went for a walk here, as it soon became apparent that most visitors come for the two beaches. There are two entrances for the area, on the north side and on the south side, which are only connected by a footpath. I parked my car on the southern side (5 euros, payable in cash) and walked north from here.
In total there are five short walks that you can do in this nature park, which have simply been given number 1 to 5. I did the first four walks and I found walking route 2 the most beautiful, with the most stunning views. This walk starts at the picnic area at the northernmost beach in the area and you walk along the beautiful rocky coast of southeast Mallorca. The water in the bays is bright blue and large yachts are everywhere in the water. Some parts of the walk have been fenced off for your own safety, but no one seemed to really stick to it. However, stay away from the immensely steep cliffs that suddenly dive deep into the sea! This short walk will take you around half an hour.
Regarding the walks in the area, especially walk 3 is also worth it. Walk 1 and 4 I found less beautiful and not so much worth it. The visitor center is at the start of walk 1 but was closed during my visit.
Cala Romantica – Cala Barques
This walk was marked as ‘difficult’ in my hiking guide, but I decided to try it anyway, as the only difficult section is already at the start of the walk. You have to make a steep climb of about four meters, where you hoist yourself up at tree roots. Once you are on top of the rocks, the walk is relatively easy, apart from the chapped rock that makes it a very uneven trail.
This walk takes you along the east coast of Mallorca. There are always several paths that you can follow, so you can more or less determine your exact route yourself. I chose to stay on the way there (southwards) along the coast and choose the more inland path back. Note: the paths are not always clear and here too they sometimes end up in a thick bunch of macchia, which means that you sometimes have to stroll a little. Often, however, the search is not of long duration because there are enough trails.
You descend once to Cala Falco and you can then choose the route along the top or the steeper route that you take on the beach. Once back on the coastal plateau it is only a short walk to the most beautiful place of this walk on Mallorca: the Cova des Pont. This natural bridge spans a crevasse and can be crossed on foot if you wish.
A little further you arrive at Cala Barques, a beautiful sandy beach with a small beach bar. You can take a break here before you walk back to Cala Romantica and the parking lot via (more or less) the same route. If you walk all the way to Cala Barques, this walk will take you around 3.5 to 4 hours.
To the Portocolom lighthouse
Portocolom is an old fishing town and only slightly affected by tourism. I stayed here in one of the quiet suburbs in a Pierre et Vacances Cecilia apartment, completely on the other side of the harbor. That is why I parked my car at the parking lot next to the old part of town, already in the direction of the lighthouse. From here you walk a little distance over a newly constructed boardwalk along the old harbor and not much later you will get back to the paved road. After a few nice beaches you will arrive in the residential area and finally at the lighthouse. This is unfortunately not accessible, but if you follow a narrow path through a knee-high grove to the left of the lighthouse, you will come to a beautiful viewpoint next to a large house.
From here you can follow the street along the coast for a while past beautiful and expensive houses, until you arrive again at the coastal plateau and Mirador En Caubó. From here you follow a coastal path to S’Algar, a beautiful and quiet beach with lots of diving. From here you walk back to the parking lot via an unpaved road. This walk took me about an hour and a half.
Rental car in Mallorca
These easy walks in Mallorca can only be reached by car so I suggest you rent a car when in Mallorca. I booked my car with Hertz but there are plenty of other rental companies, too. Always make sure to check the amount of your deductible, if you have unlimited mileage included and if it’s all risk insured. You can compare rates here.
And finally: some useful tips for walking in Mallorca
Finally, I share some useful tips for you if you want go walking in Mallorca. Most trails are not marked, at least not the ones that I did. Sometimes you will find an information panel at the starting point, but these too are not always there. With the aforementioned walks, getting lost is actually not an option, at most you can lose the trail once or two, just like me. With a wee bit of common sense, you have always found it again within no time.
Although it seems so attractive, I do not recommend that you take these walking tours on Mallorca on flip flops because the paths are rocky and sometimes steep so you need a grip on your ankles. Sturdy gym shoes or low hiking shoes are sufficient for the aforementioned walks.
I had bought the Rother Walking Guide for my trip, but I found the content of this walking guide a bit disappointing as it mainly focuses on the west side of the island. Because I spent the night on the east side, it was no good for me to drive up and down every time, so I decided to stay mainly on the east coast. There are hiking trails everywhere, so I would not recommend that guide if you are staying in the East.
Conclusion and disclaimer
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Also make sure to read my article about hiking on La Palma – the best destination in Spain for hiking!