Let there be Lights!
The weeks before Christmas are magical in Mallorca, with Christmas markets large and small taking place around the island and festive decorations in towns and villages.
The weeks before Christmas are magical in Mallorca, with Christmas markets large and small taking place around the island and festive decorations in towns and villages.
Olive oil is an essential element of Mallorcan gastronomy, and all things olive are celebrated at one of Mallorca’s most popular autumn fairs. The picturesque village of Caimari – between Selva and the mountains – is home to the annual Fira de s’Oliva, which this year celebrates its 27th edition.
The traditional autumn fairs continue in Mallorca, with more happening over the coming weekend – and the island’s largest to look forward to next week.
If you enjoy going to the theatre to watch a play in English, there aren’t many chances to do that in Mallorca, but that is beginning to change, thanks to the Skald Theatre Group – based on the island.
Mallorca is a popular destination for filmmakers and has been the backdrop to numerous films, TV shows, and commercials. So, it’s not surprising that the island has also become a destination for film festivals – one of which is the fastest growing of its kind in Europe. The British newspaper, ‘The Guardian’, described it as one of Europe’s most exciting film festivals.
This coming Sunday, October 20th, Palma becomes the centre of an annual sporting activity: the TUI Palma Marathon. This year’s is the 20th edition of the event, which includes the marathon, half-marathon, and 9km race.
Mallorca’s east-coast resort of Sa Coma is home to a feast of foodie fun over the weekend of Friday, 22nd to Sunday, 24th March. Cooking contests, tastings, workshops, show-cooking, and a gastronomic market are all on the agenda for Protur Chef 2024 Gastro Weekend – an annual event first held in 2017.
If the spring weather makes you get out and walk (or run), why not turn that exercise into a way to raise funds for Cancer Support Mallorca and sign up for the Walk Against Cancer 2024?
In literature, art, and screen entertainment, one woman in history has inspired creators probably more than any other. That woman was Cleopatra, Queen of the Kingdom of Egypt.
The ‘Fira del Fang’ – or clay fair – is one of Mallorca’s most popular events and takes place in March every year. It showcases the talents of the island’s ceramicists and potters – whose studios are mainly found in and around Portol and Sa Cabaneta, near Marratxí.
In the run-up to Easter in Mallorca, there’s fun for all the family at the annual ‘Fira del Ram’ – or Ram Fair – in Palma, which is on for almost seven weeks from February 23rd until April 7th.
Feeling creative and looking for an outlet for it? Art could be the answer. Whatever type of art you can think of, you’ll find opportunities to learn or improve artistic skills here in Mallorca.
The party never seems to stop in Mallorca. After the Sant Antoni and Sant Sebastià festivities, up pops Carnival and another excuse to take to the streets and have some fun. In 2024, Easter falls early, and carnival is a week earlier than last year.
The Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter, Bryan Adams, may be best known for his hits – including ‘Heaven’, ‘I Do It For You’, ‘Run to You’, and ‘Summer of ‘69’ – but did you know that he’s also an acclaimed professional photographer?
Underground cisterns for water storage may not sound as though they’d be of tourist interest, but Mallorca has several of these facilities – known locally as ‘aljubs’ (‘aljibes’ in castellano) – that are worth a visit.
Port Adriano – Mallorca’s Philippe Starck-designed superyacht marina – has launched the fifth edition of its popular, annual photography competition. And if you think you have the talent to take great photographs, you’ll want to know about this free-to-enter competition, which has a total of 3,000 euros in prize money.
Photo: freshandeazy.com‘Visca Sant Antoni!’ – ‘Long live Sant Antoni’ – is a well-used phrase as we approach one of Mallorca’s most popular, traditional fiestas: the celebration of Sant Antoni Abat, the patron saint of animals.
If you’d like to get fitter in 2024 but you’re not a gym bunny, you could try Nordic Walking in Mallorca. It’s a resistance sport that exercises around 90 per cent of your muscles and has numerous benefits for your health, both physical and psychological. Practising Nordic Walking with a group of people on an organised outing is also a great way to meet new people, practise your language skills, and help boost your social life.
Mallorca’s biggest – and free – New Year’s Eve party is in Palma’s Plaça Cort. There’s usually music and a good atmosphere and the crowd grows as the magical hour approaches.
Photo: Mallorca Diario
If you’ve browsed the traditional festive markets in Palma, you’ll have seen stalls selling a wide variety of ornaments and figures used to create nativity scenes – or ‘betlems’ as they’re known here in Mallorca.
Puerto Portals has its popular Christmas Market from December 14th to January 6th. This market takes inspiration from the traditional festive markets of Central Europe and always has a magical ambience and a certain style. You’ll find more than 40 wooden stalls offering crafts and tasteful festive decorations and if you get hungry, there’ll be stalls selling festive eats and drinks.
It’s time to embrace the festive season and visit a Christmas market or two – without having to travel away from Mallorca. The island has a fantastic choice of festive markets this year, offering a wide range of crafts and nativity scene ornaments.
The Mediterranean Sea is one of the most important attractions for visitors to Mallorca. But like seas and oceans around our precious planet, the Mediterranean has suffered from the impact of human activities.
If you’ve been in the countryside in Mallorca recently, you’ll probably have spotted various types of fungus growing in the wild, usually at the foot of trees. Autumn is mushroom season, and it’s not unusual to see locals out foraging for them – particularly in the Serra de Tramuntana.
If you indulge in the Spanish tradition of ‘ir de tapeo’ – wandering from bar to bar having tapas and drinks – you should enjoy the annual autumn gastronomic festival of TaPalma. The event returns to Mallorca’s capital this month and is a must for foodies. TaPalma is all about tapas and cocktails, and restaurants and bars taking part in the city have special offerings at affordable prices to tempt you.
Olive trees have been cultivated in Mallorca for more than two thousand years – and around 90 per cent of the trees you see here today are more than 500 years old.
Mallorca’s traditional autumn fairs continue, and what could be more autumnal than the humble pumpkin? Although used mainly in savoury cooking, the pumpkin is technically a fruit rather than a vegetable.
How will you spend the coming dark autumn and winter evenings? It’s tempting to stay indoors but you could be meeting new people and getting a culture fix, discovering fascinating facts relating to the arts.
This coming weekend you’ll find several traditional fairs taking place in Mallorca. On both Saturday and Sunday, Inca has its ‘Fira de la Terra’, where you’ll find plants, flowers, artisan, and other products from the land.
Palma is one of the most scenic locations in Europe to run a marathon and thousands of people will be doing just that this Sunday, October 15th, for the 20th edition of the Palma Marathon.
It may now officially be autumn, but Mallorca still has plenty of traditional fairs to enjoy this month for an authentic experience of the island’s culture.
Mallorca’s capital, Palma, is preparing for Easter as ‘Semana Santa’, Holy Week, starts on April 2nd, Palm Sunday. In the coming days, florists and the flower market stalls in Palma’s Rambla sell skilfully woven white palm leaves that traditionally come from Elche in southeast Spain. People take these to church on Palma Sunday to be blessed and, afterward, you may see them hanging over front doors or on balconies of homes here.
If you’d like to learn some new culinary skills and recipes, how about a one-day cooking workshop in Mallorca? You’ll pick up some tips and techniques to impress family and friends when you next cook for them.
The east-coast resort of Sa Coma is the place to be for foodies over the weekend of March 17th-19th, with cooking contests, tastings, workshops, show-cooking, and a gastronomic market all on the agenda for Protur Chef 2023 Gastro Weekend.
Mallorca always seems to have something to celebrate and next it’s Día de las Illes Balears – Balearics Day. This commemorates the Statute of Autonomy that gave Mallorca and her sister islands their own parliament in 1983. The 40th Balearics Day is on Wednesday, March 1st, and it’s a public holiday too.
The composer Frederick Chopin’s links to Mallorca – and Valldemossa – are well known, thanks to the famous book ‘A Winter in Mallorca’, written by his lover George Sand about their stay here together in the winter of 1838/39.
Even if you’re not giving up any of life’s pleasures for the forty days of Lent, you can still celebrate carnival – when practising Christians traditionally feast and enjoy themselves as much as possible before the period of abstinence starts that leads to Easter.
Have you discovered the health benefits of Tai Chi – often referred to as moving meditation? It’s a branch of ancient Chinese martial arts and comprises exercises balanced between yin and yang, which makes it highly effective as a health practice.
If you’d like to get fitter this year but you’re not a gym bunny, how about Nordic Walking in Mallorca? It’s a resistance sport that exercises around 90 per cent of your muscles and has numerous benefits for your health, both physical and psychological. Practising Nordic Walking with a group of people on an organised outing is also a great way to meet new people, practise your language skills, and help boost your social life.
Photo by freshandeazy.com / Dimonis Sineu
The Three Kings have been and gone but one of Mallorca’s most popular, traditional fiestas is still to come: the celebration of Sant Antoni, the patron saint of animals.
If you’re a resident in Mallorca, be sure to get your travel card – or ‘Tarjeta Intermodal’ – and you can enjoy FREE train*, metro, and bus travel throughout 2023. It makes this a good year to explore more of the island.
Get 2023 off to a musical start by enjoying some of the varied entertainment on offer in the first week of January.
If you’ve visited Mallorca’s Christmas market in Palma’s Plaza Major, you’ll have seen the stalls offering small figures and ornaments for nativity scenes – or ‘betlems’, as they are known here.
If you like to indulge in sweet treats at Christmas, Mallorca has a few traditional ones you should try over the festive period.
With two public holidays this week in Mallorca – Tuesday and Thursday – and festive shopping still to be done, you may like to check out more of the Christmas markets happening around Mallorca soon. Even if you’re not buying, browsing among the festive stalls is a great way to get into the spirit of the season.
If Christmas shopping is on your agenda, check out Mallorca’s Christmas market stalls for interesting gifts, decorative items, and a festive ambience.
Olive oil is an essential element of Mallorcan gastronomy and all-things olive are celebrated at one of Mallorca’s most popular autumn fairs. The picturesque village of Caimari – between Selva and the mountains – is home to the annual Fira de s’Oliva, which this year celebrates its 25th edition.
Easter is an important religious festival in Mallorca, and Holy Week, or Semana Santa, is full of rituals. It all begins on Palm Sunday, April 10th this year. Before then, you’ll find beautifully woven white palm leaves from Elche in southeast Spain for sale in florists and at the Rambla flower stalls in Palma. After these palms have been blessed at church, people hang them at their homes above doors or on balconies.
After a break because of the pandemic, one of Palma’s two most popular art events is back in its usual form this Saturday, March 26th.
Mallorca has some amazing caves full of mighty stalactites and stalagmites and at this time of year they’re not as busy with tourists.
All around Mallorca you’ll find traditional weekly markets happening in towns large and small. But the island also has some different markets to discover and a rummage around one of these can be a fun way to spend a morning.
Now is the time to enjoy a star of Catalan cuisine – the ‘calçot’. A calçot is a cross between a spring onion and a leek and they’re truly seasonal.
Seeing Mallorca from horseback gives a different perspective of the island and is the perfect way to discover the landscape. Riding is a popular pursuit with the locals, so you’ll find stables and riding centres around Mallorca offering horse-riding for adults and youngsters, and pony trekking for little ones.
Want to take home some new skills? You’ll find several cooking classes and workshops on offer in Mallorca – a chance to impress your friends with new recipes and culinary techniques learnt from experts.
Some of Mallorca’s most internationally awarded wines are produced in the heart of Manacor, at Vins Miquel Gelabert, with the Denomination of Origin Pla i Llevant. Their wines have been made from carefully hand-harvested grapes since 1985.
Foto: Museo Sa Bassa Blanca
Mallorca’s museums are a great introduction to the island’s culture and society, and there’s a variety of museums to suit different interests.
January is usually a fun month of fiestas in Mallorca – even after The Three Kings have paraded in style to deliver their gifts.
The clarity of light on a sunny winter’s day in Mallorca is perfect for seeing the island from a high viewpoint. Mallorca has several hilltop sanctuaries offering superb vistas that are worth the drive, cycle, or hike up to enjoy them.
Hiking is a great activity if you’ve resolved to get fitter and spend more time outdoors this winter. Mallorca’s varied landscape and terrain offer hiking possibilities for all levels of fitness and ability.
Start the New Year in Mallorca with some festive entertainment. How about attending a traditional orchestral concert, or seeing the world’s best-loved seasonal ballet?
Festive feasting is part of the Mallorcan Christmas season and the delicious, traditional treats at this time of year are worth the extra calories.
A nativity scene is a much-loved Christmas tradition in many Mallorcan homes. Festive market stalls in Plaza Mayor sell a huge choice of figures and ornaments to create or add to these nativity scenes, which are known as ‘betlems’ in Catalan.
Olives have been cultivated in Mallorca for more than two thousand years and ninety per cent of the island’s olive trees are said to be more than 500 years old. In the 19 th century, olive oil from Mallorca was recognised for its high quality and made up 80 per cent of exports from the island…
A visit to Mallorca at this time of year isn’t complete without exploring the Christmas markets. In an atmosphere of festive cheer, you’ll find a wealth of handcrafted gifts and festive ornaments for your home. Here are some of the best …
If you’re a fan of jazz, this is a good time to be in Mallorca – with two major jazz festivals taking place during November and December.
It’s often said that tapas came about when bars used to give customers a small slice of bread or ham to cover their drinks to keep out flies. Tapar is the Spanish word for ‘to cover’ and that’s where the name of the bite-sized nibbles came from. This is only one of several stories about the origin of tapas, but one thing is for sure: a tapeo – going out for tapas – is an essential part of Mallorcan social life.