The Balearic Islands (Catalan: Illes Balears, Spanish: Islas Baleares) are an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Spain.
Mallorca. The largest of the Balearic Islands, and a classic among European travel destinations, with beaches, nightlife and spectacular mountains.
Menorca. The second largest island is the least overrun and most tranquil of the Balearics, with an unspoilt beauty, it allows the more adventurous the opportunity to discover new charms and experiences.
Ibiza. It is world-famous for its intense nightlife and huge clubs, and attracts top DJs from all over the planet.
Formentera. The smallest island is flat and sandy with magnificent, unspoilt beaches. It is perfect for cycling, walking, snorkelling and sailing.
FORMENTERA
Cala Saona Beach.
IBIZA
Ibiza Airport (IBZ)
IBIZA, BIODIVERSITY and CULTURE. World Heritage Site. Ibiza provides an excellent example of the interaction between the marine and coastal ecosystems. The dense prairies of oceanic Posidonia (seagrass), an important endemic species found only in the Mediterranean basin, contain and support a diversity of marine life. Ibiza preserves considerable evidence of its long history. The Phoenician ruins at Sa Caleta (settlement) and Puig des Molins (necropolis) testify to the important role played by the island in the Mediterranean economy in protohistory, particularly during the Phoenician-Carthaginian period.
Upper Town of Ibiza is an excellent example of a fortified acropolis which preserves in an exceptional way in its walls and in its urban fabric successive imprints of the earliest Phoenicians settlements and the Arab and Catalan periods through to the Renaissance bastions. The long process of building the defensive walls has not destroyed the earlier phases or the street pattern, but has incorporated them in the ultimate phase. An outstanding example of 16th century military architecture; it had a profound influence on the development of fortifications in the Spanish settlements of the New World.
Ses Salines Beach
Aquarium Cap Blanc, Sant Antoni de Portmany.
IBIZA (town)
Museu d’Art Contemporani d’Eivissa
Museu Puget
MAJORCA
CULTURAL LANDSCAPE of the SERRA de TRAMUNTANA. World Heritage Site. Located on a sheer-sided mountain range parallel to the north-western coast of the island of Mallorca. Millennia of agriculture in an environment with scarce resources has transformed the terrain and displays an articulated network of devices for the management of water revolving around farming units of feudal origins. The landscape is marked by agricultural terraces and inter-connected water works – including water mills – as well as dry stone constructions and farms.
Transformations of the steep terrain to exploit the scarce available resources using a system of terraces and cobbled road network with an articulated network of devices for the management of water, revolving around farming units of feudal origins. Several villages, churches, sanctuaries, towers, lighthouses and small dry-stone structures punctuate the terraced landscape and contribute to its actual character.
Exemplifies the interchange between the Muslim and Christian cultures, Arabic water harvesting and management technology introduced by the Christian conquerors, who took over the island of Mallorca in 13th century AD – orchards, vegetable gardens and olive groves, which were earlier organised around small farm holdings, and later in large estates (posesiones) and which nowadays make up the physical and functional features of the Serra de Tramuntana.
Highly specialised system of waterworks for collecting and storing water, featuring qanats, that are underground channels to harvest and transport water, canals, ditches, storage basins, with a system of terraces supported by dry-stone walls and including a sophisticated drainage system to avoid soil erosion.
Their land distribution and use pattern, comprising rocky areas on the tops of mountains, strips of woodland, slopes with terraces, extensive grazing land, fields for reaping, vineyards or fruit crops on flatter land, ensured over time the full exploitation of the existing resources. The Tramuntana area thus pays testimony to the continuous evolution of human settlement in a rugged and steep area of the island.
Fornalutx. Village
Platja de Formentor Beach
Playa de Muro beach
Frederic Chopin & George Sand Museum. Valldemossa
Molí d’Algaida, Algaida. windmill.
Sineu Windmill
Cova des Pas de Vallgornera. Cave
Cuevas del Drach. Cave
PALMA. The capital of the Balearic Islands, offers its visitors not only sunshine, numerous bars, restaurants and shops but also a beautiful harbour and a historical centre.
Palma Airport (PMI)
Es Baluard. Museum
Fundació Pilar I Joan Miro. Art Museum
Museu de Mallorca. Museum
Castell de Bellver. Castle
La Almudena. Castle
Palma de Mallorca Cathedral
Auditorium de Palma de Mallorca
Palma Aquarium
Porto Pí Lighthouse
SOLLER*
Soller tramway line
Can Prunera Museum of Modernism
Sóller Botanical Garden
MENORCA
Mahón/Menorca Airport (MAH)
Museo de Menorca, Mahón
Cala Mitjana beach
Es Grau beach
Cap d’Artrutx Lighthouse
Mining Historical Heritage. Tentative WHS: (27/04/2007). The Mining Historical Heritage is a serial proposal consisting of 21 locations in nine provinces and regions spread over the entire country. The majority of the mining sites are coal and iron ore mines, but metals such as copper, silver, lead, gold and mercury were also mined. Among the selected sites are also stone quarries and salt works. In the oldest of these sites, mining activity dates back to the Neolithic period.
Balearic Islands. Mares de S’Hostal Quarries (39″ 59′ N 1 3′ 51′ W) (MENORCA). Marine sands consolidated during the quaternary are of varying hardness and of a white to golden ochre colour. Quarries excavated stone for use in all types of construction from the earliest settlers in the Talayotic Period to the present.
Extraction is in the form of blocks which are subsequently broken into smaller pieces for different applications in construction. Traditional quarrying was by by the use of hand tools which left unique marks on the quarry wall. Mechanisation of the work resulted in a flat quarry face with deep cuts.
Talayotic Culture of Minorca. Tentative WHS (29/01/2013). 25 archaeological sites that represent the Prehistory and Protohistory of Minorca. They embrace the arrival of man on the island to the Medieval Islamic era. “Talayotic” refers to buildings in the form of a tower. The best talayotic cyclopean architecture is seen at Torre d’en Galmes (19), Talatf de Dalt (16), Cornia Nou (14), Monteff (21) and Trepuc6 (1B).
The geological composition of Minorca is different to that of its neighbours in the Balearic archipelago. The north of the island has older components that belong to the Primary and Secondary eras, that is, the Paleozic, the Triassic, the Jurassic and the Cretaceous periods. It is characterized by an undulating relief with small mounds and valleys of reddish and ochre soil. The south, Terciary, is an extensive calcareous platform of the Miocene period, with a flat relief and good quality soil where forage is cultivated. This platform is criss-crossed by gullies, between which walls circulate spring water. In these places one finds orchards and kitchen gardens where a variety of fruit and vegetables are grown.
Large blocks of stone were used in the island’s prehistoric constructions. Country houses and buildings were designed for raising cattle and sheep livestock. Thousands of kilometers of dry-stone walls form a grid.
1.Tomb of Ses Roques Llises and the enclosure of Sa Comerma de se Garita. A central chamber, patio in front of its façade, many “Mediterranean” type columns that supported the stone slab roof and three access doors with lintels.
2. Naviform settlement of Son Mercer de Baix. A settlement of dwellings, one known for its roof supported by polylythical columns.
3. Hypogeum of Torre del Ram. A funereal excavated in the rock with continuous stone benches around the walls.
4. Necropolis and Coastal Establishment of Cala Morell. Artificial caves cut into the cliff walls. One has a façade decorated with classic architectural motifs. Naviforms is on the upper part of the cliff.
5. Navetas of Biniac-l’Argentina. Two circular funereal buildings.
6. Naveta of Es Tudons. A funereal building shaped like an upturned boat.
7. Navetas of Rafal Rubi. Two funeral buildings of an extended ground plan in the shape of upturned boats. They are situated at only 65m. apart, similar to those of Es Tudons.
8. Cave of s’Aigua. Cave with an interior lake with ceramics and human remains.
9. Necropolis of Calescoves. Several natural caves and funeral hypogeums excavated in the walls of the cliffs that make up this cove and used from the 9th-3rd century B.C. Coastal walls closed off the promontory. This small natural harbor of Calescoves was used for anchorage from the 5th century B.C.
10. Hypostyle Hall of Galliner de Madona. Five polylythical columns used for storage.
11. Talayot of Trebalύger. Large with an elliptical ground plan.
12. Talayots of Binicodrell. Two talayots, one with a ramp to access a platform.
13. Settlement of Torralba d’en Salort and the Well of Na Patarrá. A monumental talayot and a Taula Enclosure with a central pilaster and a spectacular well known as Na Patarrá, 47m deep and with stairs that reach the aquifer.
14. Settlement of CorniaNou. Talayot has steps that access a platform on the Crown. One has a reinforced door that makes up a spectacular passageway in the interior.
15. Settlement and Naveta of sa Torreta de Tramuntana. Has a Talayot, houses known as dwelling circles and a taula enclosure. Peaty soil predominates as opposed to calcareous stone. A Naveta, a funeral building, of which only the floor remains.
16. Settlement of Talatí de Dalt. A monumental Talayot and a Taula Enclosure with an inclined column that is supported on the capital of the central piece.
17. Settlement of Torelló. Has a large Talayot whose entrance has lintels and a corridor. All have a central patio and rooms around it, forming an almost circular building.
18. Settlement of Trepucó. A large Talayotic settlement with two Talayots and a spectacular Taula Enclosure
19. Settlement of Torre d’en Galmés. A large settlement with three Talayots, a Taula Enclosure and plenty of large circular ground plan with a central patio, storage silos, covered enclosures (also known as Hypostyle Halls) attached to them and, in certain cases, such as the dwelling known as “Circulo Cartailhac”, they have a large open-air area in front of their façades. Here an oven has been indentified, as well as other areas of handicraft activity. In the southern part of the settlement and at a lower height than that of the central part, a sophisticated water-collection system has been identified, with decanting pans and cisterns excavated into the rock-like wells.
20. Sanctuary of So na Caçana. 10 buildings that include Talayots and Taula Enclosures. It is a sacred place, a sanctuary.
21. Settlement of Montefí. Three Talayots, underground burial caves and an area of silos, stores and channels.
22. Settlement of Son Catlar. A large Talayotic settlement with monumental walls 900m long. Sentry boxes and square towers are semi-detached to the walls.
23. Settlement of Torretrencada. The Taula has a pilaster leaning on its rear part.
24. Settlement of Torrellafuda. Large Talayot, a Taula Enclosure with a monumental central piece.
25. Settlement of Binisafullet.
They appear similar to those of Minorca, such as the Majorcan talayots, the towers of Corsica or the Nuraghes of Sardinia.
Megalithic Tombs or Dolmens: Chamber, covered corridor and a perforated slab that gives Access to the chamber.
Naviforms or Dwelling Navetas: Dwelling with an upturned boat floor plan because of its shape. Walls are covered with wooden, stone and earth and rarely with stone slabs.
Hypogeums are artificial caves excavated from the subsoil with an access corridor, chamber and a bench.
Hypogeum of a circular or oval ground plan were small, had one chamber and at a great height from the ground.
Tombs of triple faces or Protonavetas: Funeral with an inner chamber.
Natural Caves with Cyclopean Walls – a corridor and a façade of a megalithic character. For funerals.
Navetas: Collective funeral buildings originally circular and later, an upturned boat. Talayots: A truncated cone tower built with a dry cyclopean technique and located at the highest points in settlements.
Settlements: Urban plan with integrated dwelling, defensive, artisanal and religious structures.
Taula Enclosures: A Sanctuary with a horseshoe ground plan and a column in the shape of a “T” in the central part of the building that is exclusive to Minorca. Large and built with two large stone blocks.
Dwellings: Dwelling circles or domestic units. Central patio and surrounding rooms, a living area and silos.
Covered Space or Hypostyle Hall: Polylythical columns supported the roof of large slabs of stone. Used for storage.
Wells: Can reach depths of 50 meters with zigzag steps strewn out of the natural rock to reach the aquifer to collect water.
Walls: Free-standing to surround the settlement.
Hypogeums: Artificial funeral caves, some compartmentalized with façades decorated with architectural motifs. In the walls of gullies and cliffs that look out to sea.
Get In. Airports: Palma de Majorca, Ibiza and Mahón. Barcelona, Valencia, and Madrid less than an hour, París and London it takes under two.
Boat. Barcelona is only a night-crossing away eight hours.
Get Around. Visit the centre of Palma on foot or hire scooters and bicycles. One railway line departs from from the main station in the Plaza de España in Palma, to a number of villages on the island through a mountain range to the quaint village of Soller.
Cuisine.
Sobrasada – red pork pate with sweet paprika. It is good. There is also an official Ensaimada – Majorcan cake contains pumpkin jam and lard.
Majorcan extra virgin olive oil, which is otherwise hard to find.
Drink. Palo and Hierbas are two of the most popular local liquors among local residents. Palo is made from the fruit of the carob tree. It is often drunk mixed with soda water and sometimes even taken for medicinal purposes. Sweet, mixed and dry “Hierbas” are available. The ingredients include assorted herbs.
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Experiences
Tapas-hopping
Taste Gazpacho
Taste Tortilla española
Watch a Flamenco performance
NOMAD MANIA Spain – Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza)
World Heritage Sites:
Cultural Landscape of the Serra de Tramuntana.
Ibiza, Biodiversity and Culture
Tentative WHS: Mining Historical Heritage (27/04/2007)
Borders: Balearic islands (sea border/port)
XL: Cabrera
World of Nature: Cabrera Archipelago
Islands
FORMENTERA
Beaches: Formentera: Cala Saona
IBIZA
World Heritage Sites: Ibiza, Biodiversity and Culture
Airports: Ibiza (IBZ)
Beaches: Ibiza: Ses Salines
Aquariums: Sant Antoni de Portmany: Aquarium Cap Blanc
European Cities
IBIZA (town) World Cities and Popular Towns
Museums
Ibiza: Museu d’Art Contemporani d’Eivissa
Ibiza: Museu Puget
MAJORCA
World Heritage Sites: Cultural Landscape of the Serra de Tramuntana
Villages and Small Towns: Fornalutx
Festivals: Grape Throwing Festival, Mallorca
Beaches
Mallorca: Platja de Formentor
Mallorca: Playa de Muro
Planetariums: Mallorca Planetarium
Museums: Valldemossa: Frederic Chopin & George Sand Museum
Windmills
Algaida: Molí d’Algaida
Sineu Windmill
Caves
Balearic Islands: Cova des Pas de Vallgornera
Balearic Islands: Cuevas del Drach
PALMA World Cities and Popular Towns
Airports: Palma (PMI)
Museums
Es Baluard
Fundació Pilar I Joan Miro
Museu de Mallorca
Castles, Palaces, Forts
Castell de Bellver
La Almudena
Religious Temples: Palma de Mallorca Cathedral
Entertainment/Things to do: Auditorium de Palma de Mallorca
Aquariums: Palma Aquarium
Lighthouses: Porto Pí Lighthouse
SOLLER*
Railway, Metro, Funiculars, Cable Cars: Soller tramway line
Museums: Can Prunera Museum of Modernism
Botanical Gardens: Sóller Botanical Garden
MENORCA
Tentative WHS: Talayotic Culture of Minorca (29/01/2013)
Airports: Mahón/Menorca (MAH)
Museums: Mahón: Museo de Menorca
Beaches
Menorca: Cala Mitjana
Menorca: Es Grau
Lighthouses: Menorca Island: Cap d’Artrutx Lighthouse