Ibiza Hotels, Majorca Hotels, Apartments, Accommodation

The habitants of the Balearic Islands are very keen on keeping their traditions alive and tourists visiting the Islands, especially outside the big tourist resorts, will feel the traditional atmosphere all around. Festivals are an important feature of the Balearic villages, and there are many traditional festivities organized throughout the year. Visitors from outside the Balearics are always welcome to join in and to experience the true Island culture with the locals. All villages have their own patron Saint, and almost every week there’s one or more villages honouring their Saint by celebrating. In September, on the first sunday, the village of Santa Margalida on Majorca honours Santa Catalina with a yearly parade of floats and people dressed in folk costume. On Ibiza the Festas de Jesús take place in Santa Eulalia on the 8th of September. Traditional music and dances are central to this festivity. The 11th of September is a national holiday throughout all of Catalonia. On Diada de Catalunya the whole region celebrates its own unique identity. The harvest is also an important reason to celebrate. On the last sunday of september the village of Binssalem on Majorca hosts the Festa des Vermar, a grape-festival with floats and concerts. On the same day in Vilafranca de Bonany, also on Majorca, you can visit the Festa del Melo, a watermelon festival celebrating the end of the harvest. The 29th of September Sant Miguel de Balansat, on Ibiza, honours its patron Saint with dances, fairs and jog races.

So as you can see, besides beaches and party, the Balearic Islands have much tradition to offer and no matter when you travel, there’s always some celebration or festivity taking place in one or more of the Balearic villages on each of the Islands. Book a hotel or apartment on Ibiza or Majorca and join in with the locals in their traditional celebrations.

Posted by Linda at 12:13 PM | Permalink

The Balearic Islands are known for their beautiful white sandy beaches. Especially the beaches on Ibiza are stunning. Besides the long, white and pretty crowded beaches around Ibiza Town and in the big tourist resorts, the Island offers hundreds of small, deserted beaches. Often surrounded by rocky cliffs and sometimes not even accessible by land. These beaches, or calas in the local tongue, are astonishingly gorgeous. The sand is extremely white and fine, and the seawater very clear and blue. When you leave your Ibiza hotel or your Ibiza apartment to take a trip around the Island, to spot all the tourist sights, or to hike around the amazing natural environment, it’s a good idea to take rest and relax at the beach. Besides being a good place for swimming and getting a tan, some beaches are also great fishing spots. Take out your fishing gear to Punta de Sa Galera for example. This fishing spot is located nearby another pretty beach called Cala Salada, 19 km East of Ibiza town. Also nearby Cala Salada you can find Cala d’Hort, a small beach with pine trees where you can enjoy the cool sea breeze. Beach lovers should also pay a visit to Sa Caleta, 11 km Southeast of Ibiza Town and to Cala de Benirràs, 20 km North of Ibiza.

On Ibiza’s smaller neighbor, the Island Formentera, you can find one of the most beautiful spots in the Mediterranean. Playa de Ses Illetes with its strip of dunes along the sea and the many inlets is situated 6 km North of Sant Francesc de Formentera. If you’re staying on the other side of Sant Francesc, you could go and check out the beach of Playa de Migjorn, a large bay with fine sand and crystalline water.

Posted by Linda at 3:41 PM | Permalink

The Balearic Islands offer many different types of accommodation. A hotel can offer you much luxury and a true holiday feeling. Hotels often offer activity programs and meals throughout the day. But sometimes it can be nice to be more independent, to feel more “at home” and to pay less. In that case you could opt for an apartment. Most apartments on the Islands are situated in apartment buildings or apartment hotels. There can be apartments with separate bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen or studios of one big room with a kitchenette and one or more sofa beds. The big advantages are the extra space and that you can prepare your own meals whenever you want. The Barcelo Pueblo Park in Playa de Palma in Mallorca offers a range of cozy apartments around their fantastic swimming pool. It’s a great place to stay independently and at the same time have plenty of opportunity to get to meet your neighbors. Or in the beautiful village of Cala Ratjada you can stay in the apartments of Hotetur Lago Park. This three star complex near the beautiful sandy beach of San Moll offers 2 pools, a children's pool, a pool bar as well as a sun terrace with sun loungers and parasols. There’s an in-house steam room, a sauna, Jacuzzi and massage service as well as further therapies. Sports facilities include aerobics, beach volleyball, minigolf course and a gym. You can even enjoy the entertainment program. So here you can enjoy all the comfort and independence of an own studio and at the same time profit from all the luxury that the hotel has to offer. In Ibiza in the town of Playa d’en Bossa there is the three star Hotel Club Garbi. The apartments are simple but stylish and clean, the hotel offers entertainment and the location is perfect near Ibiza town and some of Ibiza’s most marvelous beaches.

Posted by Linda at 3:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Majorca is a true paradise for sports lovers and adventure seekers. The variety of activities that can be done on the island is humongous. Besides golf, hiking and cycling, more and more outdoor companies are offering their services on Majorca. It’s possible to discover some of the islands hidden secrets of nature while descending canyons or while cycling down stony downhill slopes. Majorca as well as the other Balearics also is a heaven for snorkeling and scuba diving. There are many diving schools run by professionals who like to share their favorite diving spots with their students. The island Dragonera alone is surrounded by dozens of beautiful spots.What many people aren’t aware of yet is that Majorca accommodates more caves than any other place in Europe. You can visit them with a guided tour or swim through the crystal clear underwater lakes. Don’t forget to put on a wetsuit and to bring a lamp. From far underground to high above in the air… How about a balloon flight, a hangglider ride or a microlight trip? It all is possible in Majorca.Many hotels on Majorca offer great sports facilities, like the hotel Arabella Sheraton Golf in Palma with its two golf courses and a beauty farm to relax in after a long day full of adventure. Or the hotel Serrano Palace in Cala Ratjada that offers an enormous variety of water sports, like water skiing, diving, surfing, windsurfing, catamaran sailing, and canoeing. Besides that the hotel offers beach volleyball, horse riding, billiards and a fully equipped gym to stay in shape during your holidays.

Posted by Linda at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the sixties Ibiza was known as the European hippie escape. Nowadays hardly anyone remembers this period and the Island is famous for it’s vibrant club scene all over the world. For many people, the clubs and the house festivals are what makes them choose Ibiza as their holiday destination. As the globe’s clubbing capital, the island is home to some of the most famous venues in Europe, with virtually some of the world’s top house DJs, and many more minor players, performing during the summer season.
Usually one starts the evening in Ibiza with a drink in one or more of the many cafés in the harbor. Later the party crowd slowly moves into the streets of Sa Penya and Sa Marina. Many gay bars are to be found close to the old city walls. After midnight the night starts to come to life at the beach of En Bossa and in the sports harbor Marina de Botafoc where the casino is located. The clubs won’t get busy any time before 2 or 3 in the morning.
The famous yearly festivals organized by Ibiza clubs attract many clubbers. Regular Ibiza visitors probably all know Flower Power in Ibiza’s most renown club Pachá, the foam Parties in Amnesia, MTV UK Dance Floor in Divino, Happy People in the Morning in Space or the famous Water Party in Es Paradís Terrenal. Every year the Ibiza DJ Awards, also called the “Oscars of Dance Music” take place to reward the most creative DJs in ten categories, like techno-trance, house-garage, ambient-experimental, drum’n bass-break beat and much more.
Not only Ibiza Town is a popular clubbing destination. Playa d'en Bossa also offers a lot of nightlife and clubbing possibilities. Choose an apartment or hotel in Ibiza or Playa d'en Bossa and don't miss any of the vibrant nightlife!

Posted by Linda at 4:14 PM | Permalink

Last weekend the Copa del Rey started in Majorca, the biggest of the four Balearic Islands. This yearly regatta is the most important sailing competition in the Mediterranean. It takes place from the 29th July til the 6th August in the Bay of Palma. The Real Federación Española de Vela organizes this competition every year together with the Real Club Náutico de Palma. This year the regatta celebrates its 25th anniversary. There are 103 ships participating, and as usual the Spanish royal family is also taking part. King Juan Carlos and some other members sail the Mediterranean while the queen and the princess enjoy the event on the shore.

Many sailing lovers and tourists are attracted to the Copa del Rey every year. Many take their own boat and stay in one of the many marinas of Majorca. But if you don’t have a boat, you could choose to stay in a Majorca hotel. Guests staying in hotel Catalonia Majorica have an excellent view over the bay and the harbor of Palma, where all the action is taking place. Another ideal hotel for sailing and water sports lovers is hotel Saratoga in the middle of Palma. This hotel has a huge garden, indoor and outdoor swimming pool, a gym, spa, health and beauty center, a sauna, and a massage salon. The water sports activities they offer on request are water aerobics, motor boating, wind surfing, sailing, catamaran sailing, and canoeing.

Posted by Linda at 2:10 PM | Permalink