Another warm, sunny morning so our plan was to take a walk along the waterfront at Santa Ponca. Buses run from the Paseo Maritim (seafront) in Palma just outside our hotel and there are two options, a direct service by motorway taking around 20 minutes or the coastal route which takes one hour. We opted for the slower, scenic route on our outbound journey which passes along Palma’s waterfront, port and a few pretty little coves before driving through the urban sprawl of the twin resorts of Palma Nova and Magalluf which nowadays merge into one.
We had no wish to spend time in either of these resorts but thought it would be interesting to pass through on the bus and take a quick look for ourselves. There is still much evidence of the late 60’s early 70’s hotel building boom under General Franco when package holidays first became popular with ‘concrete monstrosity’ hotels crammed close together. Along the seafront there are the usual seaside gift shops, bars and cafes but the majority of the bars seemed to be either English or Irish serving full English breakfasts and fish and chips rather than tapas and local cuisine. Obviously it still provides many visitors with a fun filled holiday but it’s definitely not for us and a few minutes later the bus was heading inland across the peninsula to our destination Santa Ponca.
It’s a pleasant resort with a wide sweeping bay and we followed the coastal path to the rocky headland where the path came to an end. On the sandy beach some families were enjoying the warm spring sunshine and we found several attractive beach bars to choose from for our morning cups of coffee. Before heading back to Palma we took a look around the town but we found the shops quite disappointing, they were a step up from those in Palma Nova and Magalluf but quite touristy compared to other resorts we’d visited earlier in the week. Still, we were pleased with our visit as Santa Ponca is located in a beautiful setting. We returned to Palma on the direct service (the same price as the slower bus, only €3.50 each).
We spent the next couple of hours shopping in Palma and having a late lunch in one of the many attractive tapas bars in the old town. On returning to the hotel we both had a short rest on our sunny balcony before taking a pre dinner stroll along the marina as far as the cruise terminal. We hadn’t walked in this direction before as its the opposite way to the city centre. There were lots of yachts and motor cruisers to view and dream about owning if only we could perhaps win the lottery! A huge MSC cruise liner was in port carrying almost 4,000 passengers, as we approached it was hard to believe how large the ship really was.
Our final dinner in the hotel’s restaurant, my confit of duck tasted delicious. I’ll miss all the lovely cooking when we return home.
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I was there two weeks ago in Santa Ponça. The resort is gorgeous but all the shops are resort-orientated indeed. I was surprised by the many places to visit in Mallorca though!
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Away from the tourist spots Mallorca is beautiful! Thanks for reading my post and commenting.
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What a top day!!!
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Thank you, we enjoyed it!
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That looks absolutely gorgeous.
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Thank you, it was indeed very attractive. Thanks for reading my posts!
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Thanks for posting!! 🙂
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Magalluf wouldn’t be our thing either but definitely interesting to take a look I think!!
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Yes, it confirmed my thoughts on the resort – keep well away !! Just enjoyed a late afternoon cup of tea in the garden, hope this weather continues!!
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Fingers firmly crossed for the weekend but according to my weather forecast it’s not looking quite so good. Still….. they might be wrong!!
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I don’t like those concrete buildings and the idea of going overseas for fish and chips or even Finnish food does not appeal 😉 Your holiday sounded so lovely and relaxing. Love the yachts too xx
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Thanks Suvi, one day you might be sailing to the Mediterranean ! Finished the book and enjoyed it so much so when you read other books that you like, let me know please xx
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Yay, I am so happy to hear you liked the book 🙂 I am now reading a very light read – The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty. I am enjoying it so far!
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I love reading about places I’ve been. Quite a while since I was in Palma, it’s a great place to explore, and lovely to see your Marina shots.
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Thank you, I agree it’s good to read other people’s perspectives on places we’ve been, brings back happy memories!
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Sounds lovely and leisurely, just the way to enjoy a holiday.
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Definitely, some holidays are meant to be taken at a slower pace. When we visit cities, which I love to do, we are always on the go so it’s nice to just relax sometimes.
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I know what you mean.
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Seems like a nice holiday Marion and agree with you on the part of making most of any place by exploring around, trying the local food, flavors etc. We always prefer to do that too:)
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Glad you agree – it’s definitely the best way!
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