Short Breaks - Walking Discoveries - Spain - Mallorca's Tramuntana Sierra

Mallorca ’s most dramatic scenery - and its prettiest villages - are to be found in the Tramuntana Sierra in the north-west of the island. With their craggy limestone peaks contrasting with the sea below, the rugged mountains provide a spectacular backdrop to clusters of honey-coloured houses which sit amid immaculate terraces of orange and lemon trees stretching as far as the eye can see. One such town is charming Sóller, a bustling place nestling in a fertile, bowl-shaped valley planted with yet more citrus groves. Within easy reach of the capital, Palma, it makes a great base for walking and exploring in Mallorca’s magnificent north-west corner and beyond using the efficient and widespread local transport system (or inexpensive taxis).

Ca’s Curial, Sóller

Your base is this luxurious, beautifully restored house of 4-star standard. It is surrounded by five hectares of fragrant orange and lemon trees yet only five minutes’ walk from the town centre. The eight elegant bedrooms retain many original features, and the gardens provide many shaded corners - not least an attractive swimming pool - in which to relax and enjoy the views of the amphitheatre of mountains framing Sóller. Dinner is included in the hotel’s elegant restaurant (or on the terrace on warm evenings) on your first night, leaving you free to try some of the many restaurants in the town on other nights.

Walking and sightseeing

From the centre of Sóller you can catch buses, trains, trams or taxis (pay locally in all cases) to travel between villages and access the walks and places of interest that we suggest. Some walks are very easy (grade 1), while others are slightly more strenuous (grade 2).

Delightful Deià (12km, 4hrs): catch a bus to Deià, a very pretty village and a favourite of many bohemians, writers and poets in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Spend some time strolling through the cobbled streets of honey-coloured buildings before either catching the bus back or following the old postman's route across the Muleta Plateau and descending to Port de Sóller, from where you can take the old-fashioned tram up to Sóller itself.

The Muleta Plateau (7.5km, 2.5hrs): starting and ending in Port de Sóller, which you can reach by tram, this walking route explores the Muleta Plateau, passing its distinctive lighthouse where you can pause for lunch (pay locally).

Along pilgrims’ paths (16km, 5.5hrs): take a taxi to Lake Cuver, from where a path rises gently through pine woods to the Ofre Pass for views of the Mediterranean in clear weather. From the pass, you descend into the valley and walk down through the dramatic Biniaraix Gorge on a cobbled pilgrims’ trail comprising almost 2,000 shallow stone steps that are thought to have been originally cut by the Carthaginians for transporting olive oil some 2,500 years ago.

Fornalutx stroll (8km, 3hrs): the neighbouring village of Fornalutx, another of Mallorca’s most delightful villages, is well worth a visit, and is easily reached on foot from Sóller. Like most villages here, the houses are built of warm-coloured stone that glows in the sunlight, and there are cafés where you can sit and enjoy the views of never-ending orange and lemon groves stretching up towards the craggy limestone peaks.

Lluc Monastery: the mountain hamlet of Lluc, its imposing monastery and opulent basilica constitute Mallorca’s most important centre of pilgrimage after a boy named Lluc found a brightly coloured statue of the Virgin Mary in the mid 13th century.

The nostalgic train to Palma: experience the nostalgic - and very dramatic - narrow-gauge railway through the heart of the mountains to Palma for a day of sightseeing and shopping. Mallorca’s bustling, cosmopolitan capital boasts a magnificent sea-front cathedral, some of the best restaurants on the island, and a walled old quarter in which medieval architecture contrasts with many late 19th-century buildings.

Bustling Sóller: Sóller itself deserves attention too. It boasts botanical gardens and a lively Saturday market as well as an attractive main square where you can watch the world go by from one of the pavement cafés. The church here has a striking early 20th-century façade and there are other examples of Art Deco architecture among the manor houses and colourful gardens that line the elegant streets. On the coast, neighbouring Port de Sóller boasts a horse-shoe shaped beach ringed by a pleasant seafront promenade dotted with restaurants and bars.

Alternative hotel:
We also offer the restored historic Ca'l Bisbe ('the House of the Bishop'), which has retained its authentic character and offers modern-day comforts and friendly staff. Set in secluded gardens - with swimming pool - you will feel you're in the heart of the country rather than in the centre of a bustling town. The restoration of Ca'l Bisbe includes a large reception area and, where the old olive-oil press used to be, the hotel now boasts an exclusive dining room

£ per person based on 2 in a double rm	Walk price*	Extra night#	Single room
3 nights: 1 February-30 June & 1 September-30 November 2008
1 Feb-13 Mar	290		57
14-20 Mar	307		57
21 Mar-30 Jun	331		46
1 Sep-31 Oct	331		46
1-30 Nov	290		57
3rd+ person saving

*Price includes: 3 nights' bed & breakfast, plus 1 dinner; return taxi from Palma airport (out/home 0h35)
#Per person per night on a B&B basis
Recommended airport: Palma
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