Balearic Islands: address book

Identity card

Formalities

Passport or identity card.

Area code

+ 34 (Spain); 971 (Balearic Islands).

Best seasons

Prefer the shoulder seasons, especially for MICE groups. In autumn and spring, the light is exceptional, temperatures are mild, and the tourist masses have not yet arrived or left. Group size Absolutely any size, except perhaps on Formentera, where exclusive groups are more in keeping with the spirit of the island.

How to get there

Vueling offers up to two flights a day from Paris Orly during the summer season to both Palma and Ibiza.

Tel: 0899 232 400 (€0.91/min) Internet: www.vueling.com/FR

Transaviathe Air-France KLM Group's low-cost carrier, will be serving Ibiza four times a week this summer.

Tel: 0892 058888 (€0.34/min) Internet: www.transavia.com

For more information

Spanish Tourist Office

Tel: 01 45 03 82 50 - Email: paris@ trourspain.es - Internet: spain.info/en_FR

Majorca

Tourist office
Plaça de la Reina, 2. 07012 Palma.
Tel.: 00 34 971 173 990
Email: oit@conselldemallorca.net
Internet: www.infomallorca.net

Hotels

Od Portals

Just a five-minute drive from Palma Cathedral, i.e. the historic heart of the city, the OD Portals hotel imposes a truly modern feel on an area that is too often poorly built. Nevertheless, the hotel is perfectly located, just a stone's throw from the Portals marina and its countless restaurants. The hotel's contemporary design is very tasteful, with an almost Scandinavian purity. The very urban concept of the establishment makes it a sort of trendy boutique hotel transposed to a holiday island. The vans full of clothes on hangers come and go, and the hotel is particularly popular with fashionistas, models and photographers. Parties are held on the roof and meetings can be held in the four rooms on the mezzanine. Ideal for small groups of up to 80 people, the hotel can even be completely privatised. OD Portals is a member of Design Hotels. 77 rooms, 10 junior suites, swimming pool.

Av. Tomas Blanes Tolosa, 4 Calvia, Portals Nous - Tel: + 34 971 675 956 Email: odportportals@od-hotels.com Internet: www.odportportals.com

Hilton SA Torre Mallorca Resort

Magnificent! A hotel that is light years away from the identity usually conveyed by the Hilton group. Just 15 minutes from the airport and 20 minutes from Palma, the American brand has set up shop in an immense and noble finca dating back to the 14th century, a marvellous castle lost in the countryside, perfectly restored and adapted to the needs of the hotel trade. Everything is perfect: the library, the contemporary works of art all over the walls, the dining room, some of the rooms and suites left as they were... In short, elegance, chic and a silence disturbed only by birdsong. What's more, a neo-gothic chapel outside the walls, now desecrated, can host all kinds of events. The hotel organises prestigious events, such as the launch of new car models, as well as purely incentive operations including hot-air balloon flights launched from... the football pitch, because there is a football pitch. 90 contemporary-style rooms and suites, 1,100 m2 of meeting rooms in the former stables for up to 250 people, spa and indoor pool, two outdoor pools, restaurant and bar, two tennis courts.

Cami de Sa Torre, km 8,7. Llucmajor Tel: +34 871 963 700 Email: info.satorremallorca@hilton.com Internet: hotelsatorremallorca.com

Exceptional show

Son Amar

With 50 m2 of video screens, five laser machines, 10,000 watts of sound, 500,000 watts of light, 40 performers and 500 costumes: Son Amar cabaret, which has been in existence since 1963, has nothing to envy the greatest Parisian revues or the best Broadway shows. For one evening, during an extended aperitif followed by a dinner for up to 1,000 people, the troupe puts on a breathtaking show featuring ballets, songs, balancing acts, contortionists, horseback riders and burlesque acts. For corporate events, the cabaret doesn't hesitate to put cars on stage and has fully equipped meeting rooms. A beautiful 16th-century room can be used for cocktails or gala dinners, as Son Amar has been built around and in a very old finca.

Ctra Palma, Soller, km 10,8. Palmanyola. Tel: +34 971 617 533 - Email: info@ sonamar.com and events@sonamar.com Internet: www.sonamar.com

Outstanding sites, private areas

Fondacio Pilar | Joan Miro.

Miro settled here in 1956, in the heart of what was once a pine forest. Miro's studio, built in 1959 by his friend, the architect Josep Lluis Sert, is a sight to behold. In 1979, the painter and his wife decided to create a foundation right next to their house and studio. Today, you can discover a firework display of paintings, drawings, sculptures, ceramics and tapestries. A dazzling display.

Cl Joan de Saridakis, 29, Palma. Tel: +34 971 70 14 20 - Email: info@ fpjmiro.org - Internet: miro.palma.cat

Es Baluard Museum of Modern Art

Certainly, its collections are not as good as those in the museums of Barcelona or Madrid. Apart from a few Miro and Picasso pieces, they are admittedly pretty poor. On the other hand, the venue, overlooking the port, is sublime and remarkably well-designed. It can be privatised for corporate events and has a meeting room set in a former cistern that can accommodate 400 people in theatre and 500 for cocktails. The 3,000 m2 terrace can accommodate up to 3,000 people.

Plaça Porta Santa Catalina, 10, Palma. Tel: + 34 971 908 200 Email: marketing@esbaluard.org Internet: www.esbaluard.org

The cellars of Macia Batle

We don't know it well enough, but the Balearic Islands produce some excellent wines: generous reds, whites and rosés, perhaps a little strong in alcohol. For proof of this, all you have to do is make a diversion to Macia Batle, a finca that has been lost in the middle of the vineyards since 1856 and offers tastings accompanied by creative appetisers. After a tour of the cellars and ultra-modern production facilities, the owners take the groups on a little train ride through the vineyards and countryside. It's great fun, and with the wine tasting under their belts, people sing at the top of their voices. It's like a reminder of the grape harvests of yesteryear.

Cami de Coanegra, s/n. Santa Maria del Cami - Tel: + 34 971 140 014 Email: info@maciabatle.com Internet: www.maciabatle.com

Palma Aquarium

One of the largest collections in Europe, featuring fish from the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. Aquariums follow one another in an underground labyrinth, including a gigantic unit where frightening sharks frolic. Dinners for corporate groups of between 10 and 50 people are held in front of its huge windows.

Manuela de los Herreros i Sorà, 21 Palma - Tel: + 34 902 702 902 Email: info@palmaaquarium.com Internet: palmaaquarium.com

Chopin and George Sand Museum

It's the kind of must-see that makes you wonder for a long time whether it's worth it or not? In any case, when it comes to cell no. 4 of the Valldemossa Charterhouse, where George Sand and Frédéric Chopin fell in love, it's immediately clear: the place is oversold. At the centre of a majestic monastery corridor, it's a pretty little two-room kitchen with whitewashed walls and a delightful hanging garden. And that's all there is to it. Oh, yes, it is! Apart from various objects and paintings of little interest, there is Chopin's Pleyel piano and some of the manuscripts of Un hiver à Majorque by Madame Sand. However, you won't want to miss a visit to the charming little village of Valldemossa, with its high walls and bunches of orange and lemon trees. A favourite with artists, of course. Celda de Chopin y George Sand.

Real Cartuja de Valldemossa. Valldemossa. Tel: +34 696 40 59 92 Email: info@celdadechopin.es Internet: www.celdadechopin.es

Ibiza

Tourist office
(Consell insular d'Eivissa)
Av. d'Espanya, 49. 07800 Eivissa - Tel: +34 971 19 59 00 - Email: info@ibiza. travel - Internet: www.ibiza.travel

Hotels

Can Lluc

In Ibiza, the real chic consists in copying the stars and, once the party lasers have gone out, retreating a few kilometres from the city. If possible in the middle of the countryside, with nothing but birdsong in the background. Can Lluc has understood this, and has completely revamped an old farmhouse with exquisite taste, completely in keeping with the times. Contemporary, then, but in the old days; the charm of a unique vernacular architecture blended with modernity. The modern part of this boutique hotel - let's call it a 'country boutique', to stick as closely as possible to the concept - offers bungalows with immaculate, clean, precise volumes, overlooking a pretty English-style garden. There's also a stunning swimming pool, sauna and fitness centre, as well as an award-winning restaurant. What's more, the country boutique is designed to cater for groups of up to twenty people, and offers a meeting room for up to 25 people. The garden lounge - a terrace designed for events and installed on the roof of the restaurant - can accommodate up to 120 people. Since its creation, the hotel has received a large number of international awards. 20 rooms, including eight villas.

Ctra. À Santa Inés km 2. Cami des Tercet. San Rafael - Tel: + 34 971 19 86 73 - Email: info@canlluc.com - Internet: www.canlluc.com

Atzaro

Young, lively, light... right in the spirit of Ibiza. This former farmhouse, also positioned as a country boutique, is set in open countryside and incorporates the abundant vegetation of a tropical paradise. The gardens are immense, with exotic espalier trees, frogs croaking in the ponds, other long stretches of water in the Andalusian style, gazebos, a restaurant with inventive cuisine served under pergolas and elegant rooms that are all different. All this just 15 minutes from Ibiza. 21 rooms and suites, four swimming pools, a spa and a restaurant. Two event rooms and all kinds of entertainment on request.

Crta. Sant Joan km 15. San Lorenzo. Tel: + 34 971 33 88 88 Email: agroturismo@atzaro.com Internet: www.atzaro.com

Me Ibiza

First of all, the atmosphere: cosy chic, urban beach... Right from the lobby, discreetly perfumed, the tone is set: this is Ibiza, so there's no need to worry about anything. At the end of the lobby is a gigantic swimming pool around which everything happens, including the restaurant service. At the end of the pool: the beach. The bar, also by the pool, is run by Alvaro Martin, nominated for the World's Best Barman award. The hotel's rooftop also hosts wild parties until two in the morning. As you can see, this ME by Melia is a seaside hotel first and foremost, and doesn't shy away from a party, with shows even in the pool. It is a member of Leading Hotels of the World. 179 rooms and 26 suites. Two meeting rooms.

Urb. S'Argamassa, 153. Santa Eulalia del Rio - Tel: + 34 971 33 00 51 Email: meibiza@melia.com Internet: www.melia.com

Aguas de Ibiza

It's contemporary elegance to the power of 1,000. Everything is perfect, the tones, the materials, the precision of the lines, the management of volumes... In short, this hotel is a work of art in itself. In this case, a minimalist work of art, because there are no superfluous details. The focus is on the essentials. The dry stone walls are followed by beige flat tints, free of any excess, and the off-whites justify the deep blacks. God, it's all chic. Chic and eco-friendly, since all the balconies are fitted with solar panels. The balconies in particular. Oh, the balconies! They look out over the sea and are totally in keeping with the libertarian spirit of Ibiza, with their open-air bathtubs. Because in Ibiza, as we all know, you're there to see and be seen. And in every outfit, it would seem. As for the rest: the spa is Clarins, the restaurants only serve fresh local produce, the staff's white linen suits are Ad Lib, and the rooftop restaurant, which offers tapas with a twist, is masterfully run by Sergi Arola, who has two Michelin stars. The feng shui rooms are a perfect match. The hotel is a member of Design Hotels. 112 rooms.

Salvador Camacho, 9, Santa Eularia des Riu - Tel: + 34 971 31 99 91. Email: info@aguasdeibiza.com Internet: www.aguasdeibiza.com

Places for private hire

Viver d'Empreses

The local council rents out prestigious areas in the UNESCO-listed citadel: bastions on the ramparts, a cloister, a former powder magazine, etc.

C/. arquebisbe Cardona Riera 19, Eivissa. Tel: +34 971 19 99 82 Email: tomas.paris@eivissa.es Internet: www.eivissa.es

Reception

Incentivos Ibiza

Tel: +34 971 193 069 Email: info@incentivoibiza.com Internet: www.incentivosibiza.com

 

Ibiza Service Center

Tel: +34 971 39 44 13 Email: info@ibiza-service-center.com Internet: www.ibiza-service-center.com

 

Viajes Es Freus S.A.

Tel: +34 971 30 80 84 Email: booking@esfreus.com Internet: www.marjetincoming.com

Transport

Schooner

 

Absolute glamour on the Cala Millor, a schooner from the last century that can be chartered for cocktails or even an excursion around Formentera.

Ibiza Sailing Events

Calle Aragon, 25 - Apt 7 Ibiza - Tel: + 34 609 85 32 10 Email: infos@ sailing-events.es Internet: www.ibiza-sailing-events.es

Scooter

You can explore the island by scooter, on your own of course, but also in small groups with an English-speaking guide. Large groups are not recommended, as they are unmanageable and therefore dangerous. Cooltra has 1,300 scooters, 300 of them electric.

Cooltra

Av. Pedro Matutes Noguera, 109. Ibiza. Tel: + 34 971 305 730 Email: roman@cooltra.com Internet: www.cooltra.com

Formentera

Tourist office
Carrer de Mallorca, 15 Sant Ferran de ses Roques - Tel: 971 32 12 10
Email : carlosbernus@formentera.es
Internet: www.formentera.es

Restaurant

Vogamari

An unpretentious beach restaurant serving wonderful fish and island specialities washed down with an excellent local white wine. The restaurant is ideal for groups, offering both a large covered dining room and a terrace sheltered from the wind. To access the beach, plank paths have been beautifully constructed, winding through the dunes. Simply magical.

Platja Migjorn, Ctra La Mola km 9,5. Tel: +34 971 32 90 53 Email: tonivogamari@hotmail.es Internet: www.vogamari.es

Reception

Water of such transparency is unique in the world... So we don't hesitate to try our hand at water sports, which are all there except for jet skiing, and it's easy to see why. So there are sea kayaking excursions, windsurfing, catamaran initiation, paddle surfing and... in addition, trekking and cycling.

4 nomadas

Tel: +34 667 561 350 Email: escuela@4nomadas.com

 

Wet4fun

Calle Roca Plana 51 - 69. Es Pujols. Tel: +34 971 32 18 09 Email: offce@wet4fun.com Internet: www.vdws.de

Practical guides

MajorcaLonely Planet ;

Guide See Balearic Islands Hachette ;

The Balearic Islands Rough Guide.