The Balearic Islands are among the most popular destinations in the Mediterranean. Each year, twelve million visitors set foot on the Spanish archipelago off the coast of Valencia. Majorca, in particular, the largest of the islands. "It would be impossible to describe this gift from heaven. It is the most beautiful place that can be contemplated in the world", said Georges Sand, disembarking there to find Frederic Chopin in 1838. Two centuries later, Majorca continues to delight the heart. Tourists relax on the beaches and in the hotel clubs of the bays of Palma or Alcudia, but they also increasingly set out to explore the natural hinterland.

As soon as you set foot in Palma (the capital of more than 400,000 inhabitants), your attention is caught by the imposing silhouette of the cathedral - as sturdy as a fortress. With the neighbouring Almundaina Palace (former residence of the Moorish vizier) with its crenelated walls, it is the starting point to discover the treasures of the old districts of the city. Decorated facades and roofs, carved doorways and secret palaces patios encircling flower-filled patios ... each medieval street, each house with its wrought iron balcony, hides treasures. Open the doors of the episcopal churches and palaces reverently and wander through the flower market sheltered under the plane trees of Via Roma and admire the art deco buildings from the early twentieth century before visiting the tapas bars of the new city for a lively, all-night "movida" experience.

But the real charms of Majorca are elsewhere. As soon as you leave the capital and the seaside resorts behind you, another island reveals itself, one that is natural and luminous with its rugged landscapes reminiscent of Corsica or Provence. Nearly 40% of the territory is protected; Including the Sierra de Tramuntana, the verdant central mountain range with peaks rising to more than 1400 m, whose slopes are covered with pines, cypresses and terraced crops. By car, because the island measures 100 km from east to west! 

Delightful coastal roads (like the one linking Andratx to Soller on the west coast) lead you to natural coves. With each bend in the road, the panoramas are more vertiginous and the coves more crystalline. Lost monasteries and peaceful white or honey-coloured "pueblos" (villages) are dotted along the way. Notably Valldemosa, where Georges Sand and Frederic Chopin lived. A visit to the Charterhouse of Valldemossa is a must, the monastery where the musician composed the "Raindrop" prelude. His piano is revered as a relic!

Clinging to the hills with their rows of vines and almond trees, or nestling in the quiet valleys planted with orange and lemon trees, the villages of the interior have nothing to envy their counterparts on the coast. Places like Bunyola or Petra display their majestic stately residences inherited from the time when the Moors occupied the island. A sweetness of life that can be found even in the cooking, with Mediterranean cuisine embellished with touches of Arab and African flavours, the many culinary legacies of past invasions.

Sites and monuments

• Sa Seu, the Gothic cathedral built in the 14th century
• The Almudaina, a 10th century Moorish fortress converted into a royal palace
• Bellver Castle, circular fort unveiling a lovely view of the bay
• The Plaza Mayor, surrounded by beautiful buildings and arcades
• San Miquel street, a pedestrian shopping paradise
• The port, with its ballet of yachts and steamships
• Olivar market, to buy cold cuts, cheeses, wines and fruits
• The beaches of El Arenal and Palma Nova, at the edge of the city
• The old town of Alcudia enclosed in its medieval walls
• The villages of the west coast with their timeless atmospheres: Soller, Deia, Fornalutx or Banyalbufar
• The Charterhouse of Valldemosa, so beloved of Georges Sand and Frédéric Chopin

Parks and natural sites 

• The Sierra de Tramuntana mountains, classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
• The Gardens of Alfabia, with the Serra de Tramuntana as a backdrop
• Cala Figuera, one of the most beautiful coves in Majorca
• The natural parks of Albufera and the Llevant Peninsula
• The pristine Formentor peninsula

Museums

• The Mallorca Museum dedicated to fine arts and decorative arts
• The Es Baluard Museum devoted to contemporary art
• The Pilar and Joan Miro Foundation Museum where the surrealist artist lived
• Palma aquarium 

• 5 January - Cabalgada de los Reyes Magos (arrival of the 3 wise kings who distribute toys and sweets)
• February / March - Carnival, with a parade of floats
• March 1 - Independent Community Day
• March / April - Holy Week, parades of the brotherhoods of penitents with hoods and torches
• June 24 - Feast of Saint John with its many bonfires
• 29 June - Feast of Saint Pierre (Saint Peter), patron saint of fishermen, with processions
• July 16 - processions at sea to celebrate the Verge del Carme (patroness of sailors)
• End of July - Sa Mostra folklore festival 
• August - many jazz and classical music festivals
• September - Feast of the Mare of Deu de la Salut (patroness of Palma) with the giants’ parade 
• 12 October - National Day
• 31 December - Estendart festival (to celebrate the re-conquest of the island by the Catalans in 1229)

• Feel like finding somewhere cool? Visit the Drach Caves in Porto Cristo (on the east coast of the island). There are chambers decorated with stalactites and stalagmites but also an underground lake, one of the largest in the world... The magic is complete when the walls resound to a classical music concert!   
• Agrotourism allows you to discover the true charms of Mallorca. In the centre of the island, the Bodega Biniagual wine estate is home to a hamlet, abandoned in the 1960s and carefully renovated. In the old streets and gardens, the atmosphere is delightfully rural. 
• Hop onto the old train that links Palma to Soller, a picturesque little town 30 km away. You travel through unspoilt mountain landscapes and citrus plantations, before enjoying an orange juice on Constitution Square and trundling on to the port 3 km away, by tram...  

Starters

• Tapas - finger foods (ham, meat, anchovies, cheese...) to be shared with friends. 
• Sobrasada - local sausage made with ground pork and peppers

Dishes

• Asado de lechona - delicious roast suckling pig
• Escaldum - duck stew with potatoes
• Lomo con col - steak with cabbage, ideal for cooler evenings!
• Empanadas - flaky pastry turnovers filled with vegetables
• Many types of fish: scorpionfish, John Dory, swordfish, sea bream, grouper...
• Lobsters and gambas, to be tasted in caldera de lagosta (a kind of bouillabaisse)

Desserts

• Queso de Mao- an AOC cheese made from raw cow’s milk
• Ensaimada -  flakey brioche sprinkled with sugar
• Robiol -  sweet cake filled with cream
• Pastisset -  star-shaped pastry
• Carquinyol -  biscuit with almonds

Drinks

• Majorcan wine* is excellent, with two local appellations: Pia i Lievant and Binissalem
• Horchata de chufa - a sweet, non-alcoholic drink made from nutsedge (papyrus family) 
• Palo*, a kind of vermouth, made with cinchona and gentian bark.
• Hierbas*, digestive composed of several aromatic plants including anise and rosemary

* l'abus d'alcool est dangereux pour la santé, à consommer avec modération

• Spain Tourist Office
• Balearics Tourist Office
• Majorca Tourist Office
• Palma Tourist Office
• Palma de Majorca Airport (PMI)
• French Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• French Ambassy in Spain
• Ambassy of Spain in France
• General Consulate of France in Spain