DK Travel : Mallorca : Places of interest

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Museu Diocesà

Just behind the cathedral, the 17th-century Palau Episcopal houses a little diocese museum. On display are items from various churches in Mallorca as well as a selection of majolica tiles. Particularly noteworthy are: a picture of St George slaying the dragon in front of Palma’s city gate, painted in 1468–70 by Pere Nisart; Bishop Galiana’s panel depicting the life of St Paul (who is portrayed holding a sword); the Gothic pulpit in a Mudéjar (Spanish-Moorish) style; and the jasper sarcophagus of Jaume II, which stood in the cathedral until 1904. The palace itself, which is built around a large courtyard, adjoins the city walls. (See also Museu Diocesà, Palma).
Orient

Again, it is the mountain setting that dazzles: this tiny, remote hamlet of some 40 houses has some of the finest views the island has to offer. It’s also an excellent base for hikers or anyone who just wants to breathe the exhilarating air.
Palau de l’Almudaina

Having been a royal palace for over 1,000 years, this building’s style speaks of its long, fractious history with an uneasy blending of Islamic and Gothic elements.
Parc Natural de Mondragó

Marked as a protected area in 1992, the park incorporates marshes, rocky coasts, beaches, dunes, farmland, pine forest and scrub. Country lanes and easy trails provide access. Look out for herons, egrets, puffins, coots, ducks, finches and rabbits.
Parc Natural de S’Albufera

The wetland south of Port d’Alcúdia was once a swamp, most of which was drained in the 1860s. The remaining marshes, overgrown with reeds, can be explored via marked trails. A major conservation project, this is an excellent place for bird-watching.
Península de Formentor

Mallorca’s wildest part is full of vivid vistas and precipitous plunges, where driving or hiking are exhilarating and unforgettable experiences. It is also home to Mallorca’s most venerable hotel, where movie stars hobnob, and where crowned heads and diplomats have decided the fate of nations.
Petra

This small town is the birthplace of Junípero Serra. Aged 54, the pioneering Franciscan monk travelled to America and Mexico and after many arduous journeys on foot, founded missions in California. The old houses lining the labyrinth of narrow alleys have changed little since Serra’s time here. The town makes the most of its famous son, and all places associated with Serra are well marked. These include a humble building in Carrer Barracar Alt where Serra was born. Next to this is a small museum, opened in 1955, devoted to his life and work, which includes wooden models of the nine American missions established by Serra. At the end of the street in which the Serra family house stands is the 17th-century monastery of Sant Bernat. A series of Majolica panels down a side street next to the monastery are a gift from grateful Californians and pay tribute to the monk.

Petra
Plaça Weyler

Several interesting examples of Palma’s Modernista output are found in this square. The Gran Hotel was Palma’s first luxury hotel when it opened in 1903. Designed by Catalan architect Lluis Domenech i Muntaner, it was the building that began the craze for Modernista in the city and is now an excellent art gallery (free) with a permanent display of paintings by Hermen Anglada-Camarasa and a major venue for temporary exhibitions. Across the street is the wonderful façade of the Forn des Teatre pastry shop next to the old-fashioned Bar Central (see Bar Central).
Platja de Canyamel

If a tranquil resort is what you’re after, this might be the place to come. Even in high season, it remains a quiet, family-oriented place – just a long, curving sandy beach backed by pine forests, with a few tasteful hotels here and there.
Pollença

Founded by the Romans in the foothills of the Serra de Tramuntana, Pollença still has much of its old-world charm with narrow, twisting streets, some good restaurants and a lively Sunday market. There’s a great municipal museum, too (see Museu Municipal de Pollença), while the pride of the town is the beautiful Way of the Cross, leading to a chapel that houses a Gothic statue of Christ. Climbing the seemingly endless set of steps (365 in all), you pass the Stations of the Cross. The statue is carried around town on Good Friday, in a moving torchlight procession.