If you follow me on Instagram, you might be asking, didn't you go to Mallorca in October of last year? Yes, I did. It's only now, with January being my slowest month for picking up freelance work, that I've managed to carve out some time to blog again. And today I'm sharing some of my favourite snapshots and memories from what was a completely unexpected and last minute trip to the Spanish island.
I have to start by saying that me and my mum had never been to Mallorca before. But after spotting a brilliant deal, where we got 4 nights in a 4-star hotel, with breakfast for around £235 (we ended up paying £275 so we could have a pool view room), we couldn't not book it. It was also our first time flying with Ryanair and jetting off from Prestwick, which we were keen to try out.
After an early morning train from Glasgow Central straight to Prestwick Airport (why don't Glasgow or Edinburgh have direct trains?), we didn't have any issues with Ryanair. And it was actually quite freeing only having a backpack. I was able to pack everything I needed, with a tiny bit of space to spare. But as I wasn't planning on bringing back any souvenirs or shopping, this worked for both of us.
Once we'd arrived, around midday, we caught a direct bus from the airport to our hotel in Alcudia. It took a little over an hour and dropped us off a few minutes away. We were a little worried that it might be too good to be true, as the hotel looked great on their website and we'd paid so little. But, we needn't have worried.
The hotel itself, from our room to the two pools (with plenty of sun loungers), had a boutique-style feel to it, while being ideally located just minutes from a beautiful sand beach. After staying in Ixia, Rhodes earlier in the year, this was a pleasant change and meant that you could actually walk barefoot on it.
The two pools were great and we were so glad that we paid a bit extra (around £40 each) to upgrade to a pool-facing view, as the street where the other rooms looked out onto was pretty busy in the evenings. Plus, how can you beat those sunrise and sunset views?
We didn't do a whole lot of exploring during our stay, other than to the beach and the local shops. To say we were excited to be walking distance to a Lidl is a bit of an understatement, too. Let's just confirm, their bakery is even more elite in Spain than it is back home. And we found ourselves trying new sweet treats and baked goods every day, even after a pretty extravagant and filling hotel breakfast.
We also discovered an incredible pizza restaurant, Pizza Stellatta, which was a ten minute walk from the hotel. And, of course, a gelato a day was pretty much mandatory, especially with us only being there a few days.
Other than that, we were all about lazing by the pool, me with my Kindle and my mum with her frankly prehistoric iPod Shuffle. I've said it before and I'll say it again, but as someone who used to cram their holiday with 101 excursions, plans and an hour by hour itinerary, mostly for city breaks and Orlando trips, I am now a full convert to a beach/pool holiday.
The only thing we regretted not doing was visiting the Rafael Nadal Museum. As massive fans of Rafa, and tennis more generally, this would have been right up our street. However, you either need to rent a car, take two pretty lengthy buses or book an expensive taxi to get there. It's something we'll definitely need to look into and do next time, so watch this space.
So, if you've been considering Mallorca for a while, like we had, or are looking for somewhere warm and sunny that's not too far away (less than 3 hours), I would highly recommend. And we can't wait to go again. I may or may not be pricing up holidays for May or October again.
Have you ever been to Mallorca? Or wanted to visit? And where has been your favourite European destination so far?
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