Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
grilled sardines to rice, suckling pig or
sobrassada
(Mallorcan cured sausage) with
honey, while local cheeses are the pick of the desserts.
Shopping
Estel@rt
FOOD, CRAFT
(Carrer de Sa Siquia; 10am-2pm & 5-8pm Mon & Wed-Sat, 10am-2pm Sun)
At the northern
end of town, this engaging little place sells primarily Mallorcan and Menorcan clothes,
jewellery, ceramics, speciality foods and wine; the selection is small but well chosen.
There's a two-room art gallery downstairs.
Banyalbufar
POP 560 / ELEV 112M
Eight kilometres northeast of Estellencs, Banyalbufar is positioned in a cleft in the Serra
de Tramuntana's seaward wall, high above the coast. It's a tight, steep rabbit-warren of a
town, with quiet pot-plant-lined lanes winding down towards the sea that beckon
strollers.
The village was founded by the Arabs in the 10th century; the name Banyalbufar
means 'built next to the sea' in Arabic. All around the village are carved-out, centuries-
old, stone-walled farming terraces, known as
ses marjades
and forming a series of steps
down to the sea; they are kept moist by mountain well water that gurgles down open
channels and is stored in cisterns.
Sights
Torre des Verger
TOWER
(Torre de Ses Animes; Carretera de Banyalbufar-Andratx)
One kilometre out of town on
the road to Estellencs, the Torre des Verger is a 1579
talayot
(watchtower), an image
you'll see on postcards all over the island. It's one of the most crazily sited structures on
the island - one step further and it would plunge into the Mediterranean far below.
Cala Banyalbufar
BEACH
A steep 1km walk downhill past terraced slopes from Banyalbufar brings you to this
rugged shingle cove, where you can swim or sip a cold one at the beach shack on the
rocks; there's also a lovely waterfall nearby.
