👍What a Busy Few Days!
We've had such a whirlwind of adventures with friends visiting the island. I, Cat, have been playing tour guide, and we've covered so much ground!

🌍 Day 1: Started with a refreshing New Year swim in Biniancolla, followed by a visit to Binibeca.

🐾 Day 2: Reunited with Rolo (finally!), explored the historic charm of Ciutadella, then headed to Es Migjorn Gran for the delicious menu del día at Sa Plaça. Ended the day with a stunning walk from Sant Tomas to Son Bou, where we enjoyed another swim and spotted lots of animals along the way.

🌍Day 3: Relaxed on Cala en Porter beach before indulging in tapas at Es Mercadal. We visited Mont Toro for incredible views, explored the iconic Far Cavalleria, and wrapped up the day with a visit to Cavalleria beach.

🚛Being with our vanlife friends has been such a joy, especially since we've known them for over 15 years! We all met through our shared love for Mazda Bongos and spent many cold Januarys in Wales celebrating my birthday, surrounded by kids and vans. Those were such fun times, and it's wonderful to reconnect here in Menorca.

🙏One more day of adventures before we say goodbye.

❣️Hope everyone has had a fantastic few days too! Love and hugs,Cat, Chris & Rolo

Biniancolla New Year's Eve swim In the past, the urban center of Biniancolla was much smaller and only fishermen lived there. Over the years, pleasure boats have flourished and today it is a slightly more touristy place. Although it continues to be a place of local customs.

Bucaneers bar , Binibeca Unfortunately, Los Bucaneros faced bureaucratic challenges and has been closed since 2022. Despite its closure, its legacy remains a fond part of Binibeca's beach culture

Binibeca by the rocks

Biniancolla

Ciutadella

When meandering around the city you can see the bow windows which can be seen in all traditional houses in Menorca. People believe they are an indigenous feature but they are actually a seal of the British empire and the locals started to use it too when building. In Cuitadea there is the beautiful Cathedral and a walk down to the port. The Cathedral now a Roman Catholic church was constructed on the orders of King Alfonso III of Aragon "the Liberal", the conqueror of the island, in 1287 on the site of an old mosque (Wikepedia 2024)

Ciutadella

Ciutadella and fun times with friends

Beautiful harbour ❣️

Awwww our baby boy 🐾🐾🐾🐾❤️

Menu de dia at Sa Plaça is 13 euros and includes a drink. We had this traditional Menorcan drink which is red wine with a special Menorcan tonic.

Sant Tomas

The cami cavalls walk from Sant Tomas to Son Bou

Escapees from a broken wall

Rolo so happy to be back to the sea and walks with us 🐾🐾🐾🐾❣️

Rolo was a good boy and passed the cows horses and even a donkey

Back to Cala en Porter Cala En Porter (often referred to as Cala'n Porter or Calan Porter) is a village in the Alaior municipality of Menorca. It is located on the island's south coast. It was one of the earliest developed beach resorts on the island. Cala En Porter has a beach cove similar to that of Lulworth Cove, England, UK, with high imposing limestone cliffs. Whilst the western cliff remains totally undeveloped, the eastern side is now covered in villas and terrace bars. The resort is home to a number of restaurants and bars, as well as the nightclub Cova de en Xoroi (commonly called The Caves)

Rated as one of, if not the best resort beaches on Menorca, especially for smaller children due it's perfect sands, incredibly gently sloping shallows, falling into crystal clear turquoise waters. And while this makes it very popular for children the beach is big enough for those who prefer to avoid the little ones to find their ideal spots too! The beach can be reached on foot via steps, by car with free car parking under shade or you can walk down beach road from the centre on pavement

Maó airport is about 12 minutes from this destination. To get there, you must take San Climent’s detour and drive until you are awed by the shiny blue colour of the Mediterranean Sea over the beach line. Cala'n Porter Menorca, is one of the island's earliest developed resorts, with its lovely beach cove looked over from some enhancing cliffs. Its a popular family-friendly Menorca Resort.

Es Mercadal

The Toro Mountain is located in the most central point of Menorca. It is also the highest summit of the island. By climbing to this magnificent viewpoint of Menorca, from where you can view the fields and the traditional routines of the peasants, you and your family will be able to discover one of the most historical places on the island. In the municipality of Es Mercadal, very close to the village, following roads and trails, lies Mount Toro, a veritable legendary mountain. From there, you can enjoy unique views of the interior of Menorca. It is the highest peak (358 m) in the whole territory and it contains one of the most symbolic stories of Menorca. According to legend, there was formerly a bull guarding the top of the mountain. The bull would not let anyone approach this area until, one day, a virgin appeared to him and the animal surrendered to her. Nowadays, at the top of the mountain, there are no bulls in view but you do get to see the almost fairy tale-like mark left behind by this story: the Sanctuary of the Mare de Déu del Toro. It is a temple erected in honour of the virgin who conquered the bull and who has since then been the patron saint of the island. The Virgen del Toro monitors the passage of time and greets visitors from a wood carving in the central area of the church, open to the public 365 days a year.

Far Cavelleria The lighthouse was built due to so many shipping accidents in the birth cost here in Menorca. Between 14 the and 16th more than 700 shipwrecks. 😱 It has a range of 22 nautical miles. Currently, it emits white light and two flashes every 10 seconds. Feeling very lucky today. Its the simple things that are the best, friendships and nature. Happy Thursday and Stay Safe. 😘🐾👫🙏🚛 This lighthouse was designed by Antonio López y Montalvo and is the only lighthouse that is still in operation, of the 4 that this person designed. It is very close to one of the highest cliffs on the island, it measures 94 meters above sea level. The Cavalleria lighthouse is one of the most peculiar lighthouses in Menorca. This lighthouse is located at the northernmost point of the island , Cape Cavalleria, and can be reached by car via a narrow road. It is possible to park the car a few meters from the lighthouse. Next to the Cavalleria lighthouse, there is a small cave . It is possible to enter this cave (no more than 15 or 20 meters) and enjoy a very good view of l' Illa des Porros . It is a spectacular place from which you can watch the sunset. In the vicinity of Cap de Cavalleria there is the lonely island of Porros. Like all the islets of Menorca, thanks to their isolation, they become veritable biological laboratories where unique species, the endemics, are very abundant. ................................................

The islet has recently been declared a ZEPA area (Special Protection Zone for Birds), due to the characteristics of its space as a habitat for migratory and seabirds, and because it is considered an area where some endangered species nest. (WikimThe mysterious island of Jules Verne. Illa des Porros is high on its north face and low on the opposite. Calcareous rock uninhabited by man, forms a place of great wealth and environmental value. Worn out by erosion, it does not allow the scrubland to survive, although it is occupied by colonies of seabirds, of which the Audouin's Gull and the Cinderella Shearwater stand out, the latter with the largest population in Spain, ranging between 1,350 and 2,000 pairs. Breeders, find here an unbeatable space for their repopulation due to the calm and the absence of predators. Another colony also known to biologists, this time from the world of reptiles, is the Balearic lizard, which has known how to adapt to the conditions imposed by nature in such an unhealthy and isolated environment. apia.org 2022)

Another little war bunker near Far Cavelleria with lookout over to playa de Fornells

Cavelleria Cavalleria Beach Cavalleria beach is one of the largest beaches on the north coast of Menorca. Virgin, surrounded by wild nature, without services, with good access by car and watched over by the Cavalleria lighthouse. Not to be missed. Cavalleria beach, almost 500 meters long, has coarse-grained reddish sand and is divided in two by the Ferragut rock. The easternmost part of the beach, the one you will find as soon as you arrive if you come through the parking lot, is much more sandy than the part that you will find further west. If you like to snorkel, keep in mind that the seabed is also different between the two parts of the beach, being rather rocky in the western part and sandy in the eastern part. Here you will find the best places to snorkel in Menorca. Cavalleria beach is very exposed to the tramontana and and makes it a dangerous beach with this wind. In order not to find yourself on an unpleasant beach and to enjoy a calm swim, it is advisable to check the weather forecast before going. In addition, the wind can favor the appearance of jellyfish.

One of the most outstanding natural values of the beach is its dune system, which extends more than 1 km to the south. It is not a beach where it is customary to accumulate posidonia. Associated with Cavalleria beach you will find Cala Roja, a small sandy and pebble beach, more protected from the north winds, less frequented and with an interesting and diverse underwater background. You will arrive by the same path, before going down to Cavalleria beach, on the right. is geologically high, where clays dominate in the same way as in Cala Pregonda or Cala Pilar. In recent years, it has become very fashionable to take mud baths on Cavalleria beach, especially with the clay found at the base of the access stairs to the beach. Doing mud baths on the beaches erodes the base of the cliffs, generating instability in their upper parts. This causes rockfalls, causing a risk for beach users. In addition, this activity produces uprooting of the vegetation and retreat of the coastline, destroying a non- renewable resource, since the clays are very old rocks

The beautiful Cala'n Porter along the side of the beach. The water colour is amazing and always love coming here whatever time of year it is ❣️🐾🚛🙏😴😴😴😴😴😴😴😴😴💤💤💤💤💤💤