As my husband wished to be somewhere sunny and warm over the Christmas holidays, within Europe (as it is particularly difficult to travel with two little kids), we chose the island of Mallorca. Luckily, throughout the week, even though the evenings were chilly, during the day the temperatures reached beyond 20 C and under the sun, it was sometimes burning hot.
Besides being a place where one is able to get some Vitamin D in mid-winter, Mallorca has plenty of cities, villages, mountains, beaches and ports worth seeing and visiting throughout an entire week.
The capital city of the island, Palma de Mallorca, is –being on an island- surprisingly big, developed and crowded. It contains a large commercial and social life. The architecture is typical Spanish and interesting. Streets are much cleaner than Barcelona (although unfortunately, there was the unavoidable smell of urine as it is sometimes found in Spanish and French streets).
For mountain views Far de Formentor, to observe the charming village life Pollença and Soller, the ever so charming Valdemoussa, which is situated among the mountains and besides the famous beaches frequented and filled up by everybody, the more of a hidden gem with clear blue waters, the Cala Pi beach are worth visiting.
Honestly, I cannot even imagine how crowded and hot the island must be during the summer months given that it is already crowded and warm during winter. For this reason, I am really glad that we came to the island in winter, which helped us enjoy and the places in comfort.