Contents: The walk around Palma - The walk by the sea in Palma - A walk from Santa Eugenia - The Archduke's Bridlepath.
	The walk around Palma This walk starts in Placa d' Espanya and passes close to all of Palma's main sights. Begin by heading for Mercat Olivar, where you can look round the market. - Leave via Placa Olivar and turn left into Carrer Sant Miguel. Soon you reach Placa Major with its outdoor café and street entertainers. - Continue across the square; fork right into Carrer Jaume II. At the end of this pedestrian shopping street, don't fail to look up at the modernista facade of Sa Nostra bank before turning left into Placa Cort. Beyond a gnarled olive tree you see the town hall. - Take the short street to the left of the town ball to reach Placa Santa Eulalia; cross this square diagonally and take Carrer Morey. This brings you into the heart of the old city. Take you time here admiring the courtyard; don't miss Casa Oleza at No 9. - Continue straight on to Carrer Miramar and turn right onto the city walls. The cathedral is above you; to visit it and the palace, climb the steps to a large wooden cross. - Back on the walls, continue until you drop to the S'Hort de l Rei gardens. Cross Placa Reina and walk up the Born, turning right by Bar Bosch into Carrer Unio. Look out for the old Gran Hotel on your left and the bakery opposite, two good examples of modernista style. Beyond the theatre, the road bends left and becomes La Rambla; stroll up this promenade among the flower stalls. - At the top of La Rambla, turn right into Carrer Oms and follow it back to Placa Espanya. Distance: 3.5km * Time: 2 hours plus coffees, browsing and visit - probably half a day. A walk by the sea in Palma This wall along Palma's waterfront is good in the early morning, as the city stirs itself and the fish market comes to life; or late in the day as the sun sets over the sa, the pavement bars begin to buzz and the cathedral and castle light up for the night. - Start in Passeig Sagrera, at the foot of Avinguda d' Antoni Maura by the statue of Ramon Llull. The short tree-lined avenue, named after the architect of La Llotja, passes several interesting buildings. First, La Llotja itself, Palma's masterpiece of Gothic civic architecture; Porta Vella de Moll, the old gateway to the city from the sea; and finally Consulat de Mar, the former maritime court which houses the Baleares government. - At the end of Passeig Sagrera, cross the main road to reach the fishing port, marked by lines of blue nets. West of here, in a small garden, is the oratory of Sant Elm, designed as a navigators' chapel, later used as a tavern, and moved here stone bt stone from Passeig Sagrera in 1947. - From here the walk is straight forward - Just follow the seafront west along Passeig Maritim, using the promenade between the road and the sea. A cycle path, also used by joggers, runs alongside the promenade. Pass Reial Club Nautic, facing a section of city wall and a row of windmils; look up ahead to see Bellver Castle on its hill. As you walk on, turn around to look back at the cathedral, seen across the bay through a forest of masts. From a jetty opposite the Auditorium theatre, excursion boats offer tours of Palma Bay. Keep going, and eventually you reach Club de Mar with its luxury yachts. Just beyond here is the commercial ferry port, where boats leave for Barcelona, Valencia, Menorca and Ibiza. - Return the same way or take the Bus No 1 back to Passeig Sagrera. Distance: 3km one way * Time: 2 hours. A Walk from Santa Eugénia This simple walk gives spectacular views for the minimum of effort. - Leave the village of Santa Eugénia and head in the direction of the market town Santa Maria de Camí. After 1km turn left along a narrow lane to Ses Coves. The lane bends left, then descends, and you see Ses Coves ('the caves'), used at various times as pirate hideaways and wine cellars. One of them still contains an ancient wine-press. - When the road divides, fork left; soon you reach some iron gates at the entrance to a track on your right. After going through these gates you enter Puig d'en Marron, and climb until the road runs out. - Continue along a mud track, keeping right at each fork, until you emerge onto a wide open plateau. Return to the iron gates by the same route and turn right along the lane. Follow this lane briefly uphill then take the second track on the left. After passing an arched entrance to a well, turn immediately left through an orchard towards a house. - To the right of the house, the wall is marked with a red dot; climb from here to a pass. Here you can clamber over a stone wall to your left to reach the cross on the summit of Puig de Santa Eugénia. This is the high point of the walk, with wonderful views that stretch across the plain to the mountains in the distance. On the opposite clifftop is one of Mallorca's oddest sights - the cockpit of a broken-up lane. - Retrace your steps to the stone wall and then follow the path that leads through the bushes on your left. When you reach a tarmac road, turn right. The first left returns you to Santa Eugenia. Distance: 7km * Time: 2 hours. The Archduke's Bridlepath This walk was mapped out by Archduke Ludwig Salvatr during tours of his estates by mule; as well as spectacular coastal views, it gives an introduction to traditions mountain industries. You pass sifjas (round charcoal ovens), casas de neu (snow pits where winter snows were stored beneath a layer of ash), forns de Calc (lime kilns) and cacas a coll (thrush nets slung between the trees). - Begin by walking through the car park opposite Bar Sa Mata on the main road through Valldemossa. Turn right into Carrer Joan Fuster, then first left and onto a rough track at the top of the hill. You climb gently at first, towards a group of pines, then more steeply, following red waymarks to a clearing. From here it is a short, tough climb to a mirador and the start of the Cami de S'Arxiduc, marked by a ruined stone refuge. - Follow the waymarks onto a high plateau and continue for about two hours. For the best views of all, a one-hour diversion (just as the main path bears round to the right to begin its descent) takes you to the summit of the Teix, from where most of Mallorca is visible on a clear day. - The path drops back down to Valldemossa through a wooded valley, passing a shelter where you can camp in summer. This walk is for experienced walkers only. Take food and water, a map, compass and whistle, and protection from sun, wind and rain. The weather on the mountains can change very quickly. - For a shorter walk to the foot of the Teix, you can simply do the final section in reverse. Leave Valldemossa by walking past Son Gual, the large old house with a tower, and turn left after 10 minutes onto a wide track, signposted 'refugi'. The climb through the valley to the shelter and back will take a couple of hours if you walk briskly. Distance: 13km * Time: 6 hours.