Out and about in Menorca

As it looked unlikely that we were going to get to sail to Ciutdella we visited by car. There has been a settlement in this location since before the Phoenicians settled in 1600-1200 BC.  Ciutadella which means little city was the capital of Menorca until 1722 when the British changed this to Mahon. It has a really pretty old town and harbour.

We walked out to the entrance to the harbour with the Punta De Sa Farola lighthouse surround in beautiful blue sea which looked even nicer as we were lucky to have a sunny day. 

The other side of the entrance was the Torre de San Nicolas.

The harbour was very quiet with mainly local boats and very few of the restaurants were open which I expect is very different to how it looks in the summer when we know we would struggle to find a berth.

The old town with its narrow streets has some lovely little shop and restaurants and again was very quiet.

Ciutadella Cathedral

It was a bit disappointing that we did not get to visit by boat but maybe some other time.

On the drive back we went out to Cala En Bosch which is a tourist resort close to Ciutadella and where my parents are holidaying in 2 weeks. Looks very nice but obviously not open for the season yet, the hotels/apartments are 2 story rather than high rise and look really nicely maintained and are close to the beach.  We did venture onto the beach which was full of the winter seaweed, lovely place to anchor but the weather is still not settled enough and the swell along the coast would make for an uncomfortable stay.

We then drove to the middle of the island through Es Mercadal and up El Toro which is the highest point on the island at 358 metres.  Here we had some beautiful views although I know in the small photos below it will be difficult to see the lovely green countryside.

After being able to see Fornells from the top we decided to drive out to the scene of the near disaster as we had never made it into the town/village. Pretty little fishing with a few restaurants, bars, etc. We had also been liaising with the dive school about our Padi course and they were very helpful but if we are not able to anchor in the bay this unfortunately are not going to happen. Alex & Carol also had a great experience with the chandlery at Fornells, extremely helpful for those of you who might end up cruising in this area – in more settled weather.

Fornells from the highest point on Menorca

Fornells Harbour