After the Palma de Mallorca Marathon: Alcúdia
The Route: Palma → Alcúdia → Palma Airport Logistics: TIB bus 302 north across the island's central plain. Two nights in the old town, then back to the airport by bus via Palma or by taxi. Marathon Month: October Duration: 2 nights
Palma Estació Intermodal ──(about 1 hr TIB 302)──> Alcúdia
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Palma Airport (PMI) ◄──(about 50 mins by taxi or bus via Palma)──┘
The Palma Marathon runs twice through the old walled streets of the capital. Alcúdia, on the far side of the island, has walls a runner can walk along, and a Roman town under the fields outside them.
October in Alcúdia is the shoulder of the season. The big beach hotels at the port start closing towards the end of the month, the crowds of July and August have gone, and the sea is usually still warm enough to swim. Evenings are cool. The Tuesday and Sunday markets in the old town run through the autumn in most years; check locally before planning round one.
TIB bus 302 leaves from the Estació Intermodal under Plaça d'Espanya and reaches Alcúdia in about an hour. Services run through the day, less often outside summer; check tib.org for the current timetable.
Nights One and Two: Alcúdia
Alcúdia is a small town inside fourteenth-century walls built under King Jaume II, with 26 towers and four gates. The walls survive complete, and sections can be walked along the top, with views over the rooftops to the Bay of Pollença. The walkway is level once up, but reaching it means stone steps; the circuit round the outside at street level is flat and takes about 30 minutes.
Inside the walls the streets are narrow, paved and mostly level, with sandstone houses, the large church of Sant Jaume and a handful of squares with cafés. Everything is within ten minutes' walk.
The Roman city of Pollentia lies just outside the walls. Three areas are open: the small theatre, the forum and the La Portella residential quarter, reached along gravel and earth paths across open ground with little shade. Entry is about €4 (about £3.50) and includes the Museu Monogràfic de Pollentia in the old town, which holds the finds; the museum closes on Mondays. Allow an hour for the site at a gentle pace.
For the flattest walking on the trip, take a local bus or a short taxi to Port d'Alcúdia, about 2 km away. A paved promenade runs along the back of the beach for several kilometres, completely level, with the whole curve of the Bay of Alcúdia in front of it.
The second day suits a short trip to Pollença, about 10 km north-west, by local bus or taxi. Its main square, Plaça Major, is flat and ringed with cafés, and the Sunday market fills it in the mornings. The town's famous climb is the Calvari, a stairway of 365 stone steps lined with cypresses up to a small chapel. Two days after a marathon it is a poor idea; the view from the bottom, looking up the avenue of trees, is enough. Port de Pollença, on the bay, has another long, level seafront walk, the Passeig Vora Mar, shaded by pines for part of its length.
Where to stay. Inside the walls, the Forum Boutique Hotel and Spa is a small adults-only hotel with a pool and spa, a short walk from every square. For more choice and a sea view, the seafront hotels in Port d'Alcúdia put the flat promenade at the door, though many close for the winter by late October, so check dates when booking.
Where to eat. Can Costa, a cellar restaurant in the old town, has served Mallorcan home cooking since 1983; it closes on Mondays. Es Racó de Ronda serves tapas and local wine in the evening only and closes on Sundays and Mondays, so plan the nights around both.
Getting to Palma Airport
Palma Airport (PMI) is about 55 km from Alcúdia. A taxi takes around 50 minutes on the Ma-13 motorway. By public transport, take bus 302 back to the Estació Intermodal in Palma and change to the EMT A1 airport bus, which runs about every 15 minutes; allow at least two hours in total.