The Balearics Best Kept Secret

When thinking of the Balearic Islands, Ibiza and Majorca are usually the first to spring to mind, Menorca coming in as a measly second thought. But this tiny, lesser known island is certainly worth considering for your next trip, whether it’s an adults only jaunt or a family getaway, Menorca has it all. On a recent third visit, a country I’ve come to love so deeply, I realised how little I knew about it’s culture and history.

We have done a fair bit of exploring on our previous trips, driving pretty much the entire length of the island, but this time around we discovered the rich history of it and the poignancy that a seemingly bad situation can have on a countries culture.

If you’re looking for nature, they have plenty!

Most people aren’t aware but in 1993, thanks to the diversity of its various landscapes, flora, and fauna, Menorca was declared a Unesco Biosphere Reserve. The central zone of this reserve is the island’s S’Albufera des Grau Natural Park, home to many species of birds and including five islands off the coast. Protected from development and a great source of national pride, it offers everything from turtles to wild olive trees and a selection of walking trails.

It’s Also Packed With Places of Interest

It’s a niche accolade but an accolade nonetheless: Menorca’s Naveta d’Es Tudons is said to be the oldest building without a roof in Europe. Open to visitors, this eerie megalithic chamber was once a tomb, found approximately three miles from Ciutadella in the West of the island.

It's steeped in history...

...And strangely has their revolution against the reigning dictator to thank for the unspoiled landscapes that it’s now famous for.

Being declared a Unesco Biosphere Reserve is something that the island has, strangely, Generalissimo Franco to thank for. In retribution for the little island’s Republican stance during the Spanish Civil War (Menorcans revolted against Franco’s dictations for their country), the fascist dictator spent the next 36 years denying Menorca access to public building funds. The islanders were forbidden to build a thing, not even a shed in their garden.

As the years went on though, Menorcans rejoiced in the result of their beautiful unspoiled island remaining as such, and escaping the high-rise concrete epidemic that blighted the mainland costas like Ibiza and Majorca. Due to this, Menorca is still full of untouched ‘virgin’ beaches and is made up mostly of raw nature. The ‘ugly’ high-rises that we’re creeping up on the coasts of their neighbouring islands were not seen along those of Menorca. Even once the dictator Franco died, the Menorcans were only permitted to erect buildings of no more than two stories on the coast, and three stories inland.

On one of our excursions...

...we traveled across almost the entire island on a 4×4 Jeep. Our first stop was to the local (and only) salt farm, a place ran entirely by one lovely chap – Pedro. Once a week, Pedro opens the gates and lets the sea water in, the water evaporates and he’s left with pure sea salt. The salt that evaporates into the air during this process literally changes the taste of everything on the island from the vegetables we ate at dinner to the grass the cows eat. This gives everything a slightly different taste, the walls of the salt farm barn were even covered in a thin layer of salt that comes from the air. After purchasing some salt spiced with cumin, coriander and thyme (delicious, by the way) we headed to the next pit stop.

We then stopped off at the northernmost point and most exclusive area of Menorca, Addaia, to pick up a picnic lunch. Our guide explained that Addaia is an area mostly populated by locals that completely shuts down during the winter months – not even the street lights come on. Historically the residents bought villas by the water to bring the children during their summer holidays, the kids get three months off so that’s a long time for them to be at home with mum and dad. With our brown paper lunch bags in tow, we rumbled along off-road into the largest area of private land on the island. Back when Menorca was a British colony, the island wasn’t seen as desirable to build/trade on, so the royal family split it into eight sections and gave each member a piece of land complete with a palace for them to summer in. We ate our picnics in the grounds of one of the palaces under the shade of a blackberry tree, with 360-degree views of the surrounding nature. The previously royal palace where we enjoyed our picnic was owned by a gay member of the royal family, who of course had no wife or children to pass it down to, only his younger partner. He managed to have the palace wrote into his will for his partner, being only 70 or so years ago it was still an outrage to be gay in Spain at that point – it was such an inspiring story.

After that, we took a long and very bumpy ride to the highest point of the island to enjoy views of about 85 percent of it, taking in the sights of Fornells and the ancient fortresses that protected the coasts from invaders hundreds of years ago before finally stopping off at a secluded ‘virgin’ beach for a dip before heading home.

Visit Menorca

For a tiny, lesser-known island off the coast of its big brother, mainland Spain, Menorca has such a rich history, is truly unspoiled and has corners even the locals have yet to explore. We will surely be back and you should consider experiencing this untouched gem for yourself on your next holiday.