For those who fancy a bit of retail therapy, the beautiful cosmopolitan city of Palma offers a fantastic choice of world class shopping. From the famous large Spanish department store, El Corte Ingles, to exclusive designer stores such as Cartier and Louis Vuitton.
Big name favourites like Zara and Mango are also there and will be cheaper in Mallorca than back in the U.K. as they are Spanish companies. And if you have been missing C&A then your luck is in as Palma is still home to a large C&A store.
There are an array of fantastic shoe shops and boutiques along the main shopping street, Jaime III, and you can lose yourself in the winding back streets of Palma where you will come across all sorts of interesting shops.
An alternative to shopping in the city centre is to head for Porto Pi, which is an indoor shopping mall with a wide range of clothes and shoe shops. It has the convenience of having everything under one roof, but does not have the diversity or glamour of Palma city shopping. It is located on the outskirts of Palma and also has a big supermarket on the lower ground floor. There are places to eat inside the mall and also many restaurants and the usual fast food outlets just outside.
It is air-conditioned which makes it a comfortable shopping experience in the heat of the summer.
Opening times
Larger shops in Palma are usually open from 10am till 8pm, Monday – Saturday, but some smaller shops still close in the middle of the day for a siesta and some still close on Saturday afternoon.
El Corte Ingles is open all day from 9.30am till 9.30pm, Monday – Saturday.
Porto Pi is open from 10am till 10pm, Monday – Saturday.
On Sunday shops in Palma city and at Porto Pi do not open, but the resort shops in Santa Ponsa usually do. The big supermarkets usually open until 2pm. on Sundays during the summer season.
Buses run from Santa Ponsa to Porto Pi and Palma centre regularly throughout the day.
Puerto Portals
Unless you have won the lottery this may not be the first place you think of to pick up a bargain, as all of the boutiques at Puerto Portals are filled with expensive designer brands. However, if you are around during the sales which usually run from the beginning of July until the end of August, and again during January and February, you can find designer handbags and shoes with 40 and 50% discount. As these are private retailers they do tend to mark up the recommended retail price to start off with, but once the discount has been deducted you still come out with a great deal. The nice thing is that they sell off all of their past season stock with these discounts in order to re-stock with the coming seasons goods, so you are not buying some old design from 2 or 3 years ago!
Sales
The summer sales or “Rebajas” in Mallorca start at the beginning of July and usually last about 7 weeks. As in the U.K. discounts vary from shop to shop but the prices are discounted further at around the third week which is known as the “segunda rebajas” (second sales).
Markets
Why not visit some of the markets the island has to offer, the closest to Santa Ponsa being in Andratx, which is held every Wednesday. It is a short bus or taxi ride away.
Inca is the biggest market on the island which is held on a Thursday. This one is a bit tricky to get to from Santa Ponsa unless you have a car or you book to go with an organised coach trip.
As well as clothes and leather goods, local produce such as cheese, olives, fruit and vegetables can be often found at the markets.
The markets are held in the morning and finish at around 13:30 so it is advised to get there early.
Word of warning: As in most places, where there is a high volume of people, pick pockets love to roam, so take care and exercise the usual caution.
