Mallorca is spelt in 2 different ways. Mallorca, which is the Spanish way, and Majorca which is used by the British and which is now widely accepted within the travel industry.
Language spoken
The main language spoken in Mallorca is Mallorquin, a local version of Catalan, although Spanish is also spoken and most locals are bilingual. English is also keenly practiced by local shopkeepers and hotel employees with the tourists in the summer.
The Airport
There is only one commercial airport in Mallorca (Palma De Mallorca). The airport code is PMI.
It is advisable to be at Palma airport 2 hrs. before your flight leaves in the high season, due to the volume of passengers. Palma is one of the busiest airports in Europe during the summer months.
Travelling to and from the airport is quickest in a taxi. Using public buses to get to Santa Ponsa from the airport is not really a viable option as 2 buses are needed to reach your resort and there is usually a long waiting time in between. For more information please read our Travel Information guide.
Hiring a car
If you want to hire a car while in Mallorca you will just need your British (or European) drivers license. Most places request a credit card on file to hire a car. For more information please read our Travel information guide.
Hotels
Hotels are always cheaper when pre-booked. Walk in rates can be very expensive, especially in the high season. For more information about hotels in Santa Ponsa please read our Hotels in Santa Ponsa guide.
Health Insurance Card
You should bring a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) with you in case you need any kind of medical attention. This card will cover you for any medical treatment. There are excellent hospitals and medical centres on the island. For more information please read our Healthcare guide.
Travelling With Children
Should you be travelling with young children there is a fantastic rental shop five minutes walk away from Holiday Park along the calle Ramon de Montcada, where you can rent a range of things such as buggies, highchairs and car seats from as little as 14.99 Euros for one week and 19.99 Euros for two weeks. You simply pay a 20 Euros deposit which is refunded to you immediately once you return the property.
If you need to wash clothes while on holiday self service launderettes can be found in the resort.
Drinking Water
Bottled water is used for drinking water in Mallorca. For tea/coffee it is also recommended, but for cooking some people use tap water. It is fine to brush your teeth with the tap water.
Tipping And Taxes
As in the U.K. and Ireland, tipping after a meal in a restaurant is usual, but not a must if you are not satisfied with the service. People usually leave around 5-7% of the bill.
Most restaurants include tax within the price as they do at home, but sometimes tax (IVA in Spain), is not included on the menu prices and it will say this in small print at the bottom of the menu.
Money Exchange
Changing money can be done in most hotels, in banks and in private bureau de changes.
You can shop around for the best price, but there is usually little difference between them.
You will need your passport to change travellers cheques and when paying with a credit card in shops you will usually need to show picture identification.
Calling Home
Most people will want to call home at least once while on holiday.
British and Irish mobile phones, especially the iphone and Blackberry, can work out extremely expensive to use if your “data roaming“ is on, so turn it off from the minute you get on the plane.
Calling cards are sold in lots of places, but they do not work with every private/public phone and you may need to find specific phones that accept the card.
There are usually always public coin operated telephones in hotel receptions which may be the best option. Please note that calling from non-coin operated phones eg: your hotel room, is always expensive.
The codes for calling are as follows:
to call the UK dial 00-44- then knock off the first 0 of the number
to call Ireland dial 00-353- then knock off the first 0 of the number
Internet and Wi Fi
While in Santa Ponsa if you need to check your emails there are a few internet cafes dotted around and if you have brought your laptop with you some bars offer free wifi connection for customers, while at the beach the council has provided free wifi around the area of the tourist information office. Simply log on to ‘Playa Santa Ponsa’.
Also MacDonalds offers free wi-fi, but the speed has been reported very slow.
Airline Excess Charges
If you are flying with Ryanair, make sure that you print your boarding passes (both ways) at home to take to the airport with you. Ryanair will charge you 40 Euros at the airport if you fail to show up with a boarding pass!
Ryanair, and all low cost airlines, also love to charge for excess weight or excess number of cases/bags you are checking in, so be smart and know what you are allowed and know what your luggage weighs before you get to the airport.
Nice data. I will be certain to return often.