Advice on Beach stop between Madrid and Barcelona this August

Tossa de Mar on the Costa Brava beyond Barcelona is a beautiful town of 6,000 with its own castle overlooking the white-sand beaches below.

Listed by Forbes magazine last year as one of the “20 Best Places to Visit in Europe,” Tossa de Mar can be reached by private transfer and summer express buses in 75 minutes from Barcelona’s Nord station.

Thank you Kenko, but I am looking for feedback on Mallorca, Valencia and the Costa Dorado.

If looking at the Costa Daurada then check out L'Amettla de Mar. Similar geology and general vibe to Costa Brava but without the hordes and far less expensive. And, it's en route by rail to Barcelona from Valencia. Enjoy your visit.

Thank you Bill I appreciate it! I will look into L'Amettia de Mar.

Sitges.
Take the 28 minute train ride on the R2sud from Barcelona.
Spent 3 days there. Really enjoyed it.

What have you seen about Mallorca in summer that puts you off? As a long time visitor to the island throughout all times of the year I can probably offer you some advice that may allay your fears.

Hi JC,

Thank you for your offer.

I must admit my impressions of Mallorca are colored mainly by articles that portray it as a party zone for drunken British, Dutch and German tourists.

I realize that this is not the full story of course, but I do worry about it being hopelessly overcrowded and rowdy.
We are not wilting flowers but our interests are towards culture, low key beach vibes, nice restaurants.

When we were planning to be in Mallorca the thought was to use a quieter part of Palma as our base (Santa Catalina?) and take day trips up the western coast- Deia, Valldemossa, perhaps Soller, either utilizing public transit or renting a car.

Any thoughts on this, or deeper impressions of Mallorca would be greatly appreciated. I realize we may be looking at the surface portrayal of the place.

an article I came across:

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/20/business/british-tourists-mallorca-drinking-local-economy.html

In November, 2023, we spent 5 nights in Barcelona, 4 nights in Valencia and 5 nights in Madrid. Valencia is a beautiful city. It is more laidback, less crowded and less expensive than the other two. The old town is very compact. The Turia gardens is a great place to bike. And the City of Arts and Sciences is a great attraction. The Venecia Hotel is very nice, inexpensive and centrally located within walking distance to the train station. I recommend Valencia.

However, if you only have 10 nights, I suggest that you allocate more nights to both Madrid (4-5) and Barcelona (5-6). There are so many things to see and do in both. Also, there are very popular day trips you can do from both, e.g. Toledo and Monserrat. And there are nig beaches in Barcelona. Good luck.

@dnatoli73, your perception of the island in the summer which has been heavily influenced by the media is only partially correct. Essentially there are two areas on the island to avoid, the town of Magaluf frequented by young Brits interested in booze and partying and S'Arenal frequented by young Germans interested in booze and partying. The rest of the island is in stark contrast to this hedonistic lifestyle and both areas are easily avoided.

Even Palma, whilst busy, doesn't experience such youthful excess and is a lot more cosmopolitan. Your plan sounds perfect and I can assure you that you won't encounter the horror stories pumped out by the press.

Mallorca is an absolute gem and it's a shame that these two small areas taint the island's reputation however they're very easily avoidable.

Hi JC,

I really appreciate your response, thank you!

The areas to avoid that you mention are similar to what I have read.

If you don't mind I have a few questions, given your Mallorcan expertise.

Would you recommend we rent a car for our excursions from Palma, or do you think we could get away with using buses and taxis?
We are not big hikers or explorers so we would be exploring the western towns and beaches.

Are there beaches in Palma that you would recommend for a nice beach day?

Do you haver any hotel recommendations in Palma?

Thanks again!
David

Hi David.

I have never used public transport in Mallorca, I've always driven and it's such a pleasant island to drive on. The busiest areas are Palma and Manacor but once outside those areas the roads are fairly quiet.

Unfortunately I don't have any hotel recommendations for Palma as we always stay at the Marriott timeshare resort in Llucmajor. There are beaches in Palma but I haven't been to any as they haven't been my focus when visiting Palma.

There are no parts of Palma to avoid due to drunken tourists, it has quite a cosmopolitan, exclusive vibe with bars, restaurants etc that offer little for the cheap booze and party atmosphere that the Magaluf and S'Arenal tourists are looking for.

The western area that you're looking at is one of my favourite parts of the island with the towns and villages of Deia, Soller and Valldemossa. I'm not much of a beach person so I don't have any recommendations however this website is a great source of accurate information: https://www.abc-mallorca.es

Thanks JC I appreciate all of the thoughts and information.