Nan’s Day Out to Luxor . . .

The beach, for those that live in Bunyola and Palmanyola, is a car ride away. In the past to get to the sea in the Puerto Soller cost them money to get through the tunnel. This didn’t always work for the local people and two pools with amenities grew in the area and became their beach equivalents. Can Penasso has its pool attached to the restaurant and is nearer to Bunyola. My family enjoyed great days out there last year and I shared the info on a previous Nan’s Day Out page. This was met with huge success as many people contacted me to say they didn’t know of the existence of the pool, the easy parking and the easy swimming day with the children. They had made a new discovery and I was glad to be part of the information chain.

This time Evellia and I were discovering the pool at Font Seca which is part of the Font Luxor Venue. A right turn off the road that links Palmanyola to the back road to Palma and then you are there. Easy parking and the pool is open for visitors from Tuesday to Sunday from 11 am to 7pm. The swim season starts on 15th June and finishes on 20th September 2019.

Seven euros’ entry and for that there is a great pool with real depth for swimming. A cordoned off area with a slide in it is medium depth water and a separate babies pool has a splash of water for them.

Sun beds, umbrellas, chairs and tables are all included in the price. The snack bar serves lunches and drinks all day and acts as the place you pay your entrance money. You can’t bring your own picnic and have to enjoy their menu instead. Local people who knew what they were doing headed for the area at the side of the pool that had a large awning from end to end. A great cover for babies and little children. On busy days that is the place that fills up quickest.

Evellia really enjoyed having the pool to herself for the first hour of our visit. We were the only people there at 11 am. Lifeguards and people doing maintenance gave the impression that this is a very well looked after pool. I can only guess that this place really comes into its own at weekends and then the experience might be buzzing.

Leaving the pool, we headed into the Palmanyola hinterland. In its time this place was built as a Garden Town. All its streets are named after flowers and the girls and I have often argued about the translation of the flower names. These days we are all up to speed with the translations. In our early days on the island Palmanyola was a building site for streets of large houses. Altogether more established now with a street full of cafes, shops and banks in the centre. One of the oldest ensaimada bakeries in Majorca is along this route and that is where lunch called us. Such an inland place with not a visitor in sight. A little off the beaten track for those who are not local. I love these places and I am always pleased when I know a face or two in the street. The villages of Bunyola, Palmanyola and even Esporles have a big connection with Soller. We often see people from the villages in Soller market on Saturdays and Santa Maria market on Sundays. I have discovered that so many of our Puerto Soller visitors this year have not hired cars. They are happy just to centre in the Port and in town especially in the hot days of August. This has its own problem when they contact me to ask which public transport serves the locations I pick for Nan’s Days Out. The bus from Soller will stop at the entrance to Palmanyola and then the Font Seca pool is about 15 minutes uphill walk away. The idea of telling a family with little children to do that in the heat of the day is just not on. It is a fact that many of the locations my family and I have enjoyed are just not possible without a car. I think that is the idea for another series to concentrate on all the interesting places accessible by the public transport system.

Can Penasso pool near Bunyola has its own bus stop and is perfectly possible to access from Soller. We have one wonderful bus route that leaves the Puerto Soller twice a day. This takes the traveller to Pollensa over the mountains of the Tramuntana. It calls at the reservoirs of the mountains at Cuber and Gorg Blau and also stops at Lluch Monastery. This is one time when the most unlikely journey can be taken by public transport.

Timetable

Bus L354 Puerto de Sóller - Ca’n Picafort
Puerto de Sóller - Sóller - Lluc - Alcudia - Pollensa - Ca’n Picafort. Leaves at 8.30 am and 3 pm

The L354 bus connects Sóller with Pollensa, Alcúdia and Ca’n Picafort. It is often used by hikers who can easily reach several well known hiking routes in the northern Tramuntana. But it is also a great journey to Lluc sanctuary, the nice small beach of Cala Sant Vicenç or to the extensive sandy beaches of the Alcúdia and Pollensa bay in the northeast of Mallorca. Those who want to travel the complete distance to the east cost must allow plenty of time and should not be afraid of the winding roads through the Tramuntana mountains.

So a mixed bag of information from our Nan’s Day Out this week. August is a great month to chill out in the pools as an alternative to the crowded beaches. Especially for those days when you are sick of the sight of sand! Beach, pool, forests, shady nooks are all possible for this wonderful month of August. The days are hot, the nights are balmy and long and the holiday vibe is alive and well.
Hope you all enjoy it!