L'Avenida
Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain [view map]
Local restaurants
Sóller has plenty of low-key bodegas and cafés if you just fancy a snack, but the port is only a few minutes away by taxi (or a pleasant tram ride) and offers more bang for your buck. Mr & Mrs Smith loved Agapanto’s (+34 971 633 860) romantic torchlit patio overlooking the sea on Camino del Faro. The menu features plenty of fresh seafood and fresh takes on traditional classics, and there’s often a live jazz band or a fun brunch event going on. The modern-luxe Bistro at Espléndido Hotel (+34 971 631850) on Es Traves uses local, seasonal ingredients to produce its international menu, and is by far the most stylish-looking option in the port. Es Passeig (+34 971 630217) on the port’s promenade has a German chef, a Spanish wine list and a creative modern Mediterranean menu (don’t have the Bling Bling Burger, though, unless your burger cravings are near-desperate). Try to get a table in the main room. You're also not far from Ca's Xorc (+34 971 638 280) on Carretera de Deia - it's very romantic to dine on this hotel's terrace among candlelit olive trees, and the views at sunset are spectacular.
Local bars
Have a few cocktails at Esplendido Hotel’s cool bar and lounge in Sóller’s harbour (+34 971 631 850) before pottering along the prom for dinner – get there early to nab one of the cool swivel chairs by the windows, or have an after-dinner drink. Just along the shore, Agapanto (+34 971 633 860) is a lovely place for sundowners on a summer’s evening.
Local cafes
Sóller’s main square, Plaça Constitucio, is lined with cafés whose tables spill inwards across the flagstones around the gently tinkling fountain. Pick any one and park up with a caffé solo or a glass of something cold. La Vila at 14 (+34 971 634 641) has a pretty art nouveau café; go through to the courtyard restaurant out the back for a lunch of chilled gazpacho, tenderloin carpaccio and jam-packed panini.
Nightlife
If it’s clubs and DJ bars you want, you’ll have to go into Palma, about half an hour’s drive away.
Worth getting out of bed for
L’Avenida’s owners Tania and Paul can arrange all manner of amazing activities, and work with an excellent selection of companies, including Tramuntana Tours (+34 971 632423), which provides guided hiking and mountain biking in the mountains of northwest Mallorca. Other options include wine-tasting or helicopter tours, private boat charter, bike hire and gourmet trails around the island.
In Sóller, have a quick peek at Sant Bartomeu cathedral: the façade was designed by Rubio, who also created the unique bank building next door. Browse the boutiques along Carrer de san Lluna, off the square: we like Finca Gourmet at number 16 (+34 971 630 253), an artisan deli selling slabs of cocoa for hot chocolate, home-made honey and preserves, olive oils and wine. Across the street, +Ca'n Toni Reia has kitsch kitchen supplies and unusual Majorcan ceramics. Heymo at number 13 is the place to go for bargain-priced bags and shoes; once you've got one of those slick patent totes off the shelf, you can pass it off as something much more pricey.
Diary
Easter Weekend Processions through Soller’s town square on the Thursday and Friday nights, and Easter Sunday. Mid May Bloodlust and bloodshed at the enthusiastically recreated battle of Soller’s villagers versus invading Barbary pirates for the Sa Fira i es Firó festival – there are also tamer events, such as art exhibitions and drama. Mid July Nuestra Señora del Carmen sees fishing boats parade across the harbour mouth in Puerto de Sóller. Sa Mostra Internacional Folklorica is a festival of international folk dancing (www.sollernet.com). August The Festes de Biniaraix celebrations begin around the 15th, with cultural events and performances. The 24th of the month sees Sóller put on a blazing display of fire-running and bonfires to celebrate St Bartholomew’s saintliness.