Andiamo - Let's Go!

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Incidentally, did anyone see the videos of the mini Tsunami in Alcudia the other week?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/ne...ts-Alcudia-Mallorca-flooded-mini-tsunami.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/ne...nt-sailers-catamaran-caught-mini-tsunami.html

Talking of Alcudia, how easy is it to get a berth there and what are the prices like?

Wow didnt see that before. Personally I like Alcudia marina. V close to the town and a safe beach for the family (assuming it wasnt washed away by the tsunami!). A bit bucket and spade and English breakfast for me but all the same a pleasant enough place. It is likely to be cheaper than any of the Palma marinas and those on the SW coast but there are good reasons for that. First it is further away from the airport, about an hour's drive although they were planning to extend the motorway north so maybe its shorter now. Second the N coast of Majorca is open to any mistral winds. In fact I always found the N coast more windy generally than the S coast

Given the choice though between Denia and Alcudia, I would take Alcudia every time though

 

[Hurricane]

Pete
You also need to think about water.
No water maker means you will be reliant on shore water - or bottled.
IMO, all the water on the south of Mallorca is rubbish - not drinkable anyway.
The north of Mallorca is much more like the nice treated drinkable water you get here in SC.
Personally, I wouldn't berth in the south without a water maker.
It is ok for short visits though.

 

[Hurricane]

I would definitely NOT sleep at night with a boat left on a swinging mooring anywhere in the Med

 

[julians]

Pete
You also need to think about water.
No water maker means you will be reliant on shore water - or bottled.
IMO, all the water on the south of Mallorca is rubbish - not drinkable anyway.
The north of Mallorca is much more like the nice treated drinkable water you get here in SC.
Personally, I wouldn't berth in the south without a water maker.
It is ok for short visits though.

Just drink beer/wine....

Seriously though I guess it depends on your outlook, in our apartment we don't drink the tap water we just buy bottles from the shop, it's no big deal for us.

 

[petem]

Pete
You also need to think about water.
No water maker means you will be reliant on shore water - or bottled.
IMO, all the water on the south of Mallorca is rubbish - not drinkable anyway.
The north of Mallorca is much more like the nice treated drinkable water you get here in SC.
Personally, I wouldn't berth in the south without a water maker.
It is ok for short visits though.

Having met me a couple of times Mike, you should know that I don't drink water (nor ice)! As long as there's a good supply of beer and Prosecco for SWMBO we'll be happy.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Personally, I wouldn't berth in the south without a water maker.

I berthed our first Ferretti in Palma for 5 yrs and I never used the watermaker once! The water is fine for showering, washing up and for tea if boiled but best to drink bottled cold water and certainly put bottled water in your icemaker

 

[petem]

I berthed our first Ferretti in Palma for 5 yrs and I never used the watermaker once! The water is fine for showering, washing up and for tea if boiled but best to drink bottled cold water and certainly put bottled water in your icemaker

It's CdO where the water is atrocious. Properly colorifier wrecking salty I believe.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

It's CdO where the water is atrocious. Properly colorifier wrecking salty I believe.

CdO?

 

[jrudge]

CdO?

Cala Dor

The water in the rest of the island is fine. Cala Dor is very salty and you can't really even brush your teeth in it. When you shower you can taste it.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

When you shower you can taste it.

Ah OK thanks. Do you make a habit of showering with your mouth open?

 

[jrudge]

It is so bad you don’t need to it just permeates !

 

[benjenbav]

Dang. If I can't get my organic no.4 honey soap to lather, I'm just not coming to stay.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

It is so bad you don’t need to it just permeates !

They say salt water is good for your complexion or at least thats what the SWMBO tells me!

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Dang. If I can't get my organic no.4 honey soap to lather, I'm just not coming to stay.

I have stocks of Wrights Coal Tar soap on my boat for the guest heads. Its amazing how often in-laws depart earlier than planned

 

[benjenbav]

I have stocks of Wrights Coal Tar soap on my boat for the guest heads. Its amazing how often in-laws depart earlier than planned

Be careful you don't end up with hipsters in yer guest heads. I hear that, in Hoxton, Wrights Coal Tar trades at the same price per ounce (well, it's not going to be measured in grammes, is it) as gold.

 

[Hurricane]

Cala Dor

The water in the rest of the island is fine. Cala Dor is very salty and you can't really even brush your teeth in it. When you shower you can taste it.

Try Colom or Porto Petro - they are all the same over there.
Yuk water.

At the moment, these places are the only reason we would buy a water maker.
Otherwise the water where we go is fine.
We filled in Santa Ponsa a few weeks ago - that was fine.

 

[adey]

Mozzies this year are no worse than anywhere else in Spain.

Ermmm, yes they are....

My partner has just returned from two weeks on board and had a great time although he did say that it was too hot and that the mosquitos were unbearable when anchoring in the lagoon.

What's the point of owning a boat in the Med if you can't sit outside?

As I've said before, I can get a berth in Portals for €8k p.a.

Just do it!
Lots of cheap flights to Palma, taxi, beer, sorted!
Alcudia is too far for short trips and Ibiza is too difficult to get to, especially out of season.
Bottled water on a 34footer, surely?

 

[MedDreamer]

Alcudiamar show berth prices on their website although I don’t know if it’s up to date. Im sure it will be significantly lower cost than the best marinas on the South Coast or Cala D’Or.

We were based there for six years and the only downside was that it was more prone to being windy - but we got plenty of great weather too. The cruising and anchorages are outstanding though and Menorca is less than 2 hours away. We in Cala D’Or A’s that’s where our apartment is but if I was living on the boat I wouldn’t hesitate to base it back in Alcudia. Very friendly marina and a good choice of bars and restaurants.

We pay around £7K for an 8x3 mooring which makes the berth in Portals look outstanding value if it includes all service charges. I personally would still choose Alcudia though

 

[westernman]

And certainly not in Andraitx which is open to the east and has suffered extensive boat damage due to storms and surge waves on at least 2 occasions in the last few years. Unlike the UK there are few if any completely sheltered rivers in the Balearics where you could safely leave a boat on a swinging mooring. Just about the only locations I can think of where you could have safe all year round swinging moorings would be Mahon in Menorca and Colom in Majorca but I dont remember seeing any in these places. If you live a thousand miles away from your boat best that its tied up to something concrete when youre not there

Cala Addaia in Menorca is pretty hurricane proof.

 

[petem]

I've heard that Portals can be susceptible to storms (boats damaged). Is this a frequent event / legitimate concern? Same question for Andratx and Palma.