The very popular holiday resort of Santa Ponsa, along with its more infamous neighbours Palma Nova and Magaluf, are all part of the municipal district of Calvia on the south west coast of Majorca approximately 20km, or 12 miles west of the capital Palma.

Although most visitors to Santa Ponsa are undoubtedly on a traditional package holiday, many of the tour operators now consider the actual transfer from the Son Sant Joan International airport to your chosen accommodation to be an optional extra, which in turn is leading more people to make their own arrangements for the journey by either pre-booked hire car, or alternatively by one of the many taxis from the ranks outside the arrivals hall.

In theory at least, these taxis should all operate on a fixed price basis, charging around 40 euro for the journey over to Santa Ponsa, however experience has shown that this "fixed price" may vary slightly depending upon the number of suitcases, the time of day or night of the journey, and of course the number of passengers carried.

Also an important consideration for families travelling with small children, is that these taxis do not as a rule carry child seats, therefore children may have to sit on their parent's knee for the journey. If this is a cause for concern, we strongly recommend that you make arrangements for a pre-booked taxi to be waiting for you at the airport, and clearly specify at the time of booking that a child seat is needed for the journey.

The journey for those who have chosen to drive, is fairly straightforward for the most part, although a slight complication certainly worth mentioning, is that in recent years the local Government on the island has re-numbered most of the roads on Mallorca, so please make sure that you have an up to date map before setting out!

The basic route for this journey is, as you depart the airport grounds you will normally join the Ma-19 motorway heading west towards Palma, which then becomes the Ma-20 as it arcs around the northern residential and industrial suburbs of the city.

You then need to continue along the Ma-20 until it becomes the Ma-1 Carretera de Palma - Palmanova, at which point then keep a sharp look out for the Santa Ponsa turning.

A more detailed version of this route, complete with links to maps where appropriate, is available from the Route Map link on the left hand frame of this page.

All things considered the transfer, whichever method you choose, should usually take between 30 to 45 minutes, but can and often does vary, depending upon the time of day and the volume of traffic on the Palma motorways.

Once you've settled into your accommodation, making the return trip into Palma for either shopping or sightseeing is fairly easy by public transport. Every 35 minutes throughout the day, buses stop in Santa Ponsa on their journey east through the resorts of Magaluf, and Palma Nova towards the capital, also passing Marineland on the way. It works out at around 4.50 euro per person each way, but be warned these buses can become very crowded, and have in the past been known to attract pickpockets.

Unlike the nearby "Brit" resorts of Palma Nova and Magaluf which are 5km away to the east, Santa Ponsa has developed a very strong Celtic theme and has become very popular with both Irish and Scottish visitors. In response to this market, a large number of both Irish and Scottish themed bars and restaurant have in recent years opened in the town.

The main beach is reasonably large, and in recent years it has been extended with imported sand to accommodate an increasing number of visitors to the resort. Even so, in high season it can still become very crowded due to its popularity with both tourists and locals alike.

If you wish to escape from the crowds, there is a smaller secondary beach set in its own sheltered cove about 15 minutes walk away which can be reached from the Avda. Rei Jaume I. Both beaches have the usual facilities expected of a modern resort, along with a good variety of water sports equipment available for hire.

Swimming in the bay is generally quite safe with no strong currents, and fairly shallow waters, however, care must always be exerted when the flag system is in operation.

Regular boat trips along the south west coast operate from both the main beach and marina at Santa Ponsa, and at around £20 per head represent excellent value for money.

The boats are all quite modern, with both a small bar and toilet facilities onboard. On most trips the captain will usually stop for about 30 minutes giving you the chance to dive or jump off the back of the boat and cool off in the sea.

Santa Ponsa has quite a wide selection of cafes, bars and restaurants and excellent facilities for visitors on self catering arrangements. In response to the strong UK and Irish influences in the town, many supermarkets now also stock readily recognisable UK branded goods, although in many cases the prices charged may be considerably higher than those you would expect to pay at home. Although the underlying principle of consumer choice was once explained to me by a local shopkeeper as, "if you don't like the price, you don't have to buy".

The resort really come alive in the early evening, but is never in the same league of its neighbours Palma Nova and Magaluf. Although, you will quickly realise that Santa Ponsa has an abundance of bars, restaurants, and live music venues, catering for families with children.

All things considered, the town is cheerful, easy going and is essentially a family resort, although little now remains of the original village that was Santa Ponsa before the onset of mass tourism in the early 1960's.

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This website was launched on 1 May 2002

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