Cala en Porter

Cala en Porter Area

Cala en Porter:

It is a beach of medium width but great depth, with fine sand. What is most striking is the great height of the cliff, making the cove a very well-sheltered spot from the winds. However, on the right side, the height of the cliff creates shade starting in the mid-afternoon, but do not worry, there is still plenty of sand for sunbathing. Along this same side runs a small drainage channel, which is the Cala en Porter torrent that comes from Alaior and meanders slowly along the bottom of the barranco, watering the lands where a large mass of fruit trees is concentrated, sheltered from the winds. The orchards in this area are famous.

It has a parking area under a large grove next to the beach, several bars, and a restaurant with a terrace right on the beach.

The urbanización is a veteran in the tourism sector; it was the first to promote itself with campaigns in England. In fact, even today, the British community in this urbanización is very important. Its growth has been constant, placing it among the major tourist areas on the island.

Seen from above, this urbanización appears as if it is settled on one of the cliffs, forming a large mantle of chalets, while the other side of the cliff remains completely rustic, featuring at most, a few trails for those who venture near the high vertical cliffs, known as the Peñas de Alaior.

From several points, you can enjoy magnificent views of the beach and the cove almost without getting out of your car; one of the best viewpoints even serves as a bus stop.

You will find the vast majority of services expected from a large urbanización, including medical services and a pharmacy, not to mention car, motorcycle, bicycle, and boat rentals, shops, supermarkets, entertainment, and an extensive range of national, local, and international gastronomy.

Cales Coves can be considered virgin, depending on how you look at it, although there is one solitary little house and some other construction a bit further up, as well as a small shed for fishing boats next to one of the beaches, which is not much of a beach since it is stony. A couple of kilometers away, there is an urbanización that has been getting closer and closer.

Like the vast majority of the coves, it is the end of a barranco that leads to the cove itself. It is worth approaching this place to see the hillside of the cliffs full of caves and to know that it was once a prehistoric necropolis. Furthermore, the landscape is beautiful and well worth a walk around the area; the bay provides an entrance to two small hairpin-shaped coves, each ending a barranco, and the beaches are made of stone.

Cales Coves :

It is one of the most controversial sites on the island. The little beaches have no great commercial value since they are not sandy, but their greatest value, the prehistoric caves, have been the great attraction and the cause of the discord.

The occupation of the caves by groups of young people from different parts of Spain and Europe starting in the sixties raised eyebrows in some sectors of Menorcan society, with the argument that they were prehistoric necropolises and therefore of great cultural and scientific value, or because some of those living there did so in a somewhat wild way, leaving messes and not allowing visits to a public historical heritage site that had been degraded for a long time due to this 'occupation'. The controversy grew and made the cove more famous over the years, until recently when the last occupants were finally evicted, metal doors were installed with surveillance, and it can only be accessed through guided tours by the Consell Insular de Menorca.

Surely one of the main reasons is that it was a sanctuary of nudism in Menorca and was very well known on the island, but also increasingly known in other latitudes, which attracted more and more young people to the paradise of the new 'hippies', and with them, the spectators. So much so that the bay would fill up with the daily pilgrimage of boats or yachts of all sizes, mostly from foreigners, who came to join the show and even do nudism. This confirmed the fame of the cove and likely increased the concern of a part of society that believed there is only one way to live—curiously, it coincides exactly with their own. Furthermore, it would be difficult to obtain revenue from these activities; all of this encouraged them to make the decision to close them. However, the yachts and nudism persist, although somewhat diminished, as the typical nature conferred by the modern troglodytes until a few years ago is no longer there.

Excursions: The most interesting excursion is undoubtedly a visit to the prehistoric settlement of Torralba d'en Salort, with its large Taula in a setting of worked stones and a well-preserved talaiot that make up one of the best-preserved talayotic settlements on the island.

Another mandatory excursion is a walk along the cliff. The most interesting area is in the vicinity of the Cova d'en Xoroi, following the same entrance path to the urbanización, going straight. Almost at the end, there is a small curve at a street intersection; turn left, and in the surroundings, you will see the cliff from your car. From this point on and to the left, there is a path right along the cliff; the trail goes to Cales Coves (see Cales Coves), about a 25-minute walk away. If we do not take the detour, this path ends at the parking lot of the Cova d'en Xoroi nightclub.

If you come to Cala en Porter and leave without visiting the 'Cova d'en Xoroi', it is unforgivable. This cave, legend included, is part of the landscape, and when you visit it, you will understand these words. This nightclub, in a natural and practically unique setting in Europe, will surely surprise you.

Access: pay attention because there are several possibilities.

From Alaior, take the exit to Cala en Porter, passing by the archaeological remains of the talayotic settlement of Torralba d'en Salort just two kilometers from Alaior. Upon reaching the junction of the San Clemente PM704 road, to the right, we go to Cala en Porter, two kilometers away, and to the left, about five hundred meters away, is the entrance to Cales Coves.

Detail of the access to the Cova d'en Xoroi Nightclub in Cala en Porter, Alaior.

In the photograph, the low point in the upper part is the entrance to the Cova from the parking lot, and the other two points marked on the cliff are the terraces shown in the two photos above on this website.

From Maó, take the PM704 road; it is the exit to the airport at two kilometers, and

two more away is San Clemente. We must continue; at the second entrance on the left, a little over three kilometers from San Clemente, is the entrance to Cales Coves, and following the path three more kilometers, Cala en Porter.

Map of the Cala en Porter Area

Access to Cala en Porter, Cales Coves, and the Cova d'en Xoroi.

Enlarge the Map of Cala en Porter and Cales Coves

List of the points displayed on the Map of the Cala en Porter Area.

Color detail of the paths:

Yellow path for access and entry to Cala en Porter

Blue path for exit and access to the road to Alaior or San Luis, the airport, and the city of Maó or the Port of Maó

Red path, descent to the beach of Cala en Porter

Green path, alternative circuit, more interesting than the direct route.

Map points description:

1. Access to Cala en Porter from Maó via the local road Me 12 which passes through the Maó Airport and the town of Sant Lluís (San Luis) 2. Return circuit to leave the residential area marked in blue 3. Central junction point of Cala en Porter paths: location of Hostal Sa Paissa, Pharmacy, Supermarket.

A ) to the right, downwards, orange path, to the beach and the Hotel Acuarium

B ) straight ahead, directly to the Cova d'en Xoroi

C ) Past the beach entrance, to the right, leaving the Sa Paissa restaurant on the left, to the viewpoint of the Cala en Porter beach, the Hotel Playa Azul, Sa Barrera, and several apartment complexes.

4 Cala en Porter Beach

5 Parking area, between a small lagoon and the commercial area, with

souvenir shops, supermarkets, bars, and restaurants, it has a

pier next to the beach

6 Point with very good panoramic views of the entire cove and the beach, an

alternative path to go to the "Cova d'en Xoroi" and to several residential

apartment complexes, and rental villas next to the cliff, part of the path skirts the

cliff

7 Parking area, located in front of the "Cova d'en Xoroi" nightclub and

the La Palet restaurant

8 Location of the Cova d'en Xoroi nightclub on the cliff face, the

entrance is right at the parking lot

9 Link point to take the direction: A ) to the left to return to the center of the residential area and the beach or take the exit from Cala en Porter towards Mahón Alaior

B ) Take the right until the end of the path, a panoramic viewpoint of the

very long cliff and starting point of the trail that leads to

Cales Coves

10 Panoramic views of the Cala en Porter cliff

11 Start of the trail to visit Cales Coves and the prehistoric caves

(Necropolis of Cales Coves) beaches of little value and visited by

naturists

Photographs: Omar Mauro Banquero