Menorca
Spain
The quiet Balearic, with a path all the way round its coast and coves you have to walk to
Photo by Joao Branco on Unsplash
Photos by Juliana Chyzhova, Supradoc, Kevin Grieve and Daniele Levis Pelusi on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of Spain
May to June, and September to October — high summer is full, and much of the island shuts for the winter
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 85mm in Oct
Where it is
39.89°N, 4.26°E Open in Google Maps
Things to do
Several days- Walk one stage of the Camí de Cavalls early in the morning, carrying more water than seems sensible
- Take the beach bus from Ciutadella to Macarella in summer, because the car park fills by mid-morning
- Take a boat round Mahón harbour
- Spend an evening in Ciutadella's old town, which is livelier than Mahón
- See the Naveta d'es Tudons and Torre d'en Galmés, the oldest buildings on the island
Menorca travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget Spain
ExpensiveEuros, and cards are taken almost everywhere, beach bars included. The Balearic tourist tax is charged per person per night by hotels and licensed rentals and is usually paid on arrival or departure rather than in the booking price.
ATMs & cards
Bank machines in Mahón, Ciutadella and the larger villages. The independent machines in the resort strips push their own conversion; decline it and take the euro amount.
Avoid these
- Euronet and the independent machines in the resort strips
Use these instead
- CaixaBank
- BBVA
- Santander
- Sabadell
Always decline the machine's offer to convert into your own currency and take the euro amount.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of Spain
Very safeAmong the safest places in Spain. The real hazards are outdoors: the north coast in the tramuntana wind, when the sea is rough and the swimming coves are not, and the Camí de Cavalls in high summer, which has long stretches with no shade and no water.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (8 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
Worth more attention
- Cala Pregonda — and the other north-coast coves when the tramuntana blows, which makes the sea rough and the currents strong
- The Camí de Cavalls in high summer — long stretches with no shade and nowhere to buy water
- Cliff jumping at the coves, which injures someone most summers
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa Spain visa rules
No visa needed
Freedom of movement — no time limit, and no visa. Bring a passport or national ID card.
Other passports
No visa neededup to 90 days
90 days within any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area, not per country. ETIAS, a paid online authorisation, is being introduced for these passports — check the official link for whether it applies to your travel dates.
Visa required in advance€90 (Schengen short-stay visa)
A Schengen short-stay visa is applied for before travel, at the consulate of your main destination.
How to get it: Apply at the consulate or visa centre of the country you will spend most time in, typically 15 working days ahead and no more than six months before travel.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of Spain
Excellent and cheapRequired to enter
No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Routine vaccinations up to date (MMR, tetanus, polio)
Getting treated
EU/EEA and Swiss visitors are treated on the same terms as residents with an EHIC or GHIC card; UK visitors use a GHIC. Everyone else pays, and travel insurance is worth having for the repatriation cover rather than the treatment.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
Very goodCaldereta de langosta, lobster stew, is the dish of Fornells and is priced like it. Mahón cheese, square and rind-rubbed with paprika, is the everyday one. Gin has been distilled in Mahón since the British were here, and mixed with lemonade it is pomada, which is what the summer festes run on.
Travel tipsGetting around
Limited- UberWorks here
- BoltWorks here
- CabifyWorks here
- FREE NOWWorks here
- Against a taxi
- About level with a metered taxi, and where a city sets a flat airport fare the taxi usually wins.
Several cities cap private-hire licences hard, so at peak the app may simply have nothing to send.
Time zone and your working day
Europe/Madrid — 6 hours ahead of you
2 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–11:00 your time, 15:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 03:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 03:00–11:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
eSIM
A data eSIM for Spain, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:
Works here
Works hereRevolutIn the app
Must-see
Travel tipsNearby day trips
Travel tipsSay a few words
Spanish
- HelloHolaOH-la
- PleasePor favorpor fa-VOR
- Thank youGraciasGRA-thyas
- Yes / NoSí / Nosee / no
4 more phrases
- Excuse mePerdónper-DON
- How much is it?¿Cuánto cuesta?KWAN-to KWES-ta
- The bill, pleaseLa cuenta, por favorla KWEN-ta
- Cheers!¡Salud!sa-LOOD
Religion
Catholic
Nominally Catholic and deeply secular in practice. Churches are working buildings as well as sights, and Semana Santa is taken seriously even by people who never attend Mass.
Travel tipsDo's and don'ts
Do
- Eat late — lunch from 14:00, dinner rarely before 21:00
- Greet with two cheek kisses, right cheek first, between women or a man and a woman
- Stand at the bar to drink; it is cheaper than sitting and more sociable
- Say buenos días on entering a small shop, and adiós on leaving
Don't
- Do not expect anything to be open between 14:00 and 17:00 outside the big cities
- Do not order sangria in a serious restaurant — it is a tourist drink; ask for tinto de verano
- Do not tip heavily; rounding up or a euro or two is normal
- In Barcelona, do not assume Catalan and Spanish are interchangeable — the distinction matters to people
Where to stay in Menorca
No Holistay rentals in Menorca yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Menorca on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Menorca MAH
10 minfrom the airport· 5 km as the crow flies
10 min to Mahón, 45 to Ciutadella.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
