Santa Ponsa Hotels – Resort Guide

Santa Ponsa or Santa Ponça is a safe resort with a relaxed feel.

Santa Ponsa Hotels Panorama by wikipedia.org user: Cyclejakob

Kids of all ages will love building sandcastles in the clean white sand of its main beach, backed by pine trees at one end and within an easy stroll of a great choice of shops, café/bars and restaurants.

You really can just sit back and unwind here.  There are no waiters trying to usher you into their restaurants; no time-share salesmen.  The people here are not pushy – just friendly and welcoming.  Santa Ponsa is a well-established family resort – they know what to do here, and they do it well.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are a few of the questions that we often get asked at Suntrap Holidays about Santa Ponsa:

Where is it?

Santa Ponsa is on the south-west coast of Majorca, between Paguera and Palma Nova.  It’s about 12 miles west of Majorca’s capital, Palma.

At about 20 miles from Palma airport, getting to most Santa Ponsa hotels will take about 40 minutes.  If you are paying for your own transfer, a shuttle bus costs under £10 per person, and a taxi about £70 – both are return prices.

What are Santa Ponsa hotels like?

When it comes to hotels, Santa Ponsa has a lot of choice and a lot of quality at very good prices.  Hotels in Santa Ponsa often offer all-inclusive or half-board deals where the food is excellent and well worth the small amount extra that you will pay compared to B&B or self-catering.

By the way, I have written no-holds-barred reviews of some of the best hotels in Santa Ponsa – check them out before you book.  You can find them here: Santa Ponsa hotels

What’s the beach like?

The main bay is shaped like three sides of a rectangle, with rocky headlands on each side stretching about ¾ mile

Santa Ponsa hotels - beach, by flickr.com user: wiros

straight out to sea, and a lovely beach in the middle, almost half a mile of clean, white sand, perfect for Dad to build sandcastles – er, for the kids of course!

At the back of the beach is a mini-wood with pine trees – great for a little shade and a picturesque backdrop to the Santa Ponsa hotels, shops, café/bars and restaurants that are within easy walking distance of the beach.  Watch out for the pretty little green parrots who  like to fly amongst the trees.

The sea here is generally safe for swimming, but if the red flag is up, which is rare in summer, paddling is as deep as you should go.  A great variety of water sports are on offer here – the humble pedalo, the sausage thing, water-skiing, para-gliding, sailing – basically you name it, they probably do it!

What can you do in and around Santa Ponsa?

Well, because this is a well-established family resort, there is a great choice of activities here – it’s one of Santa Ponsa’s strengths – something for everyone.  Here are a few examples:

You can take a boat trip from the beach in Santa Ponsa and get a closer look at this area of the coastline.  At about £10 a head they are very good value compared to other resorts, especially bearing in mind that the boats here are modern and many have a bar and toilet facilities on board.

If you fancy a change from the main beach of Santa Ponsa, there is a smaller sandy bay known as “Little Beach” to the south about 15 minutes’ walk away.  This sandy cove is less developed, although sunbeds and umbrellas are usually on hire.  There is a little shade from the pine trees that line the beach, and the sea is shallow for quite a way so it’s good for safe swimming.  This cute little place is popular with the locals at weekends – which says something about its charm.

To get to Little Beach from most of the Santa Ponsa hotels, head for the southern end of the main beach (the left end as you face the sea), then get up onto the road called “Avinguda del Rei Jaume I” and follow it to the right.  It runs along the south side of Santa Ponsa bay just behind a line of houses.  After five minutes or so, fork right onto the road called “Via de la Cruz” and carry on until the road comes back out from behind the houses – and you will be at the Little Beach!

Antratx is a lovely place to spend half a day or even a day if you fancy a change of scenery. This working port is about eight miles North of most Santa Ponsa hotels and apartments, and is well worth a visit.  The port itself has a tempting Mallorcagold jewellery shop, and Andratx market, the largest in the area, is famous for lace tablecloths and leather goods such as handbags.  If you are planning a day out in Andratx, the market is held on Wednesday mornings so that could well be the best day to go as you can start with the market and then explore the port and the town.

Santa Ponsa hotels - sunrise by flickr.com user: wiros

Palma, the capital of Majorca, is a great day out.  Just hop on a bus from the bus station, within easy walking distance of the main Santa Ponsa hotels, and off you go on the 10 mile trip to the city.  Take a taxi if you want a little more comfort and speed, or even hire a car for the day if you can cope with finding your way to one of the many central underground car parks in the city, which I managed OK last time I went there.  Palma is a great place for a “city day out” from your base in Santa Ponsa.  I can’t do it justice here, but suffice to say that as Spanish cities go, it has a heck of a lot to offer in terms of shops, history, architecture, vibrancy and sheer beauty.  Mind you, I was quite pleased to lie down in the sun on the beach the day after, for a rest!

Golf – “Santa Ponsa I” is open to visitors and can be found North of the beach, but the club house is at the far end so you may prefer to take a taxi or go by car.  It’s a par 72 course at 6.106 metres.  The green fees, in line with the rest of Majorca, are on the pricey side, at 78 euros for a round and 40 euros for nine holes.

What attractions for kids are within reach of Santa Ponsa hotels?

They’ll love the beach of course, but there are plenty of other things to do.  You can go to Marineland near Palma Nova, just a few miles away, and see the dolphin show, or how about the famous Pirates Adventure Show down the road in Magaluf?  Locally, the square just to the north side of the bay holds a children’s show and junior disco in the early evening most nights throughout the summer – Maria who runs it is a real star.

What’s going on at night?

Unlike Magaluf, which seems to me like some sort of disco heaven (or hell – depending which side of 30 you are on), things are more family-orientated in Santa Ponsa.  Live entertainment can be found in the bars, as can karaoke, but much of the live music and shows take place in the main Santa Ponsa hotels.  The exception is The Square, a modern outdoor plaza surrounded by café/bars just to the north of the main bay about 10 minutes’ walk from the resort centre.  Here, there is live music every night in the middle of the square – it’s free too – just take a seat at one of the surrounding bars and enjoy the show!

You will also find a good number of Irish and Scottish bars here, where you can have a great pub night out surrounded by some real characters.  You might even remember some of them the next day!

What’s the food like?

Food here is less expensive than in some other resorts, probably because there are restaurants and snack bars of all kinds competing for your euros.  You’ll find the main cuisines of the world here – Chinese, Italian, Indian, English.  Oh, and Spanish of course!  Even if you are on a half-board or all-inclusive deal at one of the main Santa Ponsa hotels, it’s nice to treat yourself to a meal out, and if you take your time, have a look around and find something you like the look of, you won’t be disappointed.  The Rendezvous in Calle de Ramon and the No. 8 bar and grill in Avenida Rey Jaime I are favourites with Santa Ponsa holidaymakers.

Well, that’s my quick intro to Santa Ponsa – a great Spanish family resort.  Thanks for reading.

If you are considering a holiday to Santa Ponsa, you can check out the latest deals and availability here: Santa Ponsa hotels and holidays.

BBC weather for hotels in Santa Ponsa