I finally made it to the Spanish island of Mallorca (also Majorca) this past summer, and as I started to map out the best way to see as much of the island as possible, I realized before we even arrived that a return trip was essential.
The island is so much larger than I realized, spanning 53 towns and taking 5 to 6 hours to drive around – and that’s without stopping for seafood paella, a glass of cava, or a dip in the crystal blue Mediterranean Sea – and what’s the fun in that?
I knew I needed guidance – someone who could point me in the right direction – and someone who could get me where I needed to go. I was lucky enough to find Gina Vasquez, the founder of Visit My Mallorca. Gina, who’s originally from southern California, has called Mallorca home for more than 30 years, and she seeks out the unique and unusual, handcrafting dream vacations for couples, families and groups. She was immediately responsive on Whatsapp, and promptly and patiently answered my 3,467 questions about restaurants, shops, excursions, towns, and logistics of getting around. She put together a few custom itineraries with dining recommendations and more, and was a valuable resource before we even landed in Palma and during our visit.
The big question during the planning process that my friend and I kept asking each other (and Gina of course) was, ‘should we or should we not rent a car?’ We were told by several people that the roads were quite narrow (they were) and that parking spots were very scarce in many places we wanted to visit (they were), but if we didn’t rent a car how exactly would we get around?
That’s when I found Daytrip. This incredible company combines the reliability of a private car and driver with a customized route including a stop along the way somewhere special. You can choose your own stop and wait time or let Daytrip suggest a place along the route for you.
This valuable service launched close to 10 years ago in Europe and is available in over 130 countries on every continent with the exception of Antarctica. I can’t believe I have been traveling internationally for so many years without it. It doesn’t just get you from point A to point B; it acts as your own private tour guide along with way.
The drivers are all English-speaking and carefully vetted with background checks and an extensive interview process, and it's so easy to book trips and make adjustments on Daytrip’s user-friendly platform.
Their motto “We drive, you discover,” perfectly summed up our experience when we used them in Mallorca. We booked our Daytrip to pick us up from the airport, take us to our hotel in Port de Soller to check in and drop our bags and then continue on to Cala Deia for a day at the beach. Unfortunately we landed just in time for a rare pocket of torrential storms, so our driver immediately started offering other suggestions of where to head next. We settled on the 13th-century village of Valldemossa in the Tramuntana Mountains for a day of shopping, sightseeing and a cozy lunch at the famed Es Taller.
By dinnertime the clouds cleared, the rain stopped, the sun came out, and we enjoyed an evening back at the beach near our hotel.
With these two travel hacks, we saw more of the island than I thought we would given our limited time there, and I’m already planning to return next summer to see more of it.
