Cala Varques

Cala Varques is an undeveloped cove on the Manacor coast between Porto Cristo and Portocolom: a strip of pale sand mixed with tiny pebbles and shell grit, wrapped in pine and rock, with turquoise water clear enough to see every stone. You have to earn it. From the road it's about 2 km on foot, 30–45 minutes: first a long, straight, sun-baked track, then a stretch across private land with two or three walls to climb over or squeeze through (some marked with painted arrows, some with old wire), and a descent over loose stone through the trees. The alternative is the coast path from Cala Romántica, a good hour, past little coves and caves. What sets it apart lies to the left of the beach: a clifftop path leads to rocks where you can swim into sea caves, jump into deep water and, ten or fifteen minutes on, reach a big natural rock arch. Around 200 m to the right is a smaller beach used by naturists. The downsides come up year after year in reviews: wasps the moment food or a can comes out, especially in the afternoon; lots of anchored boats in summer; a stony shoreline in some years; no facilities at all; and in August so many people you wonder why you walked. It suits confident walkers who want to swim and explore, not small children, older visitors or rough-sea days, when there's nothing to see.

Reviewed in November 2026