Day 1 – Mallorca: Honeymoon Upgrades & the Jumeriah
Our uber arrived at 3:15pm and we had a smooth ride to the airport. We checked our 2 bags and then headed straight to the United Polaris lounge. I’ve been to the United Club before, but this was my first time in the Polaris lounge. To my surprise it seemed much more crowded than the regular United Club was on my last flight. Stelios ordered 2 glasses of red wine – Prisoner and Iconoclast, and we both liked the latter better. I put our name on the waitlist for the dining room and our table was ready within 15 minutes. We decided to order the chicken milanese & short rib burger to share. The portions were a bit small and the burger was mediocre at best and mostly bread, but the chicken was delicious. We were still hungry and wanted to be full before our flight so we could sleep later on the plane, we ordered the corn fritters and chocolate skillet for dessert. With our bellies full and 10 minutes until it was time to board we started to walk towards our gate.
When I booked our honeymoon flights I was set on flying first class, however the tickets to Mallorca were $5000 each which I could not fathom spending, especially for an 8 hour flight. Luckily we had enough United Miles to purchase Economy Plus and request an upgrade to United Polaris using our miles. To our pleasant surprise the morning after our wedding we received a text message that we had been upgraded! Woohoo!
This was both our first time flying United Polaris and we enjoyed every moment. It is wild to me how many extra amenities there are – two pillows, two blankets, water bottles, and of course the full lay back seat which I could not wait to use right after take off so I could knock out and go to bed.
I couldn’t lay back until we were in the air so I started watching the movie Challengers. I tried but couldn’t fall asleep so I ended up ordering a glass of wine and had the complimentary garlic bread and salad. The bread was heavenly. Stelios gave me some of his squash ravioli to try and it was also very good. At around 10:30pm with 5.5 hours left of our flight I tried to go to sleep. There was so much turbulence I didn’t truly fall asleep, much maybe for an hour or so at most. Stelios slept a good 3-4 hours.
We landed in Palma Monday morning at 8:45am. We had arranged a car through Mallorca Private Transfer to pick us up from the airport and take us to the Jumeriah hotel in Port Soller. The drive was about 40 minutes and our driver Toni was very friendly. I spoke to him mostly in Spanish, and told him that I needed to practice. He was very helpful and I quickly remembered certain words that I forgotten. I’m excited to see my Spanish get better throughout this trip.
On our drive up through the mountains it started to rain and once we got to the hotel it was a full on thunderstorm. The concierge said it should pass quickly and that it’s supposed to be sunny later this afternoon. I was extremely jet lagged so I think the rain was a blessing in disguise because I was ready for a siesta. Unfortunately our room was not ready yet, but it worked out in our favor because the concierge upgraded us from a deluxe to a premium room which was supposed to be ready earlier. To kill some time we stopped at the hotel restaurant CapRoig for a bite to eat. Stelios and I grabbed 2 croissants that were flaky and buttered to perfection. Then we walked around the hotel property to get familiar with our surroundings. The Jumeriah property is large and stunning, and it is the nicest hotel I’ve ever stayed at. The hotel is set on a cliff overlooking Port de Soller, and it’s about a 10 minute walk down to the port The layout of the property is also a bit confusing with various elevators that let you access different floors. We just got here and I’m already wishing we were staying an extra night because I won’t ever want to leave.
By 12pm our Vespa got delivered to the hotel which I ordered through Bullimoto. Getting around on a motorbike is always so much more fun and easier than a rental car, especially in Europe where the roads are narrow and parking can be tough. The delivery option was clutch and Rory the owner was super nice, showed us the bike and gave us some local recs. She’s a 300cc sea foam green beauty and we can’t wait to take her for a ride later.
Finally it was time to check into our room. The room was huge, gorgeous, but the best part was the immaculate balcony overlooking the cliff and the rest of the port below. The views are absolutely breathtaking. The hotel also provided us with a complimentary gift set and 2 straw hats – how fun!
We quickly changed and went to the pool to lay out and soak up some sun. The sky was the same bright blue as on our wedding day, you would never have guessed that it was downpouring hours earlier. We grabbed two chairs by the pool and ordered two Caesar salads, Stelios added chicken to his and also got a beer. I was still struggling from jet lag and had a bit of a headache so I stuck to lemon water in the hot sun. The pool was pretty chilly but refreshing once you dove in. After a few hours of laying around we went back up to our room to shower, change and get ready for our first night out.
Being that it was a Monday and also a travel day I didn’t book us any dinner reservations tonight so that we could go with the flow. We decided to stroll down to the port and explore. We stopped at Neni, a restaurant recommended by our friends Amanda & Zack, but we didn’t have a reservation. I explained to the hostess we just want a cocktail & appetizer so she told us to grab a table at the attached cocktail bar called Donkey which shared the same kitchen but had a limited light bites menu. We ordered the Moroccan cigars and fried cauliflower – to my surprise both were dairy free. The sauce looked creamy, but it turned out to be Tahina and was so delicious.
After a quick bite we walked down through the port. The beginning seemed a bit like a tourist trap, but further down the restaurants and shops seemed nicer and more authentic. Stelios and I are both happy we are staying at the Jumeriah because it’s situated further up the hill, tucked away from the busy port and tourist traffic. On the way back we found a shortcut up some stairs rather than hiking up the hill we had walked down earlier. By the time we got back to our hotel the sky had the perfect sunset afterglow and we relaxed on our balcony watching the colors continue to fade over the Balearic sea. Tonight was the second best sunset I’ve ever seen, the first being in Santorini.
Around 9pm we decided to take the Vespa for a night ride into the town of Soller. Since it was a Monday, a lot of stores and restaurants were closed and the town was eerily quiet besides the plaza center. We had dinner at Ca’an Pintxo, a restaurant that specializes in Mallorcan Pintxos (pintxos are similar to tapas but more common in Northern Spain). We ordered 2 glasses of Mallorcan red wine and 4 pintxos to share:
- catch of the day (Meer fish) marinated in leche de Tigre sauce
- Pasta Naga (not pasta at all) it’s roasted carrots fresh from the garden with pickled onions, pomegranate, and coconut sesame citrus
- Arros des patro Codony – bombeta rice with lobster and prawns cock with rock fish
- Es Exotet – lamb from the trauma bays mountains with sobrasada, with leek and carrot cream
Stelis favorite was the lamb and mine was the Pasta Naga. I’ve been feeling very veg forward lately and have really been enjoying dishes cooked with fresh veggies. By the time we were done with dinner it was 11pm. We decided to head back to our hotel and call it a night. We were both looking forward to a full night of sleep so we could be well rested for tomorrow.
