Porto Colom

Porto Colom (in Catalan and officially Portocolom) is a town belonging to the municipality of Felanich (Felanitx in Catalan), in the eastern part of Mallorca. Near this town are the towns of s'Horta, Calonge, Cala Murada, Calas de Mallorca, Cala Serena, Cala Ferrera, Cala d'Or and Alquería Blanca.

It is made up of the neighborhoods of La Capilla, its old town, Cala Marsal, La Punta, La Aduana, La Bateria, Cala Barbacana, La Fe and Cas Corso. It is a fishing and tourist town nestled around an irregularly shaped bay, in which the piers and its lighthouse offer a picturesque landscape. The port area of Porto Colom, one of the few natural harbors in Mallorca, has a long quay where leisure boats mix with local fishing boats, such as traditional llauts.

Its beaches include Cala Marsal, the largest, and designated as blue flag beach, El Babo, or Arenal d'es Ases, El Arenal, which is divided into Gran and Petit, and the Cala del Algar. Other beaches near the town are Cala sa Nau, Cala Estreta and Cala Brafi.

The natural harbor of Porto Colom has served as a refuge for boats since Roman times. Already in the Middle Ages there is evidence of its use as a commercial port but, due to the dangers of pirate attacks, the place remained barely inhabited, only by a few fishermen and those in charge of the defensive watchtowers built in the 14th century. Later, in the 16th century, a watchtower was erected at the entrance to the port. In 1713 the gun battery of Cala Barbacana was built.

At the end of the 18th century, in view of the great commercial activity, the first port and urban infrastructures were created; in 1854 the customs building was inaugurated. Dinner or lunch at one of the many bay restaurants of Porto Colom is a gastronomic delight and an immersion in its calm and secluded maritime landscape.