Hotel Can Simoneta

Hotel Can Simoneta

The northeast of Mallorca is the part of the island that package tourism largely bypassed. The northwest coast gets the literary pilgrims and the old money, the south gets the resort infrastructure, and the northeast gets left largely to itself, which has preserved it in a way the other coasts are not. The Serra de Llevant, a gentler mountain range than the Tramuntana, runs down to the sea here in a series of rocky coves, pine forests, and small beaches that are genuinely quiet outside of August. Canyamel is one of the villages on this stretch, a small settlement with a sandy beach and a 13th-century watchtower at the entrance to a valley. The Caves of Artà, some of the most dramatic sea caves on the island, are a few minutes north. The medieval hilltop town of Artà is ten minutes inland. Capdepera, with its almost entirely intact 14th-century castle walls, is nearby. This is the corner of Mallorca that people who know the island tend to keep quietly to themselves. Can Simoneta sits on a 35-metre sandstone cliff above the Bay of Canyamel, on an estate of more than fifteen hectares, the original buildings constructed over 140 years ago as a finca and originally used, according to the hotel's own history, as a clifftop retreat for a monk prescribed seawater treatments by his doctor. The monk had excellent taste in locations. There are 26 rooms and suites distributed between two historic stone farmhouse buildings and converted stone barns across the estate, each individually furnished, with four-poster beds, cream linens, contemporary art, and the kind of understated elegance that doesn't need to announce itself. The rooms looking directly over the sea are the ones to book. Hand-carved steps descend from the cliff face to a rocky cove with direct sea access and a natural stone pool formed in the rock at the water's edge. There is a clifftop jacuzzi. The spa operates partly outdoors under the coastal pine trees. Two pools sit in the estate gardens among the olive trees. The restaurant, Can Simoneta Gastronòmic, holds a Michelin star and serves an evenings-only tasting menu from Mexican-born chef David Moreno, a creative fusion of Mexican technique and local Mallorcan ingredients, some of them picked from the estate itself, that works considerably better than the concept sounds on paper. La Terraza, the more casual restaurant on the same clifftop terrace, handles breakfast and a daily à la carte menu with the Mediterranean below. Adults only, eighteen and over. Closes early November, reopens late February. The people who end up here are those who have done Mallorca before, often more than once, and made a deliberate choice to come to a different part of the island. Where La Residencia draws the creative and literary crowd to the drama of the northwest, and Cap Rocat offers the fortress fantasy near Palma, Can Simoneta is for the person who wants the sea directly below them, a genuine sense of seclusion, and a part of the island that still feels like a discovery. It is quieter, more personal, and less scenically theatrical than either, which for many guests is exactly the recommendation. The short version: A 26-room adults-only clifftop finca on the quiet northeast coast of Mallorca, 140 years old, with hand-carved steps down the cliff to a private rocky cove and natural sea pool. Individually furnished rooms in historic stone buildings, a Michelin-starred Mexiterranean tasting menu, clifftop jacuzzi, spa under pine trees, and some of the most genuinely peaceful coastline left on the island. One hour from Palma airport.