Port de Sóller () is a village and the port of the town of

Sóller Sóller () is a town and municipality near the north west coast of the Balearic Island of Mallorca, Spain, 3 km inland from Port de Sóller, in a large, bowl-shaped valley that also includes the village of Fornalutx and the hamlets of Biniara ...

, in

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

, in the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...

, Spain. Along with the village of

Fornalutx Fornalutx () is a mountainous municipality and village on Majorca (''Mallorca''), one of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. The nearest town is Sóller, which can be reached by foot via a series of footpaths and pathways and the hamlet of Binibassi ...

and the hamlet of Biniaraix they combine to form

. The combined population is around 12,000. A tramway links the inland town of

to Port de Sóller, running along the beach-side road.

Overview

The resort consists of shops, restaurants and bars but is quiet and away from the major tourist areas such as

Magaluf Magaluf (, , ) is a town on the western coast of the island of Majorca. Known as a major tourist destination and holiday resort town, Magaluf is in the municipality of Calvià, which is likewise a popular package tour destination. Resort Maga ...

on the south of the island. There are a few large holiday hotels such as Hotel Eden, Hotel Esplendido and Aimia Hotel, located on the road that runs around the bay. Two

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

s sit on the headlands on either side of the bay, La Badia de Sóller. Development on the east headland has been prevented by the area being used as a training ground by the

Spanish Army The Spanish Army () is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest Standing army, active armies – dating back to the late 15th century. The Spanish Army has existed ...

. The beach sand was replaced for the summer of 2009 because, whilst clean, it had become rather muddy and inhospitable. The bay and the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

of the river which comes to an end here attract

little egret The little egret (''Egretta garzetta'') is a species of small heron in the family Ardeidae. It is a white bird with a slender black beak, long black legs and, in the western race, yellow feet. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on ...

Muscovy duck The Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') is a duck native to the Americas, from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas and Mexico south to Argentina and Uruguay. The species has been Domestic Muscovy duck, domesticated, and feral Muscovy ducks can b ...

s, huge flocks of

herring gulls Herring gull is a common name for several birds in the genus ''Larus ''Larus'' is a large genus of gulls with worldwide distribution (by far the greatest species diversity is in the Northern Hemisphere). Many of its species are abundant and w ...

greylag geese The greylag goose (''Anser anser'') is a species of large goose in the waterfowl family Anatidae and the type species of the genus '' Anser''. It has mottled and barred grey and white plumage and an orange beak and pink legs. A large bird, it m ...

and

mallard duck The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argen ...

s. The diversity of breeds in the duck and geese population suggests that most of the original birds had escaped from captivity.

History

On 16 May 1946 the town was struck by a tornado, rated F1 on the

Fujita scale The Fujita scale (F-Scale; ), or Fujita–Pearson scale (FPP scale), is a scale for rating tornado intensity, based primarily on the damage tornadoes inflict on human-built structures and vegetation. The official Fujita scale category is determ ...

, which injured 100 people. The

European Severe Storms Laboratory The European Severe Storms Laboratory (ESSL) is a scientific organisation that conducts research on severe convective storms, tornadoes, intense precipitation events, and avalanches across Europe and the Mediterranean. It operates the widely co ...

noted that the rating was based on a written account of the damage by Gayà, M.

Transport

The tramway connecting the town to Sóller opened in 1913 and is about 5 km long.Cross, Barry (December 1991). "More Spanish light-rail; Part 7: The Sóller – Port tramway". ''

Modern Tramway Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosophy ...

'', pp. 406–411. UK:

Ian Allan Publishing Ian Allan Publishing was an English publisher, established in 1942, which specialised in transport books. It was founded by Ian Allan. In 1942, Ian Allan, then working in the public relations department for the Southern Railway at Waterloo ...

Light Rail Transit Association The Light Rail Transit Association (LRTA), formerly the Light Railway Transport League (LRTL), is a non-profit organisation whose purpose is to advocate and encourage research into the retention and development of light rail and tramway/streetc ...

. Some of its original, 1913-built cars are still in service on the line. A bus service links the resort to Palma, the capital of the island.

Gallery

File:Port de soller to soller tram arp.jpg, The

tram A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

in Port de Sóller File:Spain mallorca port de soller.jpg, View of Port de Sóller with the bay and the lighthouse File:Fardesoller.JPG, The lighthouse File:Port de Sóller view (2016.05.19).jpg, View of Port de Sóller

References

External links

English-language home page of sollernet.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Port De Soller Sóller Geography of Mallorca Localities of Spain Seaside resorts in Spain