Holiday Heaven 2011
Sa Coma is a seaside resort town on Majorca's east coast, to the south of the major resort of Cala Millor and two miles north of Porto Cristo. Sa Coma is the largest of two resorts that share a wide bay beside the wilderness headland of the Punta de n'Amer. Sa Coma is a modern purpose-built resort, while smaller S'Illiot, at the southern end of the bay, is a former fishing village that has adapted to the tourists trade.
Sa Coma was a late arrival to the tourist industry, and remained a fishing town until the 1980s. Since then it has been developed into a modern seaside resort, while much of the surrounding area has protected as "green zones" and nature reserves.
Sa Coma's wide, sandy beach is separated from the smaller beach at S'Illiot by a fresh-water lagoon and a short stretch of rocky shoreline. A footbridge and promenade connect the two beaches areas, and sun-loungers and equipment hire for water sports are available at both. in general the beach at Sa Coma is more crowded and busier than that of its more family-oriented neighbour, where swimmers share the waterfront with working fishing boats.
The rocky wilderness headland of the Punta de n'Amer at the north end of the bay is crossed by several hiking tracks. The area is a designated nature reserve, created to protect this delicate part of the coastal landscape as much as possible from the changes wrought by tourism developments. A walking track leads from Sa Coma to the 17th Century watchtower at the peak of the headland, which houses a small historical museum with displays of ancient weapons.
The night-time entertainment in Sa Coma is mainly limited to the hotels, and a few lively bars along the waterfront. But party seekers need only take a short taxi ride over the hill to experience the vibrant night-life scene in Cala Millor.
There is no shortage of tourist activities in the wider area. The Auto Safari Zoo, situated on the road between Sa Coma and Cala Millor, has enclosures for zebras, giraffes and elephants that visitors can tour in a safari bus or in their own car.
There is also a popular riding stables at Sa Coma, and a 54-hole mini golf course set in a fantasy landscape of lakes and waterfalls.
Public buses run four times a day from Sa Coma to Palma in the summer, ten times a day to Cala Millor, and five times a day to Puerto Cristo in the south - the location of two of Majorca's most popular tourist attraction, the Cuevas del Drach (Caves of the Dragon) and the Cuevas del Hams (Caves of Fish Hooks). A guided tour of the larger Cuevas del Drach passes through 12 underground chambers , filled with stalactites and stalagmites, to the subterranean shores of Lake Martel, one of the world's largest underground lakes.
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