Port d'Andratx

If you want to understand where serious money goes on Mallorca, stand on the quay at Port d'Andratx at dusk and look up. The hills around this funnel-shaped natural harbour — often likened to a Norwegian fjord — are stacked with the island's most coveted villas, infinity pools catching the last light, most of them second or third homes for people who could live anywhere and chose here. It is the southwest's most exclusive address, and it wears it quietly.

The port itself is a study in two halves. The south side is the old fishing village — still a working harbour, its boats supplying the restaurants, its waterfront lined with cafes and the lively summer bustle. The north side belongs to the Club de Vela, the marina with over 450 berths where the larger yachts gather and the cosmopolitan crowd with them. That combination — genuine fishing port and blue-chip marina sharing one small bay — is the particular charm of the place.

The setting, and the water around it

Port d'Andratx has almost no beach to speak of, which is part of why it stays exclusive rather than crowded. The pleasure here is the water and the coves around it. Cala Llamp, Cala d'Egos and Cala Moragues are the swimming spots — rocky, clear, reached on foot or, better, by boat. Out beyond the headland lies the uninhabited island of Sa Dragonera, a protected nature reserve named for its dragon-like profile, reached by a short boat hop from nearby Sant Elm and home to ospreys and dramatic cliff walks. A day on the water from here — the coves, the Dragonera, the southwest coastline — is the thing to do.

What to do on land

The harbour is for the slow ritual: a coffee at Cappuccino on the front, a long lunch watching the boats, the evening passeig along the quay. Behind the waterfront, the streets climbing the hill hide good shopping and the interior-design ateliers that serve the villa set. Golfers have the championship Golf de Andratx minutes away at Camp de Mar. Walkers and cyclists have the Tramuntana foothills at the door. And the ancient inland town of Andratx — not to be confused with the port — sits five kilometres up the valley with its Gothic church, hilltop old quarter and a notable Wednesday market.

If you can time it, the Virgen del Carmen festival in mid-July — honouring the fishermen's patron saint with a procession of decorated boats around the harbour — is the port at its most characterful and least manufactured.

Where to stay

Port d'Andratx is a villa destination first and a hotel destination second — which is precisely why we know it well. The defining way to stay here is a private villa on the hillside, with the infinity pool, the sea view and the privacy that the multimillion-euro slopes were built for. For those who prefer a hotel, the options cluster around the harbour and the mountainside (the Mon Port Hotel & Spa among them, with marina views), and the polished resort comfort of nearby Camp de Mar is a few minutes down the coast. The right answer depends entirely on whether the guest wants a staffed villa or a serviced hotel — a conversation we have often.

Where to eat

Dining here is waterfront and priced for the postcode — well above the island average, and worth it at the right tables. Miramar de Giuliano, a fixture on the harbour since 1927, is the classic; the Club de Vela's restaurant draws locals for the Sunday paella with the bay in front of it. The rule, as everywhere, is fresh fish straight off the harbour boats and a booking made ahead in season. For the quieter, better-value tables, the locals slip to the street running parallel behind the front.

When to come

Late spring through September is the season — the marina at its liveliest, the water warm, the coves and Dragonera at their best, the long evenings made for the harbour. The port goes quiet and many businesses hibernate in deep winter, though a committed year-round community keeps it from closing entirely. Come for several nights, base in a villa, and use the harbour as your evening and the sea as your day.