Valldemossa and Deia Travel Guide

Even if you choose not to do the entire western coastal drive of Mallorca, you may want to make an excursion from Palma to these two historic towns. The graceful market town of Valldemossa (pictured above) is the site of the Cartoixa Reial, a royal residence turned Carthusian monastery. French writer George Sand and the tubercular composer Frédéric Chopin notoriously spent the winter of 1838–39 here in Cell 4, Plaça de las Cartujas, s/n (tel. 696-405-992). Shocked locals, fearing they would catch Chopin’s tuberculosis, burned all but a small painting and a French piano after the couple left. But the cell preserves a sense of their presence with a few personal belongings and such details as the braziers they used to heat the quarters and the temporary walls they set up to gain a little privacy from her children. The view across the gardens is remarkably romantic. Visits are available Monday to Saturday 10am‒5:30pm all year (10am‒4pm Nov–Jan). Admission is 5€ adults, 3€ children 9 and under. Warning: Buy tickets carefully, as there is also a tour of the monastery that does not include Cell 4.

After a visit to the Cartoixa Reial, wander the steep streets of Valldemossa’s Old Town. The cloister of Ses Murteres has a romantic garden, and there’s a late-18th-century Carthusian church where Goya’s father-in-law, Bayeu, painted the dome’s frescoes.

From Valldemossa, continue through the mountains, following signposts for 11km (6 3/4 miles) to Deià. Before the village, consider a stopover at Son Marroig (tel. 97-163-91-58), at Km 26 on the highway. Now a museum, this was once the estate of Archduke Luis Salvador. Born in 1847, the archduke fled court life and found refuge here with his young bride in 1870. A tower on the estate is from the 1500s. Many of the archduke's personal furnishings and mementos, such as photographs and his ceramic collection, are still here. The estate is surrounded by lovely gardens, and the property has many panoramic views. Admission is 4€.

Set against a backdrop of olive-green mountains, Deià is peaceful and serene, with stone houses and creeping bougainvillea. Small tile altars in the streets reproduce the traditional Christian Stations of the Cross.

This town has long had a special meaning for artists. Robert Graves, the English poet and novelist (I, Claudius), lived in Deià and died here in 1985. He is buried in the local cemetery, Campo Santo. A 5-minute walk from the center of town, you can visit Graves’s home, Ca N’Alluny, Carretera de Soller, Km 1 (tel. 97-163-61-85), which Graves and his lover, poet Laura Riding, built in 1932. She directed much of the striking design, which remains as she envisioned it. Graves wrote: “I wanted to go where town was still town; and country, country.” The couple fled in 1936, when Nationalist forces took over the Balearics at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War. The house has been restored to circa 1946, when Graves returned to the island. Visitors can see Graves’ and Riding’s studies, as well as the kitchen and dining room. It’s open Monday to Friday 9:30am‒4:30pm (9am‒4pm Nov–Mar). Admission is 10€ adults, 7€ students and seniors, 5€ children 11 and under.

Bus Nort Balear (tel. 97-149-06-80) leaves from Palma’s Plaza España (Calle Eusebio Estrada) 13 times daily to head to Valldemossa and Deià (4.50€ each way). If you’re driving from Palma, take the Carretera Valldemossa–Deià to Valldemossa and continue to Deià.