Mallorca - The most beautiful island in the world...

... we've all heard that many times, right? But no matter how often these words are used, we still enjoy hearing and using them again and again. Simply because it's true! But how did Mallorca come to be the favorite island of the Germans and British?

Anyone who left home in the past went on a waltz or a pilgrimage - to discover something or to acquire education. Tourism as we understand it has only existed since the 18th century. So traveling as a leisure activity. In this first phase, “going on vacation” was initially reserved for a minority of wealthy aristocrats and educated citizens. At that time, gentlemen and ladies of the world usually traveled with two or three large trunks in order to be able to store the numerous hat boxes, elaborate items of clothing and countless utensils. It became fashionable to go on educational trips. One of these famous educational travelers was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. He set off for Italy in September 1786. He wanted to stay for a few months - in the end it was almost two years. By the way, he didn't exactly have a small amount of luggage with him either. Apparently he carried in his carriage both his bed and a suitcase with a special compartment for his top hat.

And who brought guests to Mallorca on a larger scale for the first time? It was an Austrian. Ludwig Salvator (1847-1915). He invited artists and intellectuals to his beautiful property in the Tramuntana Mountains. This is how Mallorca made a good name for itself in well-heeled circles. In the beginning it was only wealthy people who afforded the dreamed island paradise; later the island offered refuge for those persecuted by the Nazi regime. Finally the classic tourists arrived. Nevertheless, there were already many Germans living on Mallorca in the 1920s, artists and rich bohemians who were determined never to leave their dream island again.

Then came Hitler and with him the Second World War. As a result of the cruel history of the Third Reich, Germans were not welcome guests in other European countries. Animosity towards German tourists also lasted for a long time in Spain, France, Denmark and the Netherlands.

So the years went by and Mallorca was mainly populated by farmers, fishermen, craftsmen and a few artists and musicians.

It wasn't until the Germans experienced the much-described economic miracle in the 1950s that there was no stopping people who didn't just want to dream of a vacation in the south. The new financial possibilities now made traveling affordable for almost everyone. And so in 1956 the first plane carrying German tourists landed on Mallorca. On board the machine: 30 curious vacationers. “Everyone was struck by wanderlust,” commented Bayerischer Rundfunk at the time.

Our neighbor Maria, a true Mallorcan (85 years old), comes to our office every day to have a coffee with us and to tell a little story. Quite often from the past too. She remembers well the first tourists in Cala Figuera and Santanyi: "It was an adventure! Suddenly you no longer just met familiar faces from the neighborhood at the weekly market, but were surrounded by other languages and people that were foreign to us. That was unusual and very exciting at first!"

Numerous German tour operators sprouted up like mushrooms at that time. And the companies had it good, because the Franco dictatorship, which ruled until 1975, literally rolled out the red carpet for tourist companies in order to get foreign currency. Unfortunately, huge hotel complexes were built in many places and, unfortunately, assembly line-like holiday organization was exactly what package tourists expected from the 1960s onwards. As a rule, neither the travelers nor the locals spoke foreign languages back then. Smooth communication was really difficult. In addition, the holidaymakers did not know their way around, had no travel or international experience at all, and many of the roads and means of transport that we take for granted today did not yet exist. So the aim of many package tour providers was to ensure that the Mallorca holiday not only remained affordable for the German tourist, but also did not turn into an incalculable adventure into the completely unknown. Even German food and drinks were offered everywhere. The traveler should almost feel at home - with currywurst and roast pork.

But of course there weren't just package tourists on Mallorca. Word quickly spread about the beauty of Mallorca, the many sunny days and the great beaches in the southeast of the island. They attracted hippies, intellectuals, dreamers, artists, romantics, adventurers and investors. We can actually often observe: Whenever the topic of the Cala Figuera of the past comes up, many Mallorca lovers have a knowing grin on their faces. Then they talk about the Luna Bar, about the many legendary parties and about the little train that once took lots of bathing beauties from Cala Figuera to Cala Santanyi. The pretty, old and natural originality of the fishing village quickly became well known everywhere, one could almost say famous.

It is also part of the often told story of Cala Figuera that the first building next to the Caló d'en Busques was built in the 19th century - a shelter for the fishermen and their boats. Today, the barracks set into the rock are locked with rusty chains. But back then there was nothing around other than largely untouched nature and of course the sea. Only gradually did the fishermen from Santanyí build small houses in order to settle here. If you're interested: The oldest real residential building, built in 1899, is still right on the water and is still inhabited (although only temporarily, as a weekend property for a family from Palma).

Even though today Santanyi has long since overtaken Cala Figuera and is the undisputed happy place in the south-east of the island, Cala Figuera was and remains legendary.

Over the past 50 years, Mallorca has gradually become an island that now lives primarily from tourism, and indeed depends on business with holidaymakers. No other phenomenon of the 20th century has had such an impact on the island as this sector of the economy. Of course, tourism has brought the island great wealth: for decades, the gross domestic product in the Balearic Islands has been many times higher than the Spanish average. The standard of living of the islanders has now reached unprecedented heights, despite all the crises.

And while it was still a real event in rural Mallorca well into the 20th century to meet a “newcomer”, today every second resident of Mallorca was not born on the island. In addition to more than 4.6 million Germans and 3.7 million Brits who often or always spend their holidays on the island every year, it is estimated that tens of thousands of German citizens own a holiday property or a second home. For all these happy people who love life on our beautiful island so much, we strive every day to search for, find or even sell the most beautiful houses and apartments.

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