Manacor is the second largest town on the Mediterranean island of Majorca, one of Spain’s Balearic Islands. It’s a popular tourist destination, famous for artificial pearls and furniture making.
As mentioned Manacor is well-known for artificial pearls and it is the centre of the Mallorcan pearl industry. Several of the pearl factories have tours for visitors where it’s possible to see the process of pearl manufacture. At the end of a visit you can purchase pearl jewellery that was made on the premises.
Manacor is also well-known for the manufacture of items in olive wood. One of the main producers of olive wood handicrafts, Olive Art Exposition, is located on the outskirts of the town and they have a large range of products in their showroom. There is also a display of old machinery that was once used in the factory.
A different kind of shopping experience can be had in the Monday street market, one of the busiest in Mallorca. Goods of every description are on sale.
The beaches at Manacor tend to be small, located within their own little cove. The largest, S’Illot Beach, has a promenade which has many bars and restaurants. Because of their locations they tend to be less crowded than the beaches in many other areas and are ideal for a relaxing day just sunbathing and swimming.
Most of the beaches have been awarded the European Blue Flag for safety.
The climate of Manacor is well suited to a lazy beach type of holiday. Summers are hot and dry with plenty of sunshine whereas the winters are cool but temperatures rarely drop below zero. The average summer maximum temperature is 30° C.
In keeping with its age Manacor has many important archaeological sites including the megalithic remains of S’Illot Son Vaquer, a Talaiotic village, and the remains of Son Pereto, a former chapel. Many items of importance are on display at the Municipal Archaeological Museum.
