Sa Vaqueria

The Caves Without Dragons

by Tolik

Porto Cristo, lovely Mallorcan seaside resort, is popular due to its caves. The Dragon Cave, most famous of them, is on the southern end of the town.

According to local legend, Porto Cristo got its name when two oxen were pulling a wagon to Palma de Mallorca loaded with an icon of Christ, stopped here and refused to move any further. So the holy image stayed in Manacor, and Porto de Manacor (which is a part of the township of Manacor and often still called by its original name) was re-baptized Porto Cristo in memory of the event.

Porto Cristo used to be a typical Spanish fishing village, perfect when you want to get away from it all. In 1887 first fisherman built his home here, and in the following years many others followed his steps. But it was not until the early 1970’s when the tourist boom made of this small village a resort town. Today it is a quiet resort, very popular with British and German visitors during high season (May – September). Porto Cristo is especially famous for its caves, the most popular of which are the "Coves dels Hams" and the "Coves del Drac". In Porto Cristo, Oficia di Informacio Turistica is at calle Bordis 53-b (Mon – Fri, 8 – 15);