Things To Do in Cala Canutells

Brilliantly white villas and winding streets house a handful of exclusive boutiques in the village of Binibeca Vell. Locally made leather goods, like sandals and bags, can be found here – and they usually come with sky-high price tags. The toytown-like village is only a 15-minute bus ride from Cala Canutells.

Polka dot cardinal fish and neon damselfish are just some of the characters roaming the waters off Cala Canutells. The beach makes a great launch pad for snorkelling – its sands ease gently into the sea, before dropping into the deeper waters that big sea bass and octopus prefer. Thanks to windbreaker cliffs, the bay is dead calm, which means visibility’s near-endless.

The nightlife here is quiet and friendly, with much of the entertainment happening in the hotels and the clutch of bars in the village. For a livelier night out, you can always take a cab into Son Bou, which has a couple of discos. Cala’n Porter, meanwhile, is home to a much bigger choice of cocktail bars and tavernas, as well as the island’s most famous club – Cova d’en Xoroi, built right into the cliffs.

Menorca’s biggest waterpark stars classic rides like the stomach-plummeting Kamikaze. Smaller kids are also well-catered for, thanks to a wave pool and a gaggle of animal-shaped slides. A bubbling hot tub is on standby, too. Fast food and ice cream top the menu at the restaurant. Plus, there’s a bonus go-karting track and trampoline set. All this is an hour's drive from sleepy Cala Canutells.

Don’t expect to find poker tables and roulette – in Menorca a casino means a meeting-spot. Thursday is pinchos night at this tapas restaurant, when you’ll get affordable mini-plates of sardines, Serrano ham and squid in ink. There’s occasional jazz, too.

Shop-wise, you won’t find much beyond a supermarket for essentials in Cala Canutells. But Sant Climent, less than five kilometres away, is a good place to pick up some of the locally made jewellery, leather and pottery. And in Mahon, you’ll find a bigger spread that includes chic boutiques, patisseries and a twice-weekly market.

This is Menorca’s biggest festival, and Mahon’s roads close for street parties. There’s loud music, dancing and horse-riding displays. All the bars are open late and serve traditional Spanish wine and local tapas. Later on, people wander over to the fairground and the whole thing culminates in a massive firework display. You can get the full programme at the tourist office.

Son Bou, half an hour's drive away, is one of the island’s longest and most famous beaches. You’ve got three kilometres of sand to play with here, and a huge choice of watersports, too. There’s jet-skiing and windsurfing, as well as the usual pedalos and banana boats. You’ll also find a dive school.

The tiny village of Sant Climent – just a 10-minute taxi ride away from Cala Canutells – comes with a backing track of jazz. Easy-going bars lay on live music featuring double bassists, moody sax riffs and gravel-voiced singers. And it’s all accompanied by homemade tapas and locally made gin. Back in Cala Canutells, things stay peaceful. Evenings revolve around the hotels, where lounge bars host family-friendly shows.

This 19th-century fort in Mahon’s harbour was never attacked, so it’s in top-notch condition. It’s a massive site – to the point that there are golf buggies to get you around. And those huge, working guns? They’re the actual Guns of Navarone, from the 1961 movie. This is a protected sanctuary, so keep an eye out for the birds. The views up the coastline are something else, too.