Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)
IT was once described as Spain’s ‘most chic’ hotel, and with guests having included the Dalai Lama, Charlie Chaplin and Winston Churchill, it is hard to argue.
Now, the amazing five star Hotel Formentor, in Mallorca, has reopened, and with rack rates to keep the riff raff very much at bay.
With rooms costing over €2,000 a night in October – considerably more than the Marbella Club, the Ritz in Madrid or Barcelona’s Mandarin Oriental – you’d expect a fair bit of luxury.
And you won’t be disappointed.
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During a recent unofficial Olive Press inspection tour, we found the grand dame of the Balearics eye-opening in the extreme.
Sitting on the wonderful Formentor peninsula, north of Pollensa, its location couldn’t be more impressive.
The drive alone is worth a decent chunk of the room rate, as you enjoy some of Spain’s best scenery.
With breathtaking views across the Bay of Pollensa, the hotel nestles in extensive pine woodland, dropping down to its incredible white sandy beach.
After an upgrade of reportedly around €25 million, the Four Seasons group has easily one of the most exclusive hotels in Europe.
It didn’t come cheap though, costing €165 million back in 2020 and this, due to its 486 hectares of land and practically no neighbours.
The first thing to note is the tight security that grills anyone looking to come in and there are plenty of guards patrolling the grounds.
Thankfully little-changed in terms of its overall structure, the main hotel, built in 1929, is a long, horizontal block of simple white lines.
There had been a concern that developers planned to totally change the design, after they were heavily fined for demolishing large parts of the hotel in 2022.
But architect Carlos Lamela, insisted it was vital due to the deterioration of the walls, which left the building ‘precarious’.
He promised that it would be put back as it was and ‘everything would be done perfectly’, and as President of the Four Seasons group in Europe, added: “Every now and then we get the chance to revive a legendary hotel and take it into the future.”
This is very evident from the modern lobby, with its circular theme in the ceiling and central sofas.
From here you drop down an organic staircase encircling a tree trunk to the glamorous bar area and hip restaurant with wooden banquettes encouraging privacy.
Everything is designed to maximise the views across sea and the distant peaks of the island’s Tramantana range.
While we didn’t get to see the rooms, walking out into the gardens is the biggest surprise and you have a choice of three distinct pool areas, one designed for adults only.
The main pool is truly breathtaking. Enormous in size, it’s perfect for lengths and for chilling out with a good book.
All around the lawns are impeccable and the planting is low key and understated and very much focuses on the island’s local foliage.
The huge covered bar area with pergola was a great way to end the day with a couple of cold canas, which came with nuts and olives and at just over €10 was a great way to see how the other half live.
And for your information former guests include John Wayne and Mijail Gorbachov, as well as King Felipe and Queen Letizia, who were recently pictured in the grounds with their daughters Leonor and Sofia.
