FROM my free-standing bath, I soak up views across a sweep of beach and a sparkling bay.
Outside, relaxed holidaymakers are sprawled across cushioned daybeds, dipping their feet lazily into a swimming pool sheltered by Aleppo pines.
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It’s hard to believe such tranquility exists here in Magaluf — the party hotspot on the south west coast of Mallorca where thousands of young Brits gather each year to create carnage.
Except, it’s not like that any more. At least not at the newly rebranded posh end.
Here, in Calvia Beach Resort, chemically-coloured booze has been replaced by freshly shaken cocktails decorated with wedges of juicy fruit and thumping club music swapped for the sounds of flowing water and the gentle hum of the sea in the distance.
This regeneration plan began in 2015, spearheaded by the Palma Nova-Magaluf Hotel Association and Melia Hotels, who spent €250million refurbishing several hotels built in the Sixties.
The aim has been to transform the place into a family friendly, glamorous holiday spot — and a good job they’ve done too.
We share four swimming pools, a luxurious spa, state-of-the-art gym and several swanky restaurants with the sister hotel, Melia South Beach.
The aim has been to transform the place into a family friendly, glamorous holiday spot — and a good job they’ve done too.
Kate Wickers
It’s taken inspiration from South Beach Miami, which shook off its notoriety as a downmarket resort to become a destination for sophisticated holidaymakers.
At 52 metres square, my Level Suite is among Mallorca’s largest. It has contemporary furnishings and is adorned with luxurious Rituals toiletries.
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It’s sleek and airy with floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook a sun-kissed seascape featuring the Isla de Sa Porrassa — aka Black Lizard Island — just 400m off shore.
Over at Cape Nao, the hotel’s beach club, a Cuban band is serenading guests as the sun sets and casually dressed waiters carry out hunks of seared tuna and tomahawk steaks.
If this were elsewhere on the island it would be triple the price, but being in Magaluf, such luxury is affordable.
I watch from my sunbed as poised guests practise yoga in the shade of tall trees and children splash about in the clear waters.
Sophisticated
It would be all too easy to lounge by the pool all day, but eventually my family and I tear ourselves away to explore the nearby calas (coves).
Bottle-green water is bound by pine-clad rocky cliffs at the Cala de Cap Falco — and leaping from ledges, we startle the unsuspecting shoals of bream as our feet hit the water.
A few miles north at the chic Port d’Andratx, there are self-drive boats that you can hire for the day, dropping your anchor at small caves, where cormorants dive and harmless jellyfish bob in lapis blue water.
An early evening stroll along curving promenades leads us to Nikki Beach Club, where bikini-clad visitors are tucking into tuna tartare and sipping champagne.
It still attracts a bit of a party crowd, just more sophisticated than the one you see swarming to Magaluf’s Punta Ballena strip.
And — unlike the pubs and bars of Punta Ballena — it’s pricey.
GO: MAGALUF
COVID: Mallorca is on the amber list, meaning fully vaccinated travellers will not have to quarantine on return to the UK. Anyone entering the country must provide proof of a negative PCR test, taken within 72 hours of arrival, or proof of being fully vaccinated, at least 14 days prior to arrival. Vaccination status can be proved via the NHS Covid Pass app or with a letter.
GETTING THERE: Return fares with EasyJet from Gatwick to Palma start at £38.98. easyjet.com.
STAYING THERE: Melia Calvia Beach resort has room-only doubles from £52 per night. See melia.com.
Hiring a poolside daybed here will set you back €360, although you do get €100 food credit and a bottle of Taittinger.
Outside the club, my sons swoon over lines of Ferraris and Lamborghinis that belong to the flashy partygoers.
To help shed its rowdy image, the place now has a zero-tolerance rule for drunkenness.
Kate Wickers
We wander five minutes along the road, to what was once the heart of Magaluf’s nightlife scene.
It’s busy, brash and beery but nowhere near as bawdy as I’d imagined.
To help shed its rowdy image, the place now has a zero-tolerance rule for drunkenness and anyone stepping out of line can be whacked with a sobering fine of up to €3,000.
Still, seeing Magaluf as we are today with decent food spots, glamorous beach clubs and luxurious hotels, it’s strange to think of it as the raucous party destination for which it is so well-known.
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