PP beach review

[PollensaVirgin]

Some time ago a member requested that new members post their reviews of PP. So here goes:

We were very disappointed with PP beach - we tried the beach on 3 different days in 3 different locations and each time found the sand littered with cigarette butts. the sand would have been ok without this litter. Unfortunately the sea was not nice - my children like to snorkel but the sea was full of litter and at one point when my 4 year old was sat at the waters edge, excrement was washing up next to him. Needless to say we didn't go back after this incident. We decided to head for Cala San Vicente which was in a different league. Blue flag beach which was very clean. The sea was crystal clear and full of fish, crabs, shrimps and my children even ended up snorkelling with an Octopus. Formentor was very picturesque but had nowhere near as many fish as at CSV. Would definately advise visitors to head for CSV - It is fantastic!!

 

[bee66]

Please don't tell everyone about wonderful CSV lets keep it to ourselves!!!!8)

 

[Frank]

PollensaVirgin I am appalled by you observations re the beaches. Did you visit the Pine Walk area? I am also surprised that nobody else has commented on this situation. I will be there on Aug 20th and will report back on the situation

 

[its cd]

Pollensavirgin,

Hopefully this was a case of wrong time, wrong place .. perhaps there had been an isolated incident. We have been going to PP for many years and have sometimes experienced " a bit of a whiff" on the beach in centre of town ( near sand sculptures ) but have always found the area towards the north end of the Pine Walk and the Sandy Beach area at Pinaret ..... just opposite the childrens park to be lovelly.

Only disappointment at the Sandy beach this year was the overzealous lifeguards who kept trying to stop the kids ( old kids , teans and nearly teans ) from smimming to the rocks to indulge in their much loved crabbing activities. When I asked him why, he told me it was dangerous ........ I can't really understand why .......... anyone here know of any particular dangers

Anyway, I digress

Back to the dirty sea experience. When we were there early July, apart from right near the shore where the sand had been kicked up, the sea was really clear and the fish were abundant ......... in fact we commented that the snorkling off PP was the best we had experienced in many years ( we put it down to the hot sea temp )

The kids in our party were older than your 4 year old and did most of their snorkling by jumping in from the end of the Illa D'Or Jetty or getting in from the jetty near the military ....... a good tip when yours are a little older.

Agree with you about csv though ...... fantastic clear sea providing you remember the sea shoes or just bear the pain of the pebbles as you get in

I just wish they could do something about that awful all inclusive hotel

Also went to Formentor and agree with you , had to search to find fish this year ........... great variety once we found some but snorkled for about 15 mins before we spotted much at all ............ that has been unheard of in previous years

Do give PP beach another go PV .......... I am sure ( or do I just hope ??? ) you had an isolated experience

 

[debz1]

'Our' beach..well we think it is as it's near our apartment.. is the south sandy one at Pinaret as cd described. It is normally very clean and the tractors are out most mornings.Also they have men patrolling the beach raking up rubbish and collecting it in bin liners.

In August the sea can become a bit too warm and is never appears as clear as CSV or Formentor because of all the activity with boats , jet ski's etc churning up the sand .There are still loads of fish in PP though but at CSV you will see more as they congregate near the rocks.

It's worrying that you experience was disappointing and hopefully this was just an isolated incident.

 

[Debilicious]

ive got to agree with P.Virgin,

we were both very disappointed with P.P beach both south and pine walk area, didnt bother with pine walk end, although clear, was a smelly residue washed up some times, but what i didnt like was how small the sand area was, with everyone walking past, was very little privacy, like said before, best for kids.

so headed for the south sandy beach, which was better, but not as i had remembered of majorca beaches from the past, sand wasnt spotless, althought wasnt filthy, was litter around, but the straw that broke the camels back, or toe, in this case, was the huge house brick, on the floor of sea, as we were playing ball, resulting, in a gash on my toe, went back in with snorkel mask, and not only was there a brick, but crisp packets etc, which wasnt nice, so we gave up, and headed for good ole beach Muro !! were we thought was 10 times nicer, and cleaner, ( if you dont count the raw sewer smell occasionally passing, but wasnt as bad as alcudia beach) but hey...each to there own....!! all in all P.P beach ....disappointing !!!

 

[KILLIAN MCCORMACK]

This makes very interesting reading. I consider the Pine Walk beach to be the best for all the family. Our 2 girls, 4 and 8, absolutely adore it. Loads and loads of fish swimming around and easy enough to catch too. Lots of little shell fish & hermit crabs for the kids to catch in buckets. I somehow end up as chief hermit crab hunter being followed by not only mine but everyone elses kids too:lol
The water is so shallow its ideal for younger kids and the parents that arent swimmers.
We saw very little litter in May...maybe the odd cigarette end but thats it. Thats not going to put me off!
I also gashed my foot on some type of rock , but didnt go back to see if it was a house brick or natural stone. I kinda think that getting a gash like that can happen anywhere and its not neccessarily an indication of a bad beach. Not in Ireland anyway:rollin
Been to CSV too but not as good as PW for us. Much stonier, deeper waters and lots of swells and rocks so not as ideal for the little ones.
I think that we spent at least 2 hours every day of our holiday on the PW beach and thoroughly enjoyed every minute (except for the foot).
Its not as busy in May (thats when we've usually been) so there are no privacy worries, its more like a private beach:smokin Can imagine it being different in July or August.
The only negitive would be that the kids (or me) can't dig too deep as the sand gets dirty. On a plus the kids cant bury me up to my neck in the sand either
IMO PW beach is the tops!
Killian

 

[Debilicious]

we were there last 2 weeks in may, and pine walk was heaving, especially last week, as was half term for the kids...very little privacy the time we were there.

The one spot i did find was nice, was the very far end, just past the illador, and dont get me wrong, the pine end part of the beach is picturesque, it looked lovely, but for our needs, didnt compare to others, i think maybe as it was a natural beach, little sunbathing area, and on top of the walk way.... I just didnt like... .!!! if i had children i would definetly take a different view, as I think its ideal for the kids, chatted to a few, who were armed with nets etc, and looked in there element..bless !! and its great for the parents, as they can relax a bit. just not for us !!
cala was fab, our fave by far... but was freezing, again was obviously time of year,

deb

 

[bee66]

Re pollution of pp beaches. Could the amounts of boats there add to the pollution. Are they suppose to discharge their waste out at sea. Could it be that some don't follow this rule.?
Another lovely beach is at cala mondrago. The sea is really clear and very little litter on the beach.

 

[Debilicious]

You took the words out of my mouth Bee, as Killian has said, that the best part, was by IMO, i was gobsmacked , as we found this part to be the worst, wasnt one bit clear, and was positively murky, and i assumed it was to do with being so close to the boats, but it didnt detere people , as they were still in the water, i even went as far to say, i would bear in mind, a port, for another vacation, as i thought this had something to do with it. shame, i wonder if they arnt following the correct procedure ??

D

 

[bonez1977]

Hi guys,
I have to agree with Killian on this one... PP is definatley the best beach... we also go in May (where were you killian!?) and the litter level is very low.. i must say the rocks seemed to be a little more uncovered if you get my drift! but that beach is amazing and given the choice of any, i would choose PP/PW beach.... Also, i found that the drops in levels at CSV beach makes it reasonably scarey for the less confident swimmers among us, especially when the sea is a little rougher than usual.
:rollin Hey on the upside though... if we all liked the same beach it'd be well crowdy wouldn't it !!!
Love Bonez x

 

[PollensaVirgin]

In reply to your comments we tried three different parts of PP beach firstly near to Pollensa Park hotel, then further down near the jetty next to the nature beach then further up towards the pine walk. It was worst down towards the jetty - which was ehre we encountered the excretement!! The sand COULD be lovely - if only visitors didn't discard their cig butts on the sand!! Come on all you smokers - its the 21st century shouldn't you all be giving up any way!!

It is possible that the boats could be discarding their rubbish and sewage too close and the tide did seem to pull towards the Lenaire end of the beach.

We did end up taking bags of rubbish from around where we were sat each day - from the water as well - My 10 year old spent one afternoon collecting crisp packets and polystyrene cups from the water.

We will go back to PP beach another year - just to give it a go - but can't praise CSV enough!!

 

[Timberman]

I've just returned from 2 weeks in PP and spent many hours on the beach and as CD said the snorkelling this year was the best I can remember. We allways sit on the beds opposite the spar shop near Llenaire.

The only time we encountered less than perfectly clear water was when a breeze was blowing and the small waves churn up the sand. This we encountered on our last day, when in the morning it was crystal clear and then later on the wind got up a bit and it became a little murky. The amount of fish up to 2 or 3 pounds in weight was to say the least amazing, I took some biscuits in to the sea and crumbled them around me and within seconds there were dozens of fish feeding.

As far as the sand was concerned there was a lot of cigarette ends in the sand, which is a shame as it looks so unclean, now I have to admit to having a cigarette myself, but some years ago while on holiday in Javea on the mainland, we went to a restaurant on our first lunchtime and when I asked for an ashtray he also brought me a plastic cone shaped object with a lid and asked me to use this when we used the beach and I make sure I take it with me whenever I am on holiday.

Part of the problem with litter on the beach seeems to stem from the lack of rubbish bins and the fact they get full very quickly consequently they overflow.
I did see two people raking some weed from the beach but that was about all, I suppose using a machine to clean the beach is difficult because all the Hamcas are left in position. Again in Javea they used to stack them at the end of the day and then send the tractors out to rake and clean the beach.

But to conclude was PP a dirty beach, no I don't think so. It's still a wonderfull beach with fantastic snorkelling and even though we were there the middle of August there was plenty of room with no over crowding at all.

Timberman

 

[Jimbo the Jambo]

Timberman,

I totally agree with what you have said. We too, use the same area of beach and the cigarette butts are a nuisence.

For years I cycled, camped and youth hostel'd all over the U.K., our rules were simple, always leave an area as you find it-take your rubbish home with you.

I also fish (both river fly-fishing and sea) and have never seen a fish pollute the water or beach.


Regards

Jimbo

 

[bee66]

going off beaches in majorca the beach at santa eulalia ibiza is great there are no staticumbrellas, you bring your own and every morning a tractor " sweeps " the beach and it is immaculate. we are also responsible visitors ( I think ) wherever we travel and ALWAYS take our rubbish home or find a bin. It isn't too much to ask is it?

 

[sandy]

'Take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints...' I'm sure there's more but I can't remember it!

I suppose at height of season it's difficult to keep up with the hundreds of people who use the beach. I always go the Pine Walk end, just cos its nearer for me, and I love it, love it, love it. I've never noticed any problems, but that's probably cos I'm always hiding behind my rose tinted glasses!

 

[Joanne]

We too use the Pine Walk beach, past the Bar Katy bit where the next lot of sun umbrellas are. We spend endless hours watching a rather well to do Spanish family who have a lovely house (in fact our apartment was located right next door so had a birds eye view into the house), they seem to have all the toys. We found the beach to be nice and clean we everybody making sure they tidied up around themselves at the end of the day, there was the odd cigarette butt, I would imagine these get missed by the men who come along in the mornings as they are probably being buried in the sand when people are putting them out. The beach use to be in quite a state firt thing in the morning from the spanish teenagers (I think may be older) who congregate on their late at night with their booze. On our last morning (Friday just gone) every single sunbed had been slashed bar two, the man who seems to be in charge of the sunbeds came along about 9.30ish and within 30 mins a van came to collect the damaged beds and 10 mins later they were back with some replacement beds, it involved a few journeys to replace all the beds but by 11.30 am it was all done, not bad service at all. Thought the beach was a lot busier this year than last. Only 50 weeks till we are there again, unless of course we win the lottery in the meantime

 

[Tony]

PP Beach Review.

I would have to agree with most of Timbermans comments. We to have just returned from 2 weeks in PP and spent most days on the beach close to the Pollensa Park beach bar.
The sea was crystal clear, except for a couple of afternoon when the sea became a bit choppy. I have never spent so much time snorkeling.
Yes there is a bit of litter but this could we rectified with bigger or more bins, especially with the coconut man doing such brisk business.
We did have the unpleasant experience one afternoon of finding that someone had not cleaned up behind their dog, however this was removed the next morning.
It would appear that you only have to mention such findings to the life gaurds and they react quickly.

 

[Frank]

Re: PP Beach Review.

Having just returned after 2 weeks in PP had a great time - but -
a) Beach near the Dakota restuarant was like a large ashtray

b)the smell was totally unacceptable

c)it's the first time I have seen such a regular presence of the Guardia who were regularly searching some undesirables

d)more apartments being built- I fear for the infrastructure.

PP is changeing but not for the better.

 

[smiddy]

Beaches

Why can't smokers who treat the beaches as ash-trays not simply treat their stubs as normal litter and place in the bins as they leave >: >: >: