June marks the start of the holiday season. Whatever has gone before it has been practice for the June to September quarter of the working life of Mallorca. Easter is always a shock as everyone arrives en masse for the two weeks. The school holidays for the rest of the year spread the load, but Easter is the same for everyone, which is why we are so busy. Easter was ‘shocking’ in Soller because we were one of the popular hot spots with statistics to match. Soller is increasingly a ‘day trip’ destination for holidaymakers and locals of other parts of the island. This is especially true when the weather is not 100% beach. A bit of rain or cloud brings the trippers into Palma to shop and to Soller for more of the same on a different scale. We all must get used to the high volume of visitors or travel ourselves elsewhere. Many part time residents arrange their trips avoiding the most crowded months.
June begins the Fiesta months which control the calendar of the Soller young. Party weekends from now until September as the Saints are venerated in their villages and towns. Most villages spend at least three days celebrating with ambitious programmes including live music. The gentlest one of St Joan celebrates the solstice and that is altogether a peaceful affair involving candles and water. On June 23 there will be local dancing in the square near the Repic Beach but otherwise it is local gatherings of friends and family on the beach. Later in the month from June 28 St Peter is celebrated by the Port of Soller. A three-day event known for its live music evenings and Port-based celebrations.
To be a teenager in the summer in the Soller Valley can be full of parties as the young throw themselves into local good times and head off to neighbouring towns and villages for theirs. The parents spend their winters taking them to sports venues all over the island and summers picking them up from party towns. Very few complaints are heard as many of the parents had exactly this childhood themselves. They understand ‘what goes around comes around’.
The theatre of life is played out every day in Soller. The seven entrances to the Placa is the revolving stage of our lives. The Lluna with its shops and hundreds of daily visitors represent commerce and tourist shops. The exit where the Soller Bank sits proudly, is the entrance to the lives of so many Sollerics who live here. It is also a route for pilgrims visiting the cemetery in all its magnificence. Then comes the three parallel streets which take you to the Red Cross on one, Bar Turismo and the tram track on another and then the main road which can be driven down All three have the direction of the station in their sights. Then the road heading for the old town streets and the finest house of the Gran Via. Finally, the road following the Tram out of town which takes you to the covered market. The seven routes of Soller all need exploring by the traveller. I am not talking about TikTok photo opportunities, this info is for those who have the time and inclination to understand the streets and the soul.
An attempt is being made to improve parking in Soller. A couple of new car parks have emerged and some differences in in the colours of the parking spaces. Residents parking spaces outlined in green mean what it says. Don’t Park if you are not a resident. Blue spaces mean it is a paid parking space and you need to find a meter and pay. Follow the instructions and you can use cash or a card. The rare white outline of spaces means its free and anyone can park.
These spaces will never be enough in the summer, the attempt to park will continue to be fraught. Always best to come into Soller by bus or train if you can. By far the best if you are on a day trip…