Decanter's Dream Destination: Cap Rocat, Mallorca, Spain

Why Cap Rocat is a Decanter dream destination...

Cinematic perspectives and palatial service

Lanterns line the entrance to Cap Rocat, pulling you down labyrinthine paths and passageways with cinematic perspective. That's before you even glimpse the cliffside beach club with loungers catered by waiters who deliver glasses of wine between dips in the sea.

Several of the 30 suites and rooms are former surveillance points carved into the rock face, which gives them an incredible atmosphere. Each one boasts three levels of terraces: the bottom offers privacy and the top – where you’ll likely spend most of your time – is a gazebo overlooking the infinite sea where you can watch the sunrise.

Service is as palatial as you'd expect, from morning when breakfast is delivered in a beautiful basket, to evening when a fresh verbena and honey infusion is left steeping by your bed.

Enthralling tasting experiences

Mallorca's wine scene has evolved dramatically in recent years, with small family wineries producing exceptional expressions, especially from native grapes like Manto Negro and Premsal Blanc, locally known as Moll.

While the hotel's coastal location near Cala Blava isn't in the island's winemaking heartland (which consists of the DOs of Binissalem and Pla i Llevant), it's not far either. Lucky for you, the concierge has backstage passes straight to the vineyards, and not for just any wine tasting.

Get carted off in a Range Rover to a countryside winery where paella cooked over wood fire awaits after tastings with the winemaker at Bodega Oliver Moragues, a 500-year-old wine estate.

Or if you fancy air travel, head to Bodega Ribas – one of the island's oldest and most prestigious wineries – for a tasting of wines paired with local products, before being whisked away by helicopter to soar over the dramatic Tramuntana mountains back to Cap Rocat's helipad.

Exquisite cuisine

La Fortaleza is the hotel's principal restaurant, and the bread service alone (black olive, herbed, and citrus flavoured breads cut tableside) sets the tone for an incredible attention to detail.

The tasting menu starts with variat mallorquí, a take on Mallorcan tapas including fried octopus and anchovy with garlic. The sobrasada, made from heritage Porc Negre pigs, arrives drizzled with honey from the hotel's own bees, and you realise this is the rare hotel restaurant that takes local sourcing seriously.

The wine pairing is no different, highlighting bottles from Mallorca, perfect for getting context on the island's evolving wine scene. Don’t miss the chance to order a bottle from star winemaker Miquel Gelabert, who cultivates 35 different varieties, many native.

Cap Rocat offers a full menu of experiences befitting a bucket-list hotel, so whether your idea of fun is watching the sunset from a vintage luxury car or visiting a blown-glass factory from the 18th century, there's plenty to do.

Spa and gym

Not all is indulgence; a vibey gym is set in its own cave, and the tennis court has an instructor add-on. The spa is luminous and magical, with a saltwater pool sunk 12 metres into the ground.

Cap Rocat is adults-only and closes mid-November to mid-March. For further details, see the hotel's website.

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