Majorca's Geography and Climate
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by: PeterBruchsburger | Total views: 78 | Word Count: 320
Deriving its name from the Latin insula major which means "larger Island", Majorca is the largest island in terms of land of the Balearic Island group. It is situated in the Mediterranean Sea east of Spain. Similar to the other Balearics the island is a hugely popular destination for tourists, taking visitors mainly from the countries of Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom.
On the island there are two large regions of mountainous terrain. One is Sierra de Tramuntana which is located to the north-west and includes the mountains of Puig Major and Puig Massanella, the highest peak and the highest accessible peak respectively. The other region is located in the south-east of the island, and is called Sierra de Llevant. It is the smaller of the two regions but its famously beautiful scenery means it takes the lion's share of visiting hikers.
The coastline of Majorca is a rocky one, but also has some large bays and caves. The north-west has two large bays, Badia de Pollenca and Badia d'Alcudia; and the south-east has the famous bay of Palma. Two of the caves that are above sea level attract many tourists because they have underground lakes in them.
The climate on Majorca is distinctively Mediterranean. Most of the island experiences hot summers, and mild, even cool, winters. The Sierra Tramuntana mountain region, however, gets much colder in winter, and experiences high precipitation. The annual rainfall across the whole island is characterised by its unpredictability, some regions being quite wet one year, followed by a year of almost drought like conditions.
The climate appeals to tourists because, though it is hot, the temperatures are not usually unbearable due to a fairly consistent shoreline wind. In fact, following the tourist boom of the 20th century many people relocated to the island from the rest of Europe. The island has a population of around 800,000 with over 50% of Majorcans living in the city of Palma.
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There are plenty of cheap holidays Majorca this year.
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