Menorca boat hire

Enjoy the beautiful vessels that we offer as Menorca boat hire throughout all year.

Catamaran Charter Ibiza
The best nautical vacations start on board of one of our Catamarans in Menorca.

Menorca Island is as large as Ibiza Island. It is located just a few hours sailing East from the island of Mallorca, where we also offer boats for rent in Palma.

Rental fees and types of vessels for hire in Menorca

If you are interested in renting a yacht in Menorca you can fill in this contact form. We will make sure to get back to you with all the information that you need within 24 hours.

Harbours on the island of Menorca

Menorca Island has offers two amazing natural harbours:

  • Mahón: This impressive natural port is more than 2000 years old. It bears inside various yacht clubs that offer all kind of services. Historically this is one of the most sheltered harbours in the Mediterranean. Some of our Lagoon catamarans and part of the Fountaine-Pajot fleet are anchored in this port.
  • Cuidadela: This is a beautiful natural harbour, but quite small. It is very hard to access the port with our catamarans. Even with the smallest catamarans we need to be extra careful not to touch the rocks. Especially with rough weather it’s really hard to enter this port. We cannot really count on it as a safe place, so we prefer Mahon harbour for our catamaran activities in Menorca.
Boat hire Menorca
Enjoy a wonderful vacation and spend a fill week with us on a boat in Menorca.

Tramontana: Northern winds that will give you a headache

If you are planning to rent a boat in Menorca, we advise you to pay close attention to the troublesome winds called Tramontana. Even during the summer, these northern winds can reach speeds between 30 and 35 knots, severely hindering the safety of any sailing vessel. Especially in the north of the island, these winds can produce waves up to 3 meters turning sailing into hell. In these weather conditions, the best thing to do is going back to port and wait till these winds have passed. Depending on your position it can also be an option to seek a sheltered bay where to anchor, in the south of the island, like Cala Galdana. This bay is very well protected from the Tramontana northern winds.

Geography of Menorca

The island of Menorca is the most northern and east ward located island of the Balearics. With a surface of 701,.84 square meters. It makes up 14% of the Balearics total surface. It has a little less than 100,000 permanent residents (Source from 2010). The island has a hilly landscape, but erosion and the pass of time have flatter landscape reducing it to soft curves. In the north we find areas dating from the Triassic area and Miocene limestones in the south. The highest point of the island is El Toro (The bull) located 358 meters above sea level. The coast is a bit steeper with exception of the area that surrounds the natural port of Mahón, one of the best harbours of the Mediterranean Sea, so ideal to rent a yacht in Menorca.

Since Menorca Island is quite low, it is hard to see it from some distance at sea, even on very clear days. The fact that the island is so flat, not only makes is difficult to find shelter from the winds, but it also gives rise to a very particular kind of flora. The wind sculpts the trees in amazing forms. It is something very curious to see.

Rent a sailing boat in Menorca
This is the kind of happiness that you will experience when renting a catamaran in Menorca!

Climate and vegetation of Menorca

Menorca has a Mediterranean climate with an average temperature of 16.7 °C and 572. 6 mm precipitation per year. As mentioned before this island is very exposed to the wind making it hard to grow trees. The island has a flora that is adapted to the wind and thrives in a dune like landscape. Forests are rare, but there are some pine trees and oaks in the more protected areas of the island. There are also some thicket of olive trees and resin trees but it’s complicated to cultivate them in this weather. On the other hand heather and rock roses thrive on the island. They always indicate the north, reminding us of the Tramontana, which changes the weather in an instant. Even during the summer they bother all the ships that are sailing. Even our larger catamarans for hire in Menorca are affected by these winds.

The economy of Menorca

Traditionally the economy of the island was based on agriculture but during these last decades tourism has become a very important source of income. Cultivating crops in this windy and arid climate is not easy. Farmers mainly planted dry crops that could survive and a few types of grain and forage for livestock. Cows were held as cattle they provided milk, meat and cheese. The famous Mahón cheese is made in Menorca. Apart from agriculture, dairy and tourism, the island also produces shoes, jewellery and gin. All these different industries contribute to the economy of the island.

Tourism in Menorca

Despite of the economic crisis, tourism on the island has increased. Especially nautical tourism became really popular over these last decades. These tourists want combine their travelling with sailing. On some of the Balearic Islands sailing has turned some forgotten ports into booming business and yes it did increase in Menorca but very little when you compare it to the other islands. This has some advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand you could say that Menorca is less explored and exploited, so perhaps more authentic. On the other hand, it would benefit the residents of the island if tourism increased attributing more to the local economy.

History of Menorca

A lot has occurred on Menorca before it became known as a holiday destination for international tourism. Just recently tourists began to discover how great it is to get to know the island by renting one of the catamarans and charter boats that we offer in Menorca.

Prehistory

In the Bronze Age the island looked nothing like how it looks today. There were no boat rental companies and no services provided to tourists 😉 The first villages were inhabited by people from Spain’s main land and from Sardinia. The island developed a similar culture of that of the neighbouring island of Mallorca. The people that traded with the islands and were from other places around the Mediterranean Sea, came influenced the people of the island and their culture. However Menorca is also unique two of the most characteristic monuments are talayots and the naveta these buildings from the Bronze Age can only be found in Menorca. The best preserved naveta is called Deis Tudons and can be found in Cuidadela.

Girls on boats Menorca
The best thing in life is to share wonderful moments with friends.

Middle Ages

From the Middle Ages the history of Menorca gets strongly influenced by Mallorca till the occupation of Mallorca (1228). In 1232 Menorca was subordinated to Mallorca by the rule of James I. From this time till the final conquest of Catalonia the island was governed by almojarife named Arrayz. In 1928 Alonso the Liberal incorporated Menorca to the Asturian crown and repopulated the island with Catalan migrants. From 1298 to 1343 it followed the same rules Mallorca and was finally incorporated in the Catalan Aragon kingdom.

From the beginning of the 15th there were many outbreaks of violence in Menorca. These acts of violence occurred between people how lived in the city and commuters. During the war of Catalonia gainst James II (1463-1472) the island became an ally to the government of Catalonia (la generalitat).

The last 5 centuries

After the occupation of Tunes in 1535 by Charles V two of the most important towns of Menorca Mahón (1535) and Cuidadela (1558) where plundered by barbarian privateers. Cuidadella is the religious capital of the island, residence of the aristocracy, city of Mahón and the administrative capital. Their leaders were Jayr ni al-Din also known as pirate Barbaroso and the feared commander Mustafá Piali after him. The 17th century was one of misfortune for the inhabitants of Menorca due to various plagues and internal fights between neighbourhoods.

Menorca governed by the British

At the start of the war of succession Menorca chose to support Charles (Archduke) despite of the strong opposition in favour of Philip V. The supporters of the opposition were lead by general Dávila. The opposition was finally defeated by the British general Leake in 1708 and they occupied the island. By singing the treaty of Utrecht in 1713, Felipe V gave Menorca to Great Britain, leading to the first domination of the English over the island. This British rule turned out to be beneficial for the economy of the island. During this time the institutional bodies kept functioning and Catalan remained the official language of the island. In 1756 the island was occupied by the French, under the command of the Duke Richelieu but the treaty of Paris in 1763 put end to the French rule and gave the island to the British. This second British rule lasted from 1761 to 1781. This second British rule was short lived. In 1782 the island was taken over by French -Spanish troops under the military guidance of Crillon. Sixteen years later (1798) the English occupied the island for the third time. In 1802 it was filially given back to Spain thanks to the treaty of Amiens.

Contemporary history

In 1803 Menorca supported Ferdinand VII and many Catalans fled to the island to seek refuge. However from 1815 another stream of migration to Algiers started. The fortress Fuerte de la Mola was constructed in 1852 and is also called Fortress of Isabel II. It became a military post soon after its construction and had this function till the end of the sixties, 1868 to be precise.

The shoe fabrication, naval industry and cabotag helped to better the financial situation of the island. That island was quite poor and the economy in a bad shape. At the end of the 19th century the economy regained strength and became increasingly industrialized. In June 1936 the island was attracted by Franco’s troops but they failed and the island was not conquered till February 1939.

Read the story of Charteralia, Ibiza and Menorca boat hire.