Sa Blava

About Sa Blava

Sa Blava is a two-star hotel in the Binibeca Vell area on Menorca's south-east coast, and it suits people who want a simple base with their own kitchen rather than a full-service resort. The listed facilities include a kitchen, an oven, a microwave, a dishwasher and a washing machine, so a week here runs much like a self-catering stay. Couples who cook most evenings and families who need room to spread out both fit.

Two stars set the tone: this is a practical, unfussy place, and the appeal lies in the space and the setting rather than in a lobby or a restaurant. The list also covers an outdoor pool, a tennis court, a garden, a terrace, air conditioning and fans, and free wifi. Family rooms appear among the facilities. Confirm the details that matter for your dates with the hotel before you book.

Location: Binibeca Vell

Binibeca Vell is a whitewashed fishing-village-style hamlet of lanes and steps by the sea, and it sits 2.3 km from Sa Blava. Sant Lluís, a white village of windmills, is 4.8 km away and is the closest settlement of any size. The address is Carrer Ponent de Cap den Font, in a low-rise coastal corner of the island. Expect to explore the hamlet on foot, since its lanes and steps are made for walking rather than driving.

Walking covers the immediate lanes, but the coves and villages along this coast are easier with a car. Menorca Airport is 3.8 km away in a straight line, Maó port 8.2 km, and Cala en Porter 8 km. In high summer the lanes around Binibeca Vell fill with day visitors and parking near the hamlet takes patience, so mornings are calmer. May, June and September bring gentler traffic and sea temperatures of about 18-19 °C in May and 23-25 °C in September.

Rooms and facilities

The listed facilities read well for couples who like to cook: kitchen, oven, microwave, refrigerator, toaster, dishwasher and coffee equipment, plus a washing machine, an iron and board, and a safe. Families get family rooms, a cot and high chairs, and children have the pool and tennis court within the grounds. Late arrivals should agree arrival arrangements with Sa Blava before travelling, since a two-star property of this size works differently from a large resort.

Ask which of the listed appliances come with the unit you book, whether air conditioning and the fan are in every room, and how the cleaning service works during a stay. Confirm the cot and high chairs if you need them, and ask about the tennis court and parking, which is listed as free. Rooms are non-smoking, and wifi and internet access are listed as free, so check the signal in the part of the building you are given.

Getting there

Menorca Airport (MAH) is 3.8 km from Sa Blava in a straight line, the closest arrival point on the island, and the last stretch is a short taxi ride or an easy run in a hire car collected there. Buses connect the airport with Maó and, in summer, with the resorts; timetables move with the season, so check with the island bus operator before you plan the final leg.

Maó port is 8.2 km away, with ferries to Barcelona and Palma, while Ciutadella in the west handles crossings to Alcúdia on Mallorca; check the operators for current sailings. From Sant Lluís at 4.8 km or Binibeca Vell at 2.3 km the drive to Sa Blava is brief. Flights and ferries thin out outside the season, so a winter arrival needs more planning than a June one.

Beaches, sights and food nearby

The nearest cove is Cala en Porter, 8 km away, a deep inlet between high cliffs on the Migjorn coast. This southern shore is limestone country, with white sand under pine, and the water stays clear thanks to the posidonia meadows offshore. Binibeca Vell, 2.3 km from Sa Blava, is the closest place for an evening stroll through whitewashed lanes, and Sant Lluís is 4.8 km.

Food on Menorca is built around the sea and the dairy: Mahón-Menorca cheese carries a protected designation of origin, and the fishing village of Fornells on the north coast is known for caldereta de llagosta, a lobster stew. British rule in the 18th century left Maó a gin tradition that outlasted the garrison. Buy cheese and gin in the villages and cook at Sa Blava, where the kitchen and dishwasher make an evening in easy.

A day from Sa Blava

Begin with a swim in the outdoor pool at Sa Blava and a set on the tennis court before the day warms up, then drive the 2.3 km to Binibeca Vell for a walk through the lanes and steps. Allow an hour or two for the hamlet, since the lanes repay a slow pace. Sant Lluís at 4.8 km follows, with white streets and windmills, and the kitchen back at the hotel makes lunch straightforward.

In the afternoon, head for Maó port at 8.2 km and take a boat trip round the harbour, one of the largest natural harbours in the Mediterranean. La Mola fortress, the 19th-century Isabel II fort at the harbour mouth, is 10.2 km from Sa Blava, and a talayotic village is 11.9 km away. Return for dinner on the terrace and a quiet evening.

Practical tips

Outside the season, roughly from November to April, many hotels, beach bars, boat trips and seasonal buses on Menorca shut down, so ask Sa Blava which months it opens before booking; late July and August are the fullest weeks, while May, June, September and October are calmer. Accommodation in the Balearics carries the sustainable tourism tax, the ecotasa, charged per person per night by the property. The rate depends on type and season, drops in low season and on longer stays, and under-16s are exempt; check current rules with the Govern de les Illes Balears.

Questions about Sa Blava