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.

Majorca has a climate that is common for places in the Mediterranean region. The summers are hot, and the winters are mild, even cool. The region of Sierra Tramuntana, however, has markedly more precipitation than other areas of the island, and it also experiences colder winters. The island in total has very unpredictable rain patterns each year, some regions being extremely wet one year, followed by a year of extreme dryness.

Tourists enjoy the climate particularly because though it is hot, it is made bearable by the consistent winds that blow inland. The increase in tourism in the 20th century saw many people from other parts of Europe come to live on the island. The population non the island is around 800,000, half of which is accounted for by the city of Palma.

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