Time difference Balearic Islands
There is no time difference between France and the Balearic Islands: Spain and France share the same meridian.
Opening hours Balearic Islands
To see / To do Balearic Islands
Museums and cultural institutes generally open from 10am in the Balearic Islands and close between 7pm and 9/22pm, depending on the season and the establishment. Some take a break from 2pm to 4/17pm.
Enjoying yourself Balearic Islands
In the Balearic Islands, as in the rest of Spain, mealtimes are spread throughout the day. In the evenings, restaurants fill up around 10pm, and customers will often have had a drink and tapas beforehand, and start their meal in the restaurant later. Dining out is common, as Spaniards like to eat out. You'll find plenty of small, inexpensive establishments frequented by locals. When they choose to dine at home, they sit down at the table around 9pm and enjoy a drink to finish the evening with friends. Generally speaking, the Balearic Islands follow Spanish mealtimes, with service generally provided from 1pm to 4pm and from 8pm to midnight. Some seasonal establishments, however, adapt to people from more northerly regions who are used to eating earlier. However, restaurants open from midday are not commonplace!
Take a break Balearic Islands
Bakeries, cafeterias and ice-cream parlors are generally open all day long, until around 8pm in season (6pm in winter), or even a little later for ice-cream parlors (a good ice-cream is always a good dessert idea in this heat!). However, there are no hard and fast rules here, and to avoid wasting your time, it's best to make a quick phone call. Bars generally open around 7-8pm and close around 2am, or even 4am in some cases.
(To) please yourself Balearic Islands
Palma, like any large city, offers a wide choice of boutiques and department stores. While the latter are generally open continuously from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., small shops in Palma, as in the rest of the archipelago, operate according to Spanish opening hours, from 9/10 a.m. to 2 p.m., then from 3/16 p.m. to 8/21 p.m. (even later in the old town of Eivissa). Many markets brighten up the public squares of the Balearic Islands throughout the summer, especially in Ibiza and Formentera, which host hippy markets.
Ibiza. In Eivissa, along the marina, small stalls set up every evening, selling jewelry, paintings and souvenirs. In Es Canar, the Hippie Market is held every Wednesday, while in Sant Carles, the Las Dalias market, undoubtedly the most exotic, opens on Saturdays. There's also a Saturday morning flea market in Sant Jordi, and a Sunday morning market in Sant Joan, with temporary stalls selling handicrafts, food products and local and organic cosmetics.
Formentera. The La Savina market takes place on the harbor during the high tourist season (July to early September), while the Sant Francesc Xavier market (May to October) is open daily from 10am to 2pm. Behind the church of Sant Francesc, a second-hand market is held every Tuesday and Saturday throughout the year. On the promenade of carrer Major, the Sant Ferran art market brings together artists from all over the world (May to October, daily except Wednesday and Sunday, 8.30pm to midnight). Sant Ferran also boasts a craft market three days a week (May to October, every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 8.30 pm to midnight). Es Pujols also has a hippie market, set up on the seafront promenade every summer evening (May to September, daily from 8pm to midnight), but it's undoubtedly at La Mola that you'll find the best quality finds: craftsmen and artists exhibit their work in the central square paved with multicolored mosaics (May to October, Wednesdays and Sundays, 4pm to 10pm).
Get out Balearic Islands
Whether you're looking for a drink on a terrace or a dance floor all night long, the Balearics have plenty of options. On Mallorca, cosmopolitan Palma is undoubtedly the place to be, with terraces filling up around 5 p.m., and even earlier in the summer months. In Menorca, you're more likely to head for Maó or Ciutadella to enjoy the festive atmosphere. Generally speaking, bars dedicated to nightlife open around 6pm and close between 1am and 3am in the Balearics, but you're sure to find several establishments open from early morning in all the archipelago's towns and villages. If Formentera has plenty of places to relax, starting with its chiringuitos (beach bars), Ibiza turns up the heat a few degrees: at any time of day or night during the summer season, you'll find a plethora of bars and discos open on the white island. Ibiza's clubs start to fill up around 1am.
