If you’ve been thinking about visiting the Balearic Islands — and more and more of my clients from the US are, now that United Airlines flies direct from Newark to Palma — let me tell you where I’d send you, without hesitation.

But first, a little context. I lived in Menorca for several years, and today I live in Mallorca. I know these islands not as a visitor, but as someone who has been here through all seasons, beyond the tourist trail, through the quiet winters and the golden summers. When you ask me for a recommendation, it comes from that place.

And when it comes to where to stay — if you’re travelling as a group, a family, or several families together — one name keeps coming back to me: the Vestige Collection.

A collection unlike anything else

Vestige is a Spanish, family-owned hospitality group with a very specific approach: they find historic buildings — old estates, farmhouses, noble mansions — and restore them with extraordinary care, preserving their soul while making them genuinely comfortable and liveable. Some become intimate boutique hotels. Others are rented exclusively to a single group, entirely private. All of them share the same quality: you feel like you’ve been let in on something rare.

Currently they have two properties in Mallorca and four in Menorca. Here’s what I’d recommend, and why.

Mallorca: the city and the mountains

Vestige Miramar — in the heart of Palma

Imagine having one of Palma’s most beautiful historic mansions entirely to yourselves. That’s Miramar.

It sits steps from the Cathedral, with uninterrupted views over the marina and the bay. The building dates from the mid-18th century — it was once the private home of a councillor to King Carlos III — and has been meticulously restored, keeping the original wooden beams, vaulted ceilings and lime-plastered walls while adding just enough contemporary elegance to make it feel like a proper home. A very beautiful one.

You get up to nine en suite bedrooms, an indoor pool, a gym, a cinema room and garage parking. The whole place is yours. Walk out the front door and you’re in one of Europe’s most captivating old cities: the cathedral, the royal palace, the luxury shopping on Passeig del Born, galleries, restaurants, the seafront — all on foot.

If you want to experience Palma the way I experience it as a resident, this is the place.

Vestige Son Veri — above Valldemossa

This one I visited just days before the very first guests arrived. I’m still thinking about it.

Son Veri is perched on a hilltop above Valldemossa, set within ancient olive groves, surrounded by the Serra de Tramuntana — a UNESCO World Heritage landscape — and looking out over the Bay of Palma. On a clear day, you can see the cathedral from the terrace. A trail through the olive trees leads down to Valldemossa village in just twenty minutes on foot.

The estate is a restored 19th-century farmhouse within 100 hectares of private land, and it’s available exclusively as a whole — it cannot be split between separate bookings. This makes it ideal for a group of friends, a large family, or two or three families travelling together. There are six suites for up to twelve guests, plus a separate casita with its own kitchenette and private pool. Beyond that: a fully equipped kitchen, cinema room, wine bar, gym, a spectacular pool with mountain and sea views, and breakfast served every morning. Children are very welcome.

I was there as the last finishing touches were being made to the grounds. Even in that in-between state, it was breathtaking. I can only imagine it once the first guests settle in.

Menorca: where time moves differently

I always say that Menorca changes how you think about holidays. It’s smaller, wilder and quieter than Mallorca — a place where the landscape has remained largely unchanged for centuries, and where the pace of life makes you wonder why you were ever in such a hurry. Vestige understood this from the beginning.

Vestige Son Vell

Son Vell is where Vestige started in the Balearics, and it remains one of my favourite places. It’s a restored 18th-century manor house set within a 180-hectare estate in the west of the island, just a 20 min drive from the charming town Ciutadella de Menorca. Thirty-three suites spread across the main house and the estate’s old farm buildings, two outdoor pools, two restaurants — including Vermell, where dinner under the stars is genuinely something special — and a near-private rocky cove, Cala Son Vell, a short walk or bike ride away. The cuisine follows a farm-to-table philosophy, much of it grown on the estate itself.

If you want my honest recommendation for a first time in Menorca, this is where I’d start.

Vestige Son Ermità & Binidufà

These two sister hotels share an 800-hectare estate in the unspoiled north of Menorca, and they couldn’t be more different in feel — which is exactly why I love suggesting them together. Son Ermità sits on a hilltop with panoramic views over land and sea. Binidufà nestles in the valley below, more intimate, more earthy, surrounded by red Menorcan soil and swaying palms. Ten rooms in one, eleven in the other. Guests can move between them freely, sharing the vast estate, the facilities and the extraordinary quiet of that northern landscape.

Vestige Santa Ana — Southwest Menorca

If you’re travelling with a group of friends or families and are looking for something more private, Santa Ana is the answer.

The property was originally an agricultural farmhouse and is now restored into something quietly extraordinary. Set within 210 hectares of unspoiled Menorcan countryside in the southwest of the island, it offers six en suite bedrooms spread across the original farmhouse and its traditional outbuildings, all decorated with that signature Vestige balance of antique character and contemporary comfort.

What makes Santa Ana particularly special is its location. Cala Macarella — a horseshoe-shaped bay with white sand and turquoise water framed by ancient pines — is a 15-minute walk downhill from the front door. In summer it gets busy, but if you go early, it’s all yours. A concierge is available throughout your stay to arrange experiences, restaurant bookings and private dining, so everything is taken care of without any of the fuss.

It’s the kind of place where the days unfold completely naturally — pool, beach, long lunches, fire pit at night.

Two islands, one trip — and I’ll take care of everything

Here’s what I often suggest to clients who want the full picture: combine both islands. Arrive in Palma, spend a few days in Mallorca — perhaps starting in the city at Miramar, then heading into the Tramuntana at Son Veri — and then cross over to Menorca to experience the difference between the islands.

The inter-island logistics are straightforward, and I handle all of it: flights or ferry, transfers, timing, the experiences in between. Having lived on both islands, I also know the things that don’t appear in any guidebook — the restaurant worth the drive, the quiet beach before the crowds arrive, the moment of the day when the light on the Tramuntana is unlike anything else.

If this sounds like the kind of trip you’ve been looking for, I’d love to help you plan it.

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Hi! I’m Sofie, I’m a luxury travel agent specialising in the Balearic Islands. I’ve lived in Menorca for several years and currently I’m living in Mallorca. If you’re thinking of visiting the island(s), please do not hesitate to contact me via [email protected].