Our first stay at the 5-star Hotel El Coto in Colònia de Sant Jordi was in 2015, shortly after I read about it while editing a local guide to wines and wineries. Why was a hotel included in this guide? Because those in the know refer to El Coto as ‘the wine hotel’. With good reason.

No Ordinary Seaside Hotel

Hotel El Coto may be in a seaside resort with other holiday hotels and apartments nearby, but it’s a cut above many tourist hotels. The 50-room hotel has a superb cellar – both in terms of design and contents – with more than 200 Spanish (including a good choice of Mallorcan) wines on offer. Prices range from the affordable to the aspirational. Pingus, Vega Sicilia, or La Hermita, anyone?

Wine enthusiasts usually appreciate fine cuisine too and those who dine at Hotel El Coto’s poolside La Pergola restaurant are in for a treat. Several years ago, the Navarrete family – who own and run the hotel – brought in chef Gerhardt Schwaiger as their culinary consultant. Gourmets who’ve known Mallorca for years will probably remember that Schwaiger was at the former 2-Michelin-star Tristán restaurant in Puerto Portals.

Dinner at La Pergola

You don’t have to be staying overnight in Hotel El Coto to dine here – but you do need to book a table because this restaurant has become popular among locals. And if you want to do full justice to the wine possibilities here, booking a room for the night is a good idea.

A five-course dinner (with choices) costs 45 euros (including IVA). Individual dishes are priced so you can choose fewer courses if you wish. Drinks are not included.

A Birthday Treat

The Boss had his birthday at the weekend and I treated him to dinner and a night away at Hotel El Coto again. The hotel has the benefit of being around 100 metres from a beach and the fact that it faces one of the oldest salt flats adds to the interest of its location.

Our Saturday night dinner was accompanied by live music from a pianist, playing the hotel’s white baby grand beside the pool. At night, the sun loungers are moved out of sight and atmospheric lighting around the swimming pool creates a magical ambience.

For our 5-course dinner we chose: Waldorf salad; creamy soup of velvet swimming crabs with king crab (absolutely delicious); fresh red tuna with olive oil, sesame, and chive; hake with vegetable risotto and lemon butter, and fresh figs with cassis granita, vanilla ice cream and cheesecake cream. A memorable birthday dinner, for sure, but my camera photos didn’t do the food justice.

We Love …

… pretty much everything here. Hotel El Coto is spotlessly clean and well maintained. Each of the 50 stylish rooms and suites is individually decorated; types range from a single room to a two-bedroom suite with separate living area and views over the salt lakes. We stayed in the gorgeous Suite 211, overlooking the pool and gardens.

Most impressive of all is the high level of hospitality offered by owners Myriam and Pepe Navarrete, their son Cristian, and their hard-working team. Little wonder that Hotel El Coto in Colònia de Sant Jordi has a high number of repeat guests … including us.

PRICES CORRECT AT TIME OF WRITING

©Jan Edwards 2021