Press Release

Graham Beech

The Real Mallorca - undiscovered charms attract British walkers!

If your view of Mallorca is sandy beaches and cheap plonk, prepare to be amazed! Away from the high-rise hotels and burger bars, there's a totally different island: an unspoilt land of mountains and meadows where, at the end of a day in the countryside, you can sip freshly-squeezed orange juice, chat with the locals, and enjoy a meal in a restaurant for a fraction of what you'd pay back home.

This newly-discovered side of Mallorca is attracting walkers in increasing numbers and, perfectly timed for the walking season, there's a brand-new book called, "Holiday Walks in Mallorca". It's written by Graham Beech, a keen walker and frequent visitor to the island, and it's published on 1st October by Sigma Leisure at £9.95.

Remarkably, there are very few guides to walks on this popular holiday island, and none at all that are so thoroughly researched and up-to-date. This new guidebook provides an excellent range of walks, backed up by fascinating information about the things to see along the way, so that even the shortest walk delves into the heritage and history of Mallorca.

The observant walker can discover Stone-Age monuments, Roman bridges, Arabic architecture and palaces and mansions built on the proceeds of piracy and the crusades - all in just one walk. If that's not enough, the book even includes a comprehensive list of web sites about Mallorca for those who want to get the latest facts before they board the plane!
Author Graham Beech, who runs Sigma Leisure, is a frequent visitor and walker. "Most people still think of Mallorca as a place to go for a beach holiday. But there's much more to it than that, and it's a fabulous place for a walking holiday" enthuses Graham. "Some books are quite out of date, so I decided to write my own. I also found that several areas had been neglected by other walking guides, so I reckon that mine has the best coverage for those who want a wide range of walks. After all, not everybody wants to climb mountains every day - there's so much else to see on Mallorca."

The book includes almost 30 walks. Unusually for a walking guidebook, a few "town trails" are included, though most of the walks are in the Mallorcan countryside. Several of the longer include shorter variations for those who favour a more relaxed approach to holidays. There are detailed directions, attractive two-colour sketch-maps and photographs of interesting and unusual sights to be seen on the walks. There's even a picture of a submarine on top of a mountain - and it's not a trick photograph!

The great thing about this book is that it's so up-to-date. While researching his book, Graham found that a few of the traditional paths have been lost due to housing development, so he has been in regular contact with the local authorities on the island, to check on the accuracy of their maps and to ensure that his descriptions are accurate.

Thanks to keen walkers such as Graham, the Island Council is finally starting to develop walking as an environmentally-friendly activity. He has already been approached by an environmental group to help in planning eco-friendly rambles.

"Holiday Walks in Mallorca" is the first in a series of overseas guides from Sigma Leisure. Other destinations include Brittany, Normandy, Ireland, Tuscany and the Dordogne.