Lights over Palma: Castillo Son Vida launches the Christmas season with concerts, cinema and festive menus

Lights over Palma: Castillo Son Vida launches the Christmas season

Gospel, decoration workshops, open-air cinema and festive meals for guests and visitors

When in December the street lamps on Passeig Mallorca begin to glow earlier and the air carries a hint of sea and firewood, the Castillo Hotel Son Vida packs its holiday programme. On the hill where villas are quieter and the city's lights lie like a chandelier, the hotel of the entrepreneur family Schörghuber already struck its first notes at the end of November, echoing the capital's light switch-on in Palma Shines: Thousands Celebrate the Start of the Christmas Season at Major Light Show.

The season opened on November 28 with an atmospheric concert by the Palma Gospels Singers in the festively decorated lobby. Neighbours and guests could escape the evening temperatures with a welcome drink and immerse themselves in warm voices — a small island pause between Christmas preparations and shopping bustle.

Those who prefer to get hands-on can find inspiration in the hotel's Salón Anckermann. Ten large-format paintings by Ricardo Anckermann Riera give the room an old-world elegance; Cardo Studio from Mallorca is leading workshops there on three evenings (4, 11 and 18 December, each 18:30–20:30) focusing on Advent wreaths and table floristry. Participation per course including afternoon tea is €65.

Film fans can spend a cozy, blanket-wrapped evening on the Panorama Terrace on December 7: at 18:30 the film "The Holiday" will be shown in the original version, with a view down over Palma's sea of lights. Popcorn and hot drinks are included; hotel guests attend free of charge, external visitors pay €30.

The holidays themselves take on a culinary hue: on Christmas Eve hotel director Thomas Bechtold invites guests at 19:00 to a welcome cocktail, followed by a multi-course menu with a trio of crustaceans, tartare of Mallorcan prawn with almond ice cream, sea bass fillet as well as beef fillet with a mushroom duxelles and truffles; for a sweet finish chestnuts with white chocolate. Menu, wine pairing and welcome cocktail are bookable for €260 per person.

On Christmas Day the hotel offers an extensive brunch (12:30–15:00): bagels, ensaïmadas, Eggs Benedict, waffles, Iberian ham, seafood, Beef Wellington and more are on the buffet. Price per person: €98 — ideal for families who want to spend the holiday without cooking.

Between the holidays the Salón Real invites guests to a classic afternoon tea: freshly baked scones, savory sandwiches (including brioche with tuna, kimchi mayonnaise and avocado) and small sweets. €45 per person, €80 for two people provide a quiet breather amid the festivities.

On New Year's Eve Castillo opens a festive chapter: from 19:45 oysters, lobster and Iberian ham are served before a four-course menu is served in the restaurant Es Castell (including ravioli with red prawn from Sóller, turbot and filet of Galician beef with truffles). At 22:45 the Salón Real opens with a DJ and open bar; shortly before midnight guests toast with champagne on the terrace and watch the fireworks over the bay. The gala including cocktail, dinner and open bar costs €415 per person, external guests are welcome.

Practical info: reservations are accepted by the hotel by phone at +34 971 493 493. For further questions the concierge offers a contact address.

Why is this good for Mallorca? Such events keep the island lively in the off-season: they provide work for local service providers, offer venues for cultural performers and create meeting points for residents, as highlighted in Palma in Its Christmas Dress: Lights, Sound and Little Winter Wonders. On the way home through Son Vida you sometimes still hear distant sounds and the clinking of glasses — small, warmly glowing scenes that show that Palma has its own festive atmosphere even in winter.

Those out and about these days see hotel staff in thick coats, vans with fresh flowers and the first strings of lights in Calle Olmos, echoing the official switch-on described in Lights on at the Palau del Consell: Palma begins the Christmas season. Castillo may not host a public Christmas parade, but its programmes act like a cozy stitch in the island's festive landscape: elegant, locally rooted and open to anyone who wants to treat themselves to an evening above the roofs of Palma.

A small final note: tickets and places are limited — better to call, reserve and don't forget your scarf. It can get chilly on Son Vida in the evenings, but with a glass of wine on the terrace it often still feels a bit like summer.