CAMÍ DE CAVALLS – Stage 12Cap d’Artrutx – Cala en Turqueta
walking by the Camí de Cavalls
The stage
This stage begins 1 km from Artrutx lighthouse along the coast road through the residential area, although you could also begin at the lighthouse itself. This is where the southern coast proper begins. The first 2 km of the stage are along roads through the residential areas of Cap d’Artrutx, Son Bosch (where you will have to cross the bridge over the canal to the port) and Son Xoriguer. After this final beach, you leave the built-up area behind and for 4 km you walk a flat but somewhat rocky path along the low-lying coast, passing by small coves until you reach the beaches of Son Saura del Sud. Once past these beaches, the path brings you to Cala des Talaier. From here, the path begins to gain height, the forest begins to thicken and you pass near a look-out tower (Talaia d’Artrutx), before dropping down through the woods to the much-loved Cala en Turqueta, where the stage ends.
Distance: 13.3 km • Difficulty: Easy • Estimated walking time: 4 h
Be sure to shut all gates after you since they are used to control the cattle • Help the regeneration of the dunes at Son Saura del Sud by NOT walking there • At the end of this stage (Cala en Turqueta) there are no facilities; the next facilities are at the end of the following stage (Cala Galdana).
SHORTER ALTERNATIVES AVOIDING ROADS
Son Xoriguer – Cala en Turqueta
If you start at the beach of Son Xoriguer you will avoid the first stretch of road in the residential area. Very recommendable.
Distance: 8.5 km • Difficulty: Easy • Estimated walking time: 3 h
Son Saura – Cala en Turqueta
This short stroll will take you to the stage’s three unspoilt beaches: Son Saura, Es Talaier and En Turqueta. A true privilege.
Distance: 3 km • Difficulty: Easy • Estimated walking time: 1h 30 min
The surroundings
This stretch of the Camí de Cavalls is flat and climbs very little. The landscape over much of this stage is dominated by a rocky coastline alternating with small coves. For most of the walk you will be amongst vegetation influenced by the proximity of the sea, with plants such as winter heath, rock-roses and rosemary. Behind the beaches at Son Saura del Sud there is a small pinewood and behind that a small wetland. From here on the landscape begins to change, and the Camí de Cavalls enters the woodland dominated by wild olive, Aleppo pine and holm oak that is so characteristic of the central part of Menorca’s southern coast as, for example, around Cala en Turqueta.
Don’t miss
• Prat de Bellavista: Small marshland associated with the beaches of Son Saura del Sud. Home to wetland birds and an area of great ecological value. Please respect it.
• Artrutx lighthouse: Built in 1858 and automated in the 1980s, this lighthouse is an excellent place to enjoy the sunset with the island of Mallorca as a backdrop. Today, a bar-restaurant operates in the lighthouse during the high season. More information.
NEARBY SITES OF INTEREST
• Talaia d’Artrutx: Old defence tower located between Cala en Turqueta and Cala des Talaier. Excellent views along the southern coast of Menorca.
Services
• Cap d’Artutx: Plenty of bars, restaurants and other facilities are on offer in the residential area around the lighthouse and in Cala en Bosch and Son Xoriguer during the high season.
• Cala Turqueta: No facilities.
How to get there
Both ends of the stage are accessible by car (Cap d’Artrutx and Cala en Turqueta) and both have plenty of space for parking. If you want to have a shorter walk, drive to Son Saura. In the summer, information boards on the roads from Ciutadella to the south coast beaches will tell you which car-parks still have space.
Cap d’Artrutx is 12 km south of Ciutadella if you follow the town’s southern ring-road and take the road all the way to Cala Blanca, until the end of the road.
Cala en Turqueta is 14 km from Ciutadella. From the southern ring-road, take the road Camí de Sant Joan de Missa that heads towards the southern beaches. Ignore the turn-off to Son Saura and at the little church of Sant Joan de Missa, turn right towards Cala en Turqueta. Four kilometres further on, turn right again along a dirt track that leads to the beach car-park. The beach lies just 10 m beyond the car-park through the thick holm-oak wood.
In the high season a bus runs from Ciutadella to Cap d’Artrutx and Cala en Bosch. There is also a bus that runs from Ciutadella via Son Catlar to Son Saura, which will also enable you to shorten this stage somewhat. Check out bus times and frequencies (that vary according to the season.
Accommodation and logistics on Camí de Cavalls
If you want to go through the Camí de Cavalls in stages, either a part or all of it, you have to plan your trek well. There are no accommodation for trekkers on the path, so you will have to make use of the touristic accommodations you will find on the route. That is the reason why making the route outside the tourist season could be somewhat complicated.
It is important to adapt the route plan to your physical condition and your experience as a trekker. In many cases, the ideal choice is to hire a logistic service for you to resolve those shortcomings. This way, you will be able to get the most out of the experience.
Camí de Cavalls 360º is a specialised travel agency that helps you to make the route in stages, in a self-guided manner and with a series of related services (among others, accommodation and logistics). Camí de Cavalls 360º offers you different choices to traverse the Camí de Cavalls with autonomy, always adapting to your needs.
Map
See all stages of the Camí de Cavalls
GUIDEBOOK RECOMMENDED
The Camí de Cavalls. The tour of Menorca in 10 days. Triangle Postals
All stages of the Camí de Cavalls
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The Camí de Cavalls is divided up into 20 stages that can be walked as a single long hike or individually in sections, or can be used simply as somewhere go for a stroll. Discover Menorca here describes the official stages as 20 separate day-long walks, using the morning for the outward bound stretch and the afternoon for the return. -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls passes through a fine example of a windswept coastal landscape, especially between Sa Mesquida and the Macar de Binillautí. -
All of this stage of the Camí de Cavalls runs through S’Albufera des Grau Natural Park. It is an excellent walk for getting to know a variety of different habitats... -
Much of this stage of the Camí de Cavalls runs through the S’Albufera des Grau Natural Park and many of its very diverse landscapes. -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls begins at the far western end of the built-up area of Arenal d’en Castell. Walk for 10 minutes along the cliff-top path as far as Son Parc... -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls passes through one of the best-preserved parts of the Menorcan coastline. The EU has declared it to be an Area of Community Importance and and a Special Protection... -
This is the longest and hardest of all the stages of the Camí de Cavalls and, unsurprisingly, also one of the most spectacular. -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls is characterized by the number of different habitats it visits. Around Cala Pilar a large number of endemic plants thrive alongside the more typical plants of... -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls leaves behind the fertile fields and woods of La Vall d’Algaiarens and heads into a dry scrubby landscape dominated by low scattered plants. -
The whole of this stage of the Camí de Cavalls runs through what is known as ‘Dry Menorca’, an area characterized by its sparse vegetation and long lines of dry-stone walls only interrupted by stone huts... -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls can be divided into two very different parts. The first runs through what is known as ‘Dry Menorca’, an area characterized by its sparse vegetation and long lines of dry-stone walls... -
From Cala Blanca onwards and as far as the end of the stage, the flat path follows low coastal cliffs that harbour an interesting plant community. -
One of the most attractive elements of this stage of the Camí de Cavalls are the unspoilt beaches of its coves: En Turqueta, Macarella and Macarelleta are three of the best-loved of Menorca. -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls is an excellent way of getting to know the woods and forests of the southern coast of Menorca. Most of this part of the long-distance footpath runs through... -
This stretch of the Camí de Cavalls is flat and, with very little uphill, is easy to walk. Nevertheless, it passes through a series of different habitats that include inland gullies, dunes, pastures... -
This stretch of the Camí de Cavalls connects two of the most important gullies on the southern coast of Menorca, the Barranc de Llucalari to the west and Barranc de Cala en Porter to the east. -
Despite following the coastline for the most part, along this stretch of the Camí de Cavalls you will only see the sea at Es Canutells and Calescoves (if you make a short detour). -
This part of the Camí de Cavalls crosses a flat but rocky section of Menorca’s southern coast that is currently very built-up. The rocky islands of Binissafúller and the Illa de l’Aire remain in sight for most of the walk. -
This stage of the Camí de Cavalls runs along a rocky stretch of low-lying coast dominated by shrubs such as lentisc and Phoenician juniper as far as the defence tower of Alcalfar. -
Despite walking almost the whole length of the Port de Maó, you will not get much of a chance to enjoy it if you don’t combine it with some alternative route that links the port and the centre of the town. -
The best walks and excursions around the coast of Menorca along the Camí de Cavalls (GR-223), an ideal way of exploring the island’s coastline at your leisure. Unspoilt beaches, rocky outcrops, pinewoods and sea-cliffs step-by-step. -
The Menorcan interactive map with the 20 stages of the Camí the Cavalls (GR 223) and much more...
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