Valldemossa Charterhouse

Valldemossa Charterhouse tickets: which one to buy

The Carthusian Monastery, the Real Cartuja, stands in the mountain village of Valldemossa, in the Serra de Tramuntana, about twenty kilometres north of Palma de Mallorca, and a ticket is required, which covers the church, the cloisters, the pharmacy, the prior's cell, the museum and the cells where Frédéric Chopin and George Sand stayed, with a short piano recital included at set times.

Valldemossa is one of the most visited villages in Mallorca, and it is reached by bus from Palma or on tours of the Tramuntana, which combine it with Deià, Sóller and the scenic coastal road. The village is known for its coca de patata, a sweet potato bun, and its narrow streets decorated with flowers. The monastery is busy in the middle of the day, especially in summer, and early morning visits are quieter. The bus from Palma's Plaça d'Espanya to Valldemossa takes about half an hour.

Visiting Valldemossa Charterhouse: what to see

The site was originally a royal palace built by King Sancho of Majorca in the fourteenth century, and in 1399 it was given to Carthusian monks, who built a monastery. The present buildings date mainly from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The monks left in 1835, when the Spanish government seized church property, and the cells were rented to visitors. In the winter of 1838 and 1839, the composer Frédéric Chopin and the writer George Sand, with her children, stayed in cells here, hoping the climate would improve Chopin's health; he composed some of his preludes here, and Sand described their difficult winter in her book A Winter in Majorca. The cells display Chopin's piano, manuscripts and letters.

The monastery's church, neoclassical in style, holds frescoes by Manuel Bayeu, the brother-in-law of Goya. The old pharmacy displays jars and remedies, and the museum holds a collection of art. The prior's cell includes a library, a chapel and a garden with views over the valley. The cells used by Chopin and Sand have terraces with gardens. The museum holds a collection of prints and works by Joan Miró and Picasso. The church's frescoes show scenes of the life of the Virgin. The pharmacy's shelves are lined with ceramic jars and glass bottles. The King Sancho Palace, beside the monastery, holds furniture and paintings. The cloister's garden has cypress trees. The piano recital in the King Sancho Palace features Chopin's music.

Valldemossa Charterhouse opening hours and the best time to go

The monastery is open from Monday to Saturday, with shorter hours in winter, and closed on Sundays in some seasons. Summer is the busiest season, and mornings are the best time to visit. The Chopin Festival, held in the cloisters in August, brings concerts of his music. Spring and autumn are ideal for hiking in the Tramuntana mountains around Valldemossa. The feast of Saint Catherine Thomas, a local saint, in July brings a procession. Allow about an hour for the monastery, and walk through the village and try a coca de patata. Deià, a village of stone houses where the poet Robert Graves lived, is about fifteen minutes' drive along the coast.