Bicycles are a common means of transport in many northern European countries despite the bad weather.

Take the city of Hamburg as an example; I was one of the many thousands who commuted by bicycle every day, with an average daily temperature of 12ºC and about 190 rainy days a year, with three months of frost during the winter. One can imagine how eager he was to ride a bike in Mallorca. when I moved here…average temperatures of 21ºC, only 74 days of rain a year, lots of sun, and only a few hills in the lowlands of Palma.

But the reality is different. I have been traveling around Palma on a motorcycle or by car for seven years Palma is the city with the most cars per capita in Spain, and the numbers are increasing Urban planners react by building more streets and underground cars, parks, and towns and cities de Mallorca lack infrastructures that can make the bicycle play an important role in reducing traffic congestion The bicycle as a means of transport is practically non-existent -neither in the heads of politicians nor in the heads of the majority of the population The lack of cycle lanes, combined with poor roads and aggressive drivers, make cycling in Mallorca very dangerous.

The few existing bike lanes do little to change the overall situation. Now you can, for example, tour the bay of Palma, from El Arenal to Magaluf, on a newly built bike path. there are no bike lanes connecting to other areas.

More recently, Palma City Council has made free rental bicycles available to users of various car parks. If you park your car under the cathedral or near the avenues, you can rent a free bicycle -a new model of the park- and -System of walk! Child seats, helmets and bicycle baskets are also available. But when you go out and find yourself in the thick of Palma’s traffic, it can be scary. The only place to feel safe is in some of the quietest and narrowest alleys in the historic center of the city.

If you do not want to use the bicycle as a means of transport but rather enjoy cycling as a hobby or sport, improvements are being made and the options are expanding. Only recently has the Balearic Government built some 235 km of new cycle paths, which allow you to explore a wide expanse of flat, rural countryside between Inca and Campos with your trusted bike. Although this is mainly intended for touring and racing cyclists, there are also tracks special for mountain bikers.

Excellent conditions throughout the mountainous region, from moderate trails to more challenging cross country routes.

Mallorca is an ideal training ground for professionals When northern Europe battles the cold and frost, cyclists flock to Mallorca for its excellent cycling conditions Year after year, racing teams like the T-Mobile team they come here to train for the flat stages in the interior, and for the mountain stages in the Tramuntana. In addition, many teams participate in the important return to Mallorca in January, when they start the new racing season.

Mallorca has managed to breed some top quality local professional cyclists and is proud of the cycling team that will represent the Balearic Islands when they compete in the Tour de France in 2005.

The Balearic Islands Department of Tourism estimates that approximately 70,000 tourists come to Mallorca each year to take part in organized cycling trips. Tour operators set up groups that vary in degrees of difficulty or daily kilometers and are usually led by former professionals.

We have seen them, whether on the old or new road of Llucmajor, on the steep and winding routes of Cap Formentor, or on the Avenidas de Palma Mallorca is simply a paradise for cyclists, so let’s hope that the trend of improving facilities continue. while we encourage motorists to be a little more patient with our fans of sport and leisure cycling.