Castell d'Alaró
Landmark · Mallorca
Checked
Castell d'Alaró is a ruined medieval fortress atop the 821 m Puig d'Alaró in the Tramuntana mountains, first recorded as a stronghold in 902. Its defining story is the defiance of captains Guillem Cabrit and Guillem Bassa, who refused to surrender to Alfonso III in 1285 and were reputedly roasted alive in Alaró's square for it. A narrow paved road climbs from the village to the Es Verger restaurant partway up; from there the summit and its small hermitage are reached only on foot.
The earliest record of the fortress, the Arab chronicle Kitab Tarih Mayurqa, calls it Hisn Alarun. Alfonso III of Aragon moved on the castle in 1285 to punish its two captains, Guillem Cabrit and Guillem Bassa, for staying loyal to Jaume II of Mallorca; medieval chroniclers say he swore to roast Cabrit like a kid, a pun on the captain's surname, and made good on the threat once the fortress fell. The killing was brutal enough that Pope Nicholas IV excommunicated Alfonso for it, and Cabrit and Bassa were venerated across Mallorca for centuries afterward as martyrs to their king. An oratory raised from 1622 turned the ruin into a pilgrimage site, and among the additions built around it is a stone sundial set south facing with its gnomon aligned to the North Star. One of the cisterns cut into the rock is thought to have doubled as a snow house, storing winter ice for the garrison that once held the summit.
What you see
Five stone towers ring the ruins, among them the Prison of the Moors, its arrow slits still aimed toward Mecca, and two lookout points face opposite ways: one over the peaks of the Serra de Tramuntana, the other across roughly half the island to the Bay of Palma and the hills of Felanitx.
Practical
The hermitage at the summit runs as a simple overnight stop: a bed within the castle walls costs about 12 to 15 euros a person, guests bring their own sleeping bag and towel, and a cafe and restaurant are on site, though only around 30 guests can stay and booking ahead is required.
castleviewpointpilgrimage sitehiking