Cala Romantica lives up to its name. About ten kilometres south of Porto Cristo, this pine-fringed cove opens onto water that shades from pale turquoise at the edges to deep blue at the centre, and on a quiet morning it feels like the kind of place the rest of the island's tourists have somehow missed. The beach is accessed by a short path through the trees from a small car park, and the descent is rewarded with one of the most picturesque stretches of sand on the east coast.
The cove is also known as Cala Anguila on some maps — both names refer loosely to the same bay, which is divided by a low headland into two separate beaches. The southern section tends to be slightly less crowded. There is a small beach bar at one end of the bay serving cold drinks and simple food, but facilities are otherwise minimal. In July and August the car park fills quickly by mid-morning; aim to arrive before 9am or come in the late afternoon when the light turns the sea golden and the day-trippers have mostly gone.