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Exploring Menorca and the Scooter Fiasco! – Backpacking Europe
A Sequel to Menorca
If exploring Menorca on your own terms is how you like to travel, then renting a scooter would probably be a solid decision. The good news: it’s super easy to do, and once you have one you can go almost anywhere on the island in less than an hour. Here’s a guide of where we went, what to do and how NOT to get stranded trying to find gas. I’ll have a recap at the bottom, too, if you want to skip to that HERE.
***READ ME***
This is the second part to the Menorca adventures. If you haven’t read the first yet, check it out HERE!
Where to Get Scooters in Menorca
Because this is a continuation post, it IS the same day still as the deep water soloing excursion. The sun completely drained most energy at this point so some midday lunch, followed by a power nap, was definitely in order. We had lunch at a place called Brasería Rit-Mô, which overlooked the Port de Maó on the street of Moll de Ponent. I think I mentioned it in the previous post, but almost every restaurant is going to be on the water’s edge. Also, the food was simple and delicious.
Following the power nap, we were all ready to get the scooters and continue the travels to the other main town on the island. It was almost early evening, so the plan was to get to the west coast for the sunset. There are several places to rent scooters, but we chose Valls. They had two locations: one on Moll de Ponent and another closer to the hostel in Mahón. The transaction was easy, peasy lemon squeezy. In no time at all, we all had scooters for the day.
Scooter Rates
If I recall correctly, the price for 24 hours was around 30 euros ($36). These suckers barely needed any gas, too. Also, there was a hold of about $300 which was lifted on returning the scooter.
Ciutadella del Menorca by Sunset
After all was situated, we were Ciutadella bound! Personally, I think this was the best option for exploring Menorca. You can get almost anywhere on the island. The roads aren’t crowded, and most of the driving (scootering?) is on the open roads. The trip to the northwest took about 50min for us all said and done. The roads had some nice turns, and the scenic route made the time pass quickly. Scootin’ through the middle of the island gives you this “off-the-grid” feel.
Once arriving in Cuitadella, the first thing I noticed was the town was smaller. In comparison, both Cuitadella and Mahón are constructed almost identically. But bottom line, if you are planning to stay on the island in a bigger town, I’d pick Mahón. Now, I know I mentioned talk of a sunset, but these damn clouds rained on the parade. Sorry. Nevertheless, the city was explored via scooter. There were tight roads, back alleys, and a lot of one-way streets that I was going the wrong way on.
One Way Streets
I swear, about 75% of the roads in the towns are either under construction or a one-way. You don't need to worry about going the 'wrong' way, but more so watch out for the zippy little cars that are waiting to pancake you.
All in all, I’d say we spent a few hours in Ciutadella de Menorca driving around, buying some small food items and snacking. Since it took less than half a tank and an hour to traverse the entire island, there was no need to refuel, right? Clearly, this was mistake numero uno. It’s decisions like this that can put you into some interesting situations. Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures from the events that transpired. I’m super bummed about that!
How Exploring Menorca Became Stranded in the Middle of the Island
Without giving it anymore thought, we were off to the races. By this time it was late evening and the sun was almost ready to set behind the hills. Well, about 20 minutes in, the sun did set, and it got dark… really dark. The road lights were pretty dim, and you know you’re out there when you can see light pollution from miles away.
At about the quarter mark of the ride, I get the signal to pull over. The situation? We’re basically running on empty. I think we forgot to factor in that 2 people on one scooter consumes petrol a wee bit faster. Anyways, it shouldn’t have been too big of a deal. Simply find the next gas station, right? That was mistake numero dos. Gas stations on islands seem to be few and far between.
Indeed, it was a brilliant plan. However, that only works when the few gas stations you do find are open. Mind you, it was about 9:30pm at this point. Remember, 24/7 convenient stores and gas stations are not hot commodities here. Things generally close in the evening. So, as any person would do, we put our faith in Google Maps. The trend continued of “there’s a station a few kilometers up” and “Umm, the lights aren’t on.” Slight concern was beginning to set it.
The Final Attempt
We were in too deep at this point. Something had to give. We risked it for the biscuit as all the stops were pulled out: coasting down hills with no throttle and tucking our heads for aerodynamics. After 2 gas stations with no service, the E-light was absolutely past red. How was this thing still scootin’?!
There was a third and final gas station on google maps about 6km up the road. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if we would make this one. More so, I wasn’t sure what we’d do if we were stranded. I suppose we’d have to hitchhike back or walk into the nearest town? Needless to say, all focus was on getting to this gas station.
These were some of the longest kilometers of our lives as dread set in. But as we approached the station, there looked to be another car that pulled up for gas. Oh my, the lights are on. The card machine works, too?! Major win, people, and a huge sigh of relief. We were going to make it back.
Don't push 'lleno' !
Well, you can push lleno if you want. It means 'full,' but I didn't know this at the time from all the excitement. It charged me 80 freaking euro. The scooter took about €7. It did end up working out to the right amount on my statement only after few days of wondering what I had done.
Celebrating at Paput!
With worries out of the way, the ride back was a breeze. It was time to celebrate not being stranded. Back in Mahón, we stopped at a bar and restaurant called Paput. Maybe it was because of our recent rescue from a dire situation, but I thought the food we had was some of the best on the island. The celebratory drink was the specialty cocktail cleverly named the Paput. It was like a watermelon michelada thing, but with liquor. Kudos to my awesome sister – check out this baller homemade recipe HERE!
This place was definitely the go-to spot at night, too (at least for the night we were there). We proceeded to scoot around to three other bars to check out the scene. None compared to Paput, so hopefully that can save you some hassle.
Some Righteous Wipeouts before Barcelona
The next morning continued the scooter saga. We still had until noon before our 24 hours were up, so we scooted in and around Mahón to be able to officially state that we drove on every road – and probably in the wrong direction. We made it to the southern coastline of the town to check out the fort called Fortelesa de Isabel II, too. I also found an old radio tower with a sweet downhill grade, (perfect for a stoppie) which I proceeded to crash on, naturally.
Not soon after, it was a race back to the hostel to pack and head to the airport. We barely made the bus there, but now it was full speed ahead to Barcelona. Exploring Menorca complete!
Recap: Points of Interest
Homemade Paput Cocktail!
Add all ingredients below in a shaker with ice and shake.
- 7 oz watermelon juice (literally put watermelon in a blender)
- 1.5 oz vodka
- 2 oz pineapple juice
- 1/2 oz lime juice
- 3 tsp Coco Lopez cream of coconut
- 1 stalk of mint leaves
- Optional Cayenne to one’s liking
Michael Lakus
IT professional, athlete, musician, ponderer of many things... Born and raised in Florida, I began traveling internationally after college. I created this site primarily to remind myself of where I've been and to share my experiences on traveling with a quirky, stress-free, travel attitude.
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