The south coast
The south coast does not contain a single town, but is a succession of idyllic beaches interspersed with majestic cliffs. There are about a dozen major playas, each widely different in character. Most have undergone tourist development – ‘urbanization' is the ugly word used -  but building was carried out with  imagination. In addition are many smaller coves, more difficult to reach but well worth the adventure.
Proceeding westward along the south coast the first beach is Alcaufar, a narrow cleft with a hotel and residential chalets. It was here that the British landed in 1708 when they first conquered and occupied the island, and it was a disembarkation point for Spanish troops under the Duc de Crillon in the Franco Spanish invasion of 1781.
Nearby is the tourist complex of S'Algar, boldly sited on a rocky stretch of coastline with no beach, but of great charm. Sloping down towards the sea, it has hotels, swimming pools, attractive villas, shops, restaurants, sports clubs and green lawns. The predominant flowers are pink and white oleanders and canna lilies.
Next along the coast are the playas of Punta Prima and Binibeca, reached through San Luis. The former has attractive hotels, some on the chalet system. Offshore lies the Isla de l'Aire, with a lighthouse. It was off this island that Admiral Byng's unsuccessful battle against the French in 1756 cost him his life. Zoologists visit the Isla de l'Aire to see the unique black lizards which are a subspecies indigenous to this island.
At Binibeca is a delightful beach, with a bar-restaurant in a stone boathouse on the rocks, which rightly claims that it is 'the only bar where one can drink with one's feet in the sea'. The name Binibeca is Arabic in origin, the prefix 'Bini' meaning 'belonging to the sons of'. A little further along the coast is a tourists' summer fishing village built in Catalan style, dazzlingly white, with narrow alleys and gay balconies. It has a slipway for boats and facilities for swimming from the rocks.

Several small beaches follow, like Binidali and Canutells; their names are also of Arab origin. They are best approached through the village of San Clemente. The swimmer will find seclusion and limpid clear water. Biniasfua is a perfect spot for deep water swimming from the rocks.

Two widely contrasting inlets of the sea follow, Cales Coves and Cala'n Porter (also occasionally spelt Cala en Porter). They adjoin each other, separated only by spectacular cliffs, and resemble small  fjords. In terms of human occupation they are nearly four thousand years apart. Cales Coves is the site of the largest group of cave dwellings on the island. Cala'n Porter is the island's most complete tourist and residential township, with a magnificent beach, and is completely equipped for either holidays or permanent living. A hotel, restaurants, and several shops and supermarkets are concentrated in a pleasant commercial area on high ground above the beach, and there are widely scattered residential zones with some 700 villas. Pioneer residents are mostly concentrated near the commercial zone, but later arrivals have either chosen more elevated sites commanding wide sea-views, or faced inland to enjoy restful landscapes; while the 'cliff-hangers' have built villas not suitable for sleep-walkers. Discreetly tucked away in one corner is the discotheque of Cova d'en Xoroi - in a large cave in the cliffs.
Upstream for 5km (3 miles) from the beach stretches a barranca with an attractive orchard of oranges, lemons, apricots and vines. A pathway leading alongside it makes a pleasant walk.
Cala'n Porter has a regular and frequent bus service to Mahon. It has electricity and a chlorinated water supply, and as one of the few 'colonies' which come directly under the administration of its nearest municipality at Alayor, is on the way to becoming the first ever 'new town' on Minorca's south coast.

There follows along the south coast  chain of major beaches unrivalled in Europe for beauty. 
The first is the 3km stretch of white sands which include the playas of Son Bou and San Jaime. The easiest approach is by the new road just west of Alayor, taking one directly on to the beach by a spectacular tunnel through the rocky hillside behind it.
High up on this hillside and facing the sea are prehistoric cave dwellings and defensive walls, evidence of its early occupation. The old name for Son Bou was an Arab one: Ses Canessies, meaning 'Christian church', but its meaning appears to have been forgotten for many centuries, as it was not until 1951 that the ruins of a fifth-century Byzantine basilica were excavated right by the water's edge. Where Son Bou merges into San Jaime, the hillside is covered in pinewoods, with white villas built among the trees. One may return to the main highway by the San Jaime road.

The next group are the twin playas of Santo Tomas and Santo Adeodato, which are a continuation of the two beaches just described, separated from them by a low headland. They are best approached via the island's central road, turning off at the village of San Cristobal. These attractive beaches have pinewoods to the water's edge, a number of hotels, and a sports centre.