Virgin’s second birth in Mallorca
Richard Branson's Virgin Limited Edition have been granted the licence to convert a second property in Banyalbufar into a luxury rural hotel. Sir Richard Branson told the Bulletin at the opening of his first hotel in June last year, that the second property would open for business in 2026. The expansion by the Virgin Group does not stop there as it is reported that they could open their third Balearic hotel in Ibiza. There is speculation that they already have selected a property in Ibiza.
Branson wants to link his cruise ships with his hotels and the company could soon offer clients the opportunity to cruise the Mediterranean and also stay in his luxury Mallorcan hotels.
The Virgin Group announced yesterday that his present hotel, Son Bunyola, and the three villas on the estate would reopen next month and and would operate all-year round.
Banyalbufar town hall confirmed on Tuesday that the necessary licence was issued at the end of January. This will allow the conversion of Son Valentí, an estate that dates back to the fifteenth century and comes replete with a mediaeval defence tower.
The estate occupies 464,560 square metres. It has protected status in a variety of ways - an asset in the cultural interest, a site within the Tramuntana Mountains natural area, and a site of regional community interest. Conversion will therefore be subject to heritage demands; emblematic features must be preserved. The process for converting Son Valentí started in 2016. Since then, administrative procedures have involved the Balearic government, the Council of Mallorca (which has responsibility for heritage preservation) and the town hall, which is the entity with the authority to issue building licences. Among these procedures was obtaining the approval of the Balearic Environment Commission, which was given in November 2020. The initial project for Son Valentí envisaged seventeen rooms with 34 beds.
Under the terms of the licence, work must start within six months and take no longer than two years for completion, unless an extension is requested. In June last year, Virgin Limited Edition opened the Son Bunyola Hotel, which is next to
Son Valentí.