Hotel Formentor, Mallorca : The possible utopia

 

Nearly a century ago Adan Diehl from Argentina fell in love with the peninsula of Formentor, located next to Pollença in Mallorca. There, he was dreaming of a place where aristocrats, businessmen, artists and writers from all around the world could gather. This spot becomes the name Hotel Formentor. A dream or madness? 

Adan Diehl, second from the left

Guests of the Hotel Formentor in the 1930s

For its uniqueness, troubled history and diverse roster of guests, who were residing in its rooms, the Formentor belongs to the category of unclassifiable hotels. It is not a typical hotel; even its origin can not be compared to others. Moreover, it is not just a building since all its natural environment has been preserved as if the constructive and speculative frenzy, that has affected the Mediterranean in the second half of the twentieth century, had not existed. Still standing, this place can be considered as a contemporary miracle. Adan Diehl, born in Buenos Aires, was the typical globetrotter who became an inspiration for novelists such as Scott Fitzgerald, Foster or even Thomas Mann in the first third of the twentieth century.  

Cultivated, cosmopolitan, elegant, he wandered the half of the world treasuring the friendship of aristocrats, businessmen, artists and writers. He was one of those who were capable of crossing America for a bet or getting lost in a three-week cruise on one of those transatlantic liners where every dinner required a strict etiquette. At that time tourism was not a mass phenomenon yet and travelers usually formed a restricted seasonal club to visit the iconic establishments of Cote d'Azur, spas of Baden and Davos, the Casino in Monte Carlo or ski resorts in Chamonix or Hallstatt. A life between suitcases, express trains and exceptional hotels until the day Mallorca crossed his path. In one corner of the island, near Pollença, he discovered a peninsula with tiny bays studded with twisted pine trunks, veined rocks changing color constantly, and with golden gleams of the Mediterranean light crackling over the sea scratched with white foam waves.  

This landscape that seemed drawn from the Argonauts' journeys or from Aeneid's travels, was Formentor. Fascinated, Diehl invested much of his fortune in buying the remains of the Mediterranean that increasingly cost more to find despite the beauty of the island. The peninsula had been owned by the Costa family, to which belonged the poet Miguel Costa i Llobera, who wrote the famous poem “The Pi de Formentor”, then it was handed over to the Argentine who was ready to bring his project to a successful end, regardless of expenses. By courtesy of Felipe Bellini, who later projected a road paid for by the new owner, he prepared the building plans inspired by currents of modern nationalist movement that was conquering international architecture of that time. The hotel opening brought a new economic perspective to the area. High salaries, working conditions with eight-hour working days and the prestige of working in an establishment of such characteristics unleashed a struggle among inhabitants of Pollença and the surrounding areas to get a job in Formentor.  

Hotel staff in the 1930s

That was the basis of one of the identifying hotel features: quality and professional service that have been maintained over time as a symbol of identity. The refinement of the interior and the care of every detail were an obsession for Dielh and his wife, Maria Elena Popolicio, who took charge of service, facilities and decor: Canopy beds and canopies of silk, silver cutlery, Mallorcan furniture, dinner sets from Limoges, linen tablecloths, glassware from Baccarat; nothing was enough for Formentor where for the most distinguished visitors golden cutlery was prepared. Jean Patou designed pajamas especially for the hotel and Mariel Rochas a gown that evoked the aesthetics of the Cote d'Azur. To crown his utopia, Diehl invited all his lifelong friends. Many of them such as Anglada Camarasa, Santiago Ruiseñol, Joaquín Mir or Pedro Blanes became enthusiasts of the seascapes with the tiny bays. In 1931 the first Formentor Wisdom Week attended by figures such as André Maurois, the Count Keyserling, Bosch Guimpera, Gómez de la Serna or Josep Pla took place. Throughout the time the cultural dimension has been a constant theme of the hotel and one of the most brilliant legacies of its founder over time. 

Jane Birkin in 1982 at the Hotel Formentor on the set of Evil Under the Sun

Adan Diehl did not make many mistakes, only one that was fatal: designing a model that was half century ahead. His commitment to environment-friendly tourism the contrary to overcrowding, respect for the nature, the preservation of the natural landscape were so visionary that surely few, if any, could understand it. He had enjoyed the adventure for five golden years before abandoning the property and the island, totally ruined. He could have saved his heritage by cutting down the Formentor forests, but in an act of generosity referring to the values of the past, he decided to present Pollença and its visitors with this landscape, where, as he thought, he had found his Ithaca. The whole village saw him off, all the authorities, working class and law-abiding people were watching him leaving like Antonio when he was abandoned by the gods in Alexandria. He did not neither whine nor complained about his bad luck, he kept his composure and charm to the very moment before the embarkation when he lost his Formentor forever. Closed doors, the Civil War, the World War and several ownership changes left the hotel to languish until 1953 when a group of businessmen from Mallorca and Ibiza decided, with financial aid from the Banca March, to revive the Formentor spirit. The Buadas family was one of the most important members of this group.

Joan Buadas, and especially his children Tomeu and Miguel, brought back to life the soul of the hotel as it had been at the time of Diehl. The famous travellers, royals, as Edward VIII, Rainier and Grace Kelly of Monaco, the stars of cinema such as John Wayne, Sir Laurence Olivier, Gary Cooper or Audrey Hepburn, and of course the writers, they all came back. They met again on its terraces, beaches, in its great halls
full of Castilian and Catalan literature. The literary prices were awarded again, highlighting Formentor, won in its first edition by José Luis Borges and Samuel Beckett. Moreover, the International Literature event that was supported by the editors Carlos Barral and Camilo José Cela was held. Barn Lane, Damaso Alonso, Gerardo Diego, the Goytisolo, Blas de Otero, José Hierro, Robert Graves, Italo Calvino and a pleiad of writers, who gave life to the club of poets, took part in the Formentor affairs. The Buadas family, who kept the reins of the hotel until 2006, respected its commitment to the Formentor spirit and held numerous events, exhibitions and cultural initiatives throughout the years, such as the awards for humour and tolerance between 1984 and 1990.

In 2006, Barceló Hotels acquired the Formentor, retaining both its philosophy and landscape heritage that makes this hotel a symbol despite the ravages caused by the uncontrolled tourism and real-estate speculation that have destroyed much of the Mediterranean coast. Run as family business, Barceló has assumed this model that returns to search travellers rather than tourists, visitors who value, as well as a
service and equipment of high quality, the uniqueness of this almost unspoiled horizon, the history surrounding this establishment. A model of that man who dared to dream of a company that has become the heritage of all Mallorcans.

Words by Andrès Puch via spend-in.com/ 

The Formentor hotel in Mallorca, recently sold by the Barceló group to the Emin Capital investment fund, will reopen in 2023 under the Four Seasons banner and after a renovation during which it will increase from 122 to 110 rooms.  Take a look at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9wE48tS5rU