Martina on how she connected a local community of trans people in Palma, Mallorca

While the island of Mallorca is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Europe, it isn’t necessarily known for its LGBTQ scene.

GAY TIMES has teamed up with James Villas for a new video series exploring local communities in locations where queer visibility isn’t always apparent upon arrival.

Tapping into these communities offers an interesting and unique way of accessing new destinations and experiences across Europe.

For our second video in the series we flew over to Mallorca to visit trans activist Martina who lives on the Balearic island.

When she first moved to the city of Palma, she used social media to bring together her own community of trans people in the local area.

“I think LGBTQ life in Mallorca is more or less the same as a straight person’s,” she told us. “Whether you are gay or trans, it doesn’t really matter. Everybody is super nice and the locals are super open-minded for all – for everybody.

“I built my own little community here in Mallorca through Instagram. I started to search the hashtag #FemaleToMale or #MaleToFemale and then after that we made a little group for trans people. It ranged from people who have just started to people who are 20 years into their transition. Now we are all nice friends.”

While Mallorca is famous for its sun-soaked beach resorts and vibrant nightlife, Martina shows us around the city’s incredible architecture and best spots to eat and drink.

“As a local I love to show off the cathedral to anyone who comes here,” she explained. “Palma’s a beautiful city with all of the old buildings and a place to enjoy all the good food.”

She adds that “you can enjoy Friday night in a disco,” but there’s also a rich history for tourists to discover and experience by exploring the city. “I came to Mallorca for a weekend,” she concluded, “and now it’s my home.”