Fornells Tower fortress

British-built coastal defence tower above the mouth of Fornells Bay, with a museum inside and a rooftop artillery platform.

The tower stands on the headland at the mouth of Fornells Bay, just outside the fishing village of Fornells on Menorca's north coast. The British military built it between 1801 and 1802, during their final occupation of the island, to guard the deep-water entrance to the harbour. It is one of the largest and best preserved of Menorca's coastal defence towers: a heavily reinforced conical shell of local sandstone, mortar and limestone, ringed by an external defensive ditch. The interior now holds a museum, and a stair leads to the artillery platform on the roof.

Historical landmark

Entrance: Paid: a small entry fee per adult.
Accessibility: Not wheelchair accessible: the entrance has no step-free route, and the roof platform is reached by a narrow stone staircase.
Parking: Car parks about 200 m from the tower, at least one of them free; paid lots and free street parking in Fornells as well.
Difficulty: Easy: about fifteen minutes on a flat paved path from Fornells harbour, then a short rise up the headland; a narrow stair inside leads to the roof.
Transport: Nearest bus stop: Fornells, about 745 m away in a straight line.
Hours: 10:00–16:00 daily, though the tower is not always open within those hours.
Address: Carrer Tramuntana, 125, 07748 Fornells, Illes Balears, Spain

What makes it special

The narrow stone staircase ends on the artillery platform, and from there the island arranges itself around you: flat green water in Fornells Bay with the whitewashed village at its head, and on the other side the open Mediterranean breaking against the red-tinted cliffs of the north coast, with Cape Cavalleria (Cap de Cavalleria) in the distance.

The tower earns its time before you go up. The lower chambers have been restored and given over to displays on how the garrison lived, how the fortress was engineered, and how the ring of similar towers along Menorca's shoreline worked together. The stonework is massive, and it reads that way from the path below — one blunt sandstone drum with a dry ditch cut around it.

Good to know

Opening is unreliable. The tower is not always open within the posted hours — treat the headland and the views as the certain part of the visit.
No drinking water at the tower or nearby; fill a bottle in Fornells before you set out.
Toilets are back towards the village, about 787 m from the tower, and free to use.
Inside means stairs. A narrow stone staircase is the only way up to the roof platform, and the entrance is not step-free.

Getting there

Most people walk out from Fornells harbour. A paved path hugs the shoreline, flat the whole way, and takes about fifteen minutes before a short rise up the grassy headland brings you to the tower. Driving works too: car parks sit about 200 m from the tower, which leaves almost nothing on foot. The nearest bus stop, Fornells, is about 745 m away in a straight line. An information board stands about 671 m from the tower, and the village tourist office, Casa del Contramestre, about 636 m.

Best time to visit

Best: Late afternoon, when the light comes across the bay and the walk out has cooled.

Avoid: The middle of a summer day, and arriving late if you want to get inside.

The headland is bare grass with no shade, so midday in high summer is the hardest part of the visit. The tower closes before sunset, which means the sunset here is watched from outside the walls, on the path or the grass below. The north coast takes the tramuntana, and on a windy day the platform is cold even in warm weather. Fornells fills up when its annual triathlon is held.

Sun & daylight

Castle

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Teatre Principal de Maó