Poblat de Son Catlar

The wall is the thing to see. Huge blocks of stone, set without mortar, run right round the settlement, and they stand well enough that you can walk the line of the defences and read the outline of the town on the ground. Until the Romans conquered Menorca, the people who built this were the island's dominant culture, and the scale of the wall shows it.

Inside, the ground is a jumble of house walls, talaiots and the enclosure of a taula sanctuary, partly overgrown. Signboards along the route explain each part as you reach it, and an hour covers the site at an easy pace. There are no guides and no ticket office, and on a quiet day you can have the whole place to yourself.

• There are no toilets and no drinking water at the site, and none nearby. Bring water, especially in summer.
• No guides or staff are on site. Signboards along the route explain what you are looking at.
• Parts of the inner area are overgrown, so wear closed shoes and long trousers.
• Allow about an hour to follow the signed route round the site.

Son Catlar lies in open countryside near Ciutadella, and most visitors come by car. The car park is about 230 m from the site in a straight line; from there you continue on foot and pick up the signed route round the walls.

By public transport it is harder. The nearest bus stops, Son Morro and Son Cabrisas, are both about 2.9 km away in a straight line, which leaves a long walk along country roads at the end.

Best: early morning or late afternoon, in spring or autumn. Avoid: the middle of the day in high summer.

The site is open ground with no water and no toilets, and the midday sun in a Menorcan summer makes an hour among the stones hard going; low light in the morning and evening also brings out the texture of the wall.