Tossals Verds, the first hostel integrated into the network of shelters of the Consell de Mallorca, celebrated its 30th anniversary this Sunday with a festive day that included various commemorative activities open to the public.
In a press release, the Consell has reported on the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the opening of the Tossals Verds shelter, located in the Serra de Tramuntana. The festive day included various commemorative activities open to the public. Tossals Verds is the first mountain hostel in operation integrated into the shelter network managed by the institution, which currently has a total of seven establishments distributed along the Ruta de Pedra en Sec (GR-221).
The second vice president of the Consell and insular councilor of Environment, Rural Environment, and Sports, Pedro Bestard, presided over the commemorative events, accompanied by the mayor of Escorca, Antoni Solivellas; the insular director of Environment, Luis Rubí, and the head of the Environment service, Josep Antoni Aguiló. Retired staff and current employees of the shelter, as well as a large group of hikers, also attended.
To mark this milestone, the Department of Environment organized a guided group excursion to the shelter, which followed a section of the D variant of the Ruta de Pedra en Sec, Castell d’Alaró-Tossals Verds, with about 70 hikers taking part.
The commemorative event included a special institutional recognition of retired individuals who have worked at Tossals Verds during its 30-year history. Francisca Amengual Colomillo, the first cook at the shelter; Josep Munar, the first guard, and Antoni Colomar, the promoter of the mountain hostel, were honored.
During the celebration, the insular councilor of Environment thanked «the attendees of the event and, especially, all those who have contributed in the consolidation of the network of shelters that are part of the Consell Mallorca, offering high standards of quality, safety, and services to thousands of hikers and mountaineers from around the world over these three decades.»
«We started 30 years ago with the opening of Tossals Verds, and today we can proudly say that this year we will surpass half a million overnight stays in the shelters of Mallorca. It is a source of satisfaction that encourages us to continue working to defend the conservation and care of the environment, which is undoubtedly one of the roles played by these types of facilities,» stated Pedro Bestard.
Subsequently, Bestard visited and inaugurated the photographic exhibition commemorating the 30th anniversary of Tossals Verds, which is installed in the meeting room and offers a retrospective journey from its beginnings. The exhibition can be visited throughout the 2025 hiking season.
30 YEARS OF HISTORY
Tossals Verds was the first shelter in the Balearic Islands attended by a guard and providing accommodation and meals services, similar to those already operating in the main mountains of Europe, such as the Pyrenees or the Alps.
In 1995, the Tossals Verds shelter was opened in the municipality of Escorca, located on the estate of the same name, which was acquired by the Consell de Mallorca in 1996. Initially, it had 30 places, and with the renovation, expansion, and improvement works carried out in 2015, it increased to 42. Since its opening, Tossals Verds has accumulated over 115,000 overnight stays, and in total, the seven shelters in the network have exceeded 460,000 stays.
Since then, the number of operating facilities has gradually increased. The rest of the shelters that make up the network, with their respective year of entry into service, are: Muleta (2001), Can Boi (2006), So n’Amer (2007), Pont Romano (2007), Coma den Vidal (2017), and Galatzó (2023).