Four great areas to wander in Palma, Mallorca
There are lots of fun things to see walking around this beautiful city and a number of cool neighborhoods. Here were some of our...
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Mallorca
This is the largest of the Balearic Islands which are an automatous region of Spain. During the summer months it's a popular destination due to its gorgeous beaches as well as opportunities to get into the amazing blue water. The climate is Mediterranean so even during the winter it's typically sunny and pleasant. There are two mountain areas which run along the northwestern side that have wonderful hiking trails and are also popular for road biking. The island has plenty of small picturesque stone villages as well as beautiful coves and miles of coastline. Scenic drives take you past lots of beautiful stone walls, olive & almond groves, villages filled with Spanish architecture, sheep, goats, farms, narrow roads and hills adorned with stone churches.
Some things we love:
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Pretty hiking trails
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Mountain villages
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Stone buildings
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Beautiful coastline
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Variety of terrain
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Olive groves
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Stone walls & terraces
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That water color!
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Winter hiking
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Goats
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Friendly people
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Pretty coves
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Spanish culture
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Gorgeous sand beaches
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Mild winter temperatures
The island is big–62 miles from east to west and 46 miles from north to south–so we're using these regions to make it easier to see the main areas to explore.
Getting here:
The major airlines operate into Palma de Mallorca Airport with multiple daily flights and this is the fastest way to reach the island. There are also ferries that depart from various cities in Spain.
Transportation:
The best way to really experience the island is with a car as distances between areas can take over an hour to drive. During the winter months car rental prices were inexpensive.
Language barriers: The official languages here are Castilian Spanish and Catalán but we found we could converse in English most of the time and used Google translate when needed.
Costs:
They use euros here and we found costs to be moderate in this destination as far as lodging, eating out, entrance fees and such. Most of the activities we did were outdoors and free.
Best Time to Visit:
The climate here is Mediterranean. From June to September it is mostly hot, dry and sunny averaging in the 80's, making it a popular time to visit if you want to get in the water. Spring and Fall gets a little bit more rain but not a ton and high temperatures are mostly in the 60's. Dec-March remain fairly dry and cool averaging upper 50's low 60's making these times perfect for hiking and cycling.
Helpful Weather Planning App
We have the Ventusky app loaded on our phones and use it all the time as we travel because we can see all sorts of weather information in a map view and by time of day: cloud cover, wind, sun, rain, etc. We found that by checking it we could see what parts of the island were going to have better conditions for something we wanted to do and as a result we had the best weather possible for our outings.
Travel Tips
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Pack clothing layers that can be easily changed and carried with you as the weather is changeable and varies a lot from sun to shade.
- Use a bag or purse that has a zipper or can be fastened closed for security. We use a day pack that also works well for hiking.
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Pack a water bottle unless you want to pay for water.
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Have some euros in change for public restrooms around swimming areas.
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Bring hiking shoes (and water shoes) that can handle rocks as the terrain here is very rocky all over the island.
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Bring your road bike or rent one as there are lots of great places to cycle as long as you're not afraid to share the narrow curvy roads with cars.
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Bring collapsible grocery bags with you or save the ones you get charged, the first time you shop, so you can re-use them.
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Bring primary and backup credit cards that have no foreign transaction fees and a good exchange rate and then always opt to pay in the local currency instead of dollars because the point-of-sale exchange rate if you pay in USD is consistently bad. We use Chase Sapphire Preferred as our primary credit card, which also provides rental car insurance.
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Bring a primary and backup debit card with low or no ATM fees. We use Capital One 360 and Charles Schwab, with Capital One as our primary debit card because the app and website are so much easier and quicker. But the Schwab debit card actually reimburses ATM fees worldwide, although you won't see the reimbursement until the end of each billing cycle.
Palma
Palma, the capital, is located at the Bay of Palma and is a bustling, large city of 400K, nearly half the population of the entire island. Beautiful Old Town is filled with narrow walkways, shops, eateries, wonderful architecture and is great for wandering. The city also has museums, a cathedral, palace and other historical things to see. There are several interesting things to see near the city as well.
Palma
Southwest
The foothills of the Tramuntana mountains extend down to this part of the island so there are some hiking trails. We saw lots of road cyclists in this area. Some of the towns here are known for their nightlife. Celebrity homes and vacation rentals of all kinds dot the area. You can also find small, pretty fishing villages, coves, beaches and great scenic drives.
Southwest
West
This part of the island is gorgeous with small stone villages dotting the Serra de Tramuntana mountain range which slopes down to the water. It has a much more rustic and rural feel with country homes scattered along the foothills covered with terraced gardens. The entire mountain range, which has been reserved as a nature preserve, was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2011 and offers the most hiking trails on the island. The roads are often narrow and winding and the area is very green.
West
North
The northern region continues to include the beautiful mountains as well as two wonderful peninsulas: Cap de Formentor and Alcúdia. These both have great hiking opportunities and can be less crowded than other more well known tourist areas. There are resorts as well as small pretty Old Town parts of villages mixed in with lots of beaches and coves. Some of the roads are really beautiful to drive through this area.
North
Northeast
Beautiful beaches, small coves, caves and pretty little inland villages fill this region. It has some great hiking trails and areas to take scenic drives. Several resorts and more well known beaches are in this area as well as vacation homes of all sizes. Some of the villages are upscale catering to beach travelers from around the world with their shops and restaurants.
Northeast
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