Part of the Balearic Islands guide · Island 1: Mallorca

Mallorca is the largest of the Balearic Islands, in the western Mediterranean; its capital Palma lies on the bay of the same name in the south-west, about 8 km from the island’s airport. The Serra de Tramuntana runs along the north-west coast from Andratx to Cape Formentor, the bays of Pollença and Alcúdia open to the north-east, the east coast is a chain of small coves, and the south has long, low beaches such as Es Trenc (spain.info).

Updated 7 November 2026 · How CostaMap researches its guides

At a glance

• Where the whole island: Palma and its bay, the Tramuntana coast from Sant Elm to Cape Formentor, the bays of Pollença and Alcúdia, the east coast from Cala Ratjada to Cala d’Or, and the south from Colònia de Sant Jordi to S’Arenal.
• Towns Palma; Calvià and Andratx; Valldemossa, Deià and Sóller; Pollença and Alcúdia; Artà and Cala Ratjada; Porto Cristo; Santanyí and Colònia de Sant Jordi.
• Best for a city break with beaches, mountain walking on the GR 221, sheltered family beaches in the north, coves for snorkelling, caves, and a boat trip to Cabrera.
• Getting there Palma airport is about 8 km from the city on the Ma-19, with direct flights to many European cities; ferries link Palma with the other islands, Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante and Dénia (spain.info).

Map of Mallorca

The map shows the places on Mallorca that have a CostaMap page. Tick a place type to filter, and click a marker to see the place in the panel.

Towns and districts

We go round the island clockwise from Palma: the city and its bay, the Tramuntana coast, the northern bays, the east coast and the south. Descriptions are from spain.info, Spain’s official tourism site, and its beach sheets; distances are in a straight line from OpenStreetMap.

Palma old town

Spain.info names the Cathedral, the Almudaina Palace, the Llotja and the main square as the sights not to miss. The cathedral stands on the old city walls, with an interior reworked by Gaudí and a ceramic chapel by Miquel Barceló (spain.info); the Almudaina was built in 1305–1314 as the palace of the kings of Mallorca (spain.info). Shops line the Passeig del Born. See our Palma Cathedral guide and the Palma page.

Santa Catalina

Santa Catalina is the old quarter just west of the walled town. It grew from the fishermen’s settlement of El Jonquet, whose windmills still stand, and keeps low houses with Mallorcan shutters, a covered market selling local produce and the restored Mar i Terra theatre of 1898 (Catalan Wikipedia). Its streets are full of restaurants, and spain.info lists Porta de Santa Catalina among Palma’s eating areas.

Portixol and El Molinar

East of the cathedral, the promenade and cycle lane pass Can Pere Antoni, Palma’s 750 m town beach (spain.info), then reach the old fishing harbour of Es Portixol and El Molinar, a seafaring and working-class quarter about 4 km from the centre, named after the windmills that stood here in the 19th century (Catalan Wikipedia). Ciudad Jardín, further east, has a 450 m beach suited to small children (spain.info).

Bellver, Cala Major and the western bay

West of the centre, the round Bellver Castle that King James II built as a royal residence stands on a wooded hill (spain.info): see our new Bellver Castle guide. Below it, Cala Major has a 200 m town beach (spain.info) and the Pilar and Joan Miró Foundation, where Miró worked from 1956 until 1983 (spain.info).

S’Arenal and the eastern bay

The bay continues south-east past the airport to the Platja de Palma and S’Arenal, where the town of Llucmajor has a marina (spain.info). Families come for Aqualand El Arenal, a seasonal water park.

Calvià: Portals Nous, Magaluf, Santa Ponça and Peguera

Calvià has more than 50 km of coast: exclusive hotels at Illetes, one of the island’s most exclusive marinas at Portals Nous, water sports on the beaches of Palmanova, Magaluf and Santa Ponça, and a quieter Peguera among pines (spain.info). Magaluf’s 950 m beach faces the islet of Sa Porrassa (spain.info). See our Puerto Portals and Western Water Park guides and the Calvià page.

Andratx, Port d’Andratx and Sant Elm

Andratx, 28 km from Palma, lies among pines and almond trees below the Galatzó peak, with watchtowers built against Berber raids. Off Sant Elm, with its 200 m beach (spain.info), lies Sa Dragonera, a nature reserve with more than twenty endemic species (spain.info). See our Port d’Andratx and Sa Dragonera guides and the Andratx page.

Banyalbufar and Estellencs

Here begins the Serra de Tramuntana, a UNESCO cultural landscape of terraces and medieval water systems, with Estellencs and Deià among its historic villages (spain.info). Banyalbufar’s terraced fields drop to the sea, and the Ses Ànimes watchtower is its viewpoint (spain.info). See our Mirador de Ses Ànimes and Serra de Tramuntana guides and the Banyalbufar page.

Valldemossa

Valldemossa, 17 km from Palma, is a village of steep streets and stone houses with green shutters (spain.info). Its Charterhouse, a royal palace of 1309, housed Carthusian monks from 1399 to 1835; Chopin composed his Preludes Op. 28 here and George Sand wrote A Winter in Majorca (spain.info). A road drops to the fishing harbour of Port de Valldemossa. See the Valldemossa page.

Deià and Son Marroig

Deià climbs a hill above the sea and has long drawn painters and writers. Nearby are the monastery of Miramar, where Ramon Llull taught, and Son Marroig, the Archduke Ludwig Salvator’s house and museum (spain.info). For Cala Deià, a cove of rock and gravel, you leave the car about 300 m away (spain.info). See our Mirador de Sa Foradada guide and the Deià page.

Sóller and Port de Sóller

Sóller fills a valley of citrus and olive groves, reached from Palma on the historic train, and has the church of Sant Bartomeu and the Modernista Can Prunera (spain.info); an old tram runs on to Port de Sóller (spain.info). See our Port de Sóller guide and the Sóller and Fornalutx pages.

Sa Calobra, Cala Tuent and Escorca

Below Puig Major (1,445 m), the Ma-2141 winds down to Sa Calobra, a pebble cove with restaurants and a pier for tourist boats (spain.info); Cala Tuent next door is quieter (spain.info). Sa Calobra is the end of the Torrent de Pareis gorge walk.

Pollença, Port de Pollença and Formentor

In Pollença, 365 steps climb the Calvari to a chapel and a Roman bridge crosses the Sant Jordi stream (spain.info). Port de Pollença, about 6 km east, starts the 13.5 km road to Cape Formentor (Wikipedia); Formentor beach has 840 m of white sand (spain.info). See our Mirador Es Colomer and Talaia d’Albercutx guides and the Pollença page.

Alcúdia and Port d’Alcúdia

Alcúdia keeps two gates of its medieval walls and, beside them, the remains of the Roman city of Pollentia, with houses, a theatre and the forum (spain.info). Below the town, Alcúdia beach runs 3,400 m along the bay, backed by pines, with calm water and the Alcudiamar marina (spain.info).

Platja de Muro, S’Albufera and Can Picafort

Platja de Muro has a little under 6 km of white sand and shallow water; its central stretch lies inside S’Albufera natural park, the largest wetland in the Balearics, and lifeguards work in high season (spain.info). More than two hundred bird species can be seen in S’Albufera (spain.info). Can Picafort has a 1,300 m beach (spain.info). See the Muro and Santa Margalida pages.

Artà, Capdepera and Cala Ratjada

Artà is crowned by the walled enclosure of Sant Salvador, with the talaiotic village of Ses Païsses close by (spain.info). Cala Ratjada keeps a fishing-village feel; from its lighthouse you can see Menorca on clear days (spain.info). Its main beach is Cala Agulla (spain.info), and Cala Torta, towards Artà, is wholly unbuilt (spain.info). See the Artà and Capdepera pages.

Cala Millor and Sa Coma

Cala Millor, shared by Son Servera and Sant Llorenç des Cardassar, is the largest resort on the east coast, with a 1.8 km beach (Wikipedia). Sa Coma, just south, has 890 m of fine sand and access for wheelchair users (spain.info). See the Son Servera and Sant Llorenç pages.

Porto Cristo and the Manacor coast

Manacor is the island’s second town; around Porto Cristo, on its coast, are the caves of Drac, Hams and Pirata (spain.info). The Drach Caves tour ends at Lake Martel, one of the largest underground lakes in the world, with a short concert from boats (spain.info). See our Cala Varques guide and the Manacor page.

Cala d’Or, Mondragó and Santanyí

Santanyí has the resort of Cala d’Or, with a small white-sand cove among pines (spain.info), and the Mondragó natural park of dunes, woods and wetland birds, with a visitor centre by the Ses Fonts de n’Alis car park (spain.info). Further south are Cala Llombards (spain.info) and the tiny Caló des Moro. See the Santanyí page.

Colònia de Sant Jordi, Es Trenc and Cabrera

Colònia de Sant Jordi, in Ses Salines, began as a fishing village and became an agricultural colony in 1879 (Catalan Wikipedia). Es Carbó looks out to Cabrera (spain.info), and to the north-west lies Es Trenc, the last undeveloped sandy beach of Mallorca: see our new Es Trenc guide. Boats from the village reach the Cabrera national park. See the Ses Salines and Campos pages.

The Llucmajor coast: Cala Pi and S’Estanyol

Llucmajor has a cliff coast with the coves of Cala Mosques and Cala Pi, a marina at S’Estanyol, 16th-century watchtowers and the prehistoric village of Capocorb Vell (spain.info). See the Llucmajor page.

Inland, the towns of the Pla de Mallorca make easy day trips: see our pages on Petra, Sineu, Algaida, Alaró, Bunyola, Esporles, Felanitx and Porreres.

Beaches and coves

Long sandy bays in the north and south, small calas on the east coast, pebble coves in the mountains (sizes from spain.info).

• Caló des Moro and Cala Varques – small, unbuilt coves on the south-east and east coasts, reached on foot: see the Caló des Moro and Cala Varques guides.
• Formentor – 840 m of white sand with calm water at the foot of the Formentor peninsula, reached by road or boat (spain.info).
• Es Caragol – 500 m of white sand near Cap de ses Salines, reached only on foot or by boat (spain.info).

Things to do

Where to stay by town

The bases we would choose, by part of the island.

Getting there and around

A two-day route

By car, with a night in Palma or Sóller.

FAQ

Other areas of the Balearic Islands

Sources and freshness

Checked 7 November 2026. Spain.info (Turespaña): the destination pages for Palma, Calvià, Andratx, Banyalbufar, Valldemossa, Deià, Sóller, Pollença, Alcúdia, Artà, Cala Ratjada, Manacor and Llucmajor; the pages on Palma airport, the cathedral, the Almudaina, Bellver Castle, the Miró Foundation, the Valldemossa Charterhouse, Art Nouveau Palma, the Serra de Tramuntana, S’Albufera, Mondragó, Cabrera and the Drach Caves; and its beach sheets, linked in the text. Background: Wikipedia on Santa Catalina, El Molinar, Colònia de Sant Jordi, Port de Pollença and Cala Millor. Map data and distances: OpenStreetMap (ODbL). The Balearic tourist board returned server errors and the Consell de Mallorca, Palma city and TIB sites could not be reached, so timetables and opening hours are not given. Photos from Wikimedia Commons: Harald Hoyer (CC BY-SA 2.0); Fedoce1 (CC BY-SA 4.0); King Otto, trolvag, Isiwal, Wolfgang Moroder, Foto Fitti and LANOEL (CC BY-SA 3.0); Nikolai Bakhmarov, Marc Ryckaert, Olaf Tausch, anibal amaro and Emanuela Meme Giudici (CC BY 3.0); MARIA ROSA FERRE (CC BY-SA 2.0); Fullet (CC0).