Palma Cathedral (La Seu)

Palma Cathedral, known in Mallorca as La Seu, is the Gothic cathedral of Santa Maria on the seafront of Palma, built on top of the old city walls next to the Almudaina Palace. You reach it on foot from the old town or along the Parc de la Mar, with underground car parks and city bus stops within about 250 m. Inside are one of the largest Gothic rose windows, a nave about 44 m high, Antoni Gaudí’s early 20th-century reordering and Miquel Barceló’s ceramic chapel. It suits anyone visiting Palma; even if you skip the paid visit, the outside from the seafront is free.

Quick facts

• Names: Palma Cathedral or Mallorca Cathedral in English; La Seu in Mallorcan Catalan; officially the Cathedral-Basilica of Santa Maria of Palma (Catedral de Santa María de Palma de Mallorca).
• Where: Plaça de l’Almoina s/n, 07001 Palma, between the Royal Palace of La Almudaina and the Bishop’s Palace, above the Parc de la Mar.
• Coordinates: 39.5674, 2.6481.
• Built: begun after the conquest of 1229 on the site of the main mosque of Madina Mayurqa; the main door was finished in 1601, the year the church was consecrated.
• Size: 121 m long; nave about 44 m high; the main rose window is about 13.8 m across and nearly 150 m² (Spanish Wikipedia).
• Bell tower: 47.8 m high, with nine bells; the largest, N’Eloi, is 2 m across and weighs 4,517 kg.
• Status: minor basilica since 1905; declared a historic-artistic monument in 1931.
• Contact: +34 971 71 31 33, info@catedraldemallorca.org (Spain’s tourism site).

Getting there

On foot: the cathedral stands at the seaward edge of Palma’s old town, a short walk from the Passeig del Born and the Plaça de la Reina. The Almudaina Palace is right next to it, and the Arab Baths about 300 m away (Spain’s tourism site).

By bus: OpenStreetMap shows city bus stops named Plaça de la Reina (Catedral) about 230 m away and Parc de la Mar – Catedral about 260 m away, run by the Palma municipal bus company (EMT).

Parking: OpenStreetMap shows two paid underground car parks within about 230 m: Parc de la Mar, below the park by the sea, and one under the Avinguda d’Antoni Maura. Street parking in the old town is scarce.

What to see

The building: Spain’s tourism site calls it a jewel of Gothic architecture overlooking the sea. It has three naves of very different height, no transept and no ambulatory, with tall, slim octagonal pillars and banks of flying buttresses outside. The Royal Chapel at the east end, built between 1314 and 1327, holds the tombs of Kings James II and James III of Mallorca beside a white marble bishop’s throne of 1346 (Wikipedia).

The rose window: the great east rose, set above the altar rather than over the entrance, is about 13.8 m in diameter and contains a six-pointed star. English Wikipedia ranks it the second-largest Gothic rose window in the world, after Strasbourg’s.

The doors: the south door facing the sea, the Portal del Mirador, has some of the finest carving on the building, with a Last Supper scene and work by Guillem Sagrera among others. The main west doorway was built by Miquel Verger between 1594 and 1601. The rest of the west front was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style from 1854 because of structural problems.

Gaudí: between 1904 and 1914 Antoni Gaudí reordered the interior. He moved the choir stalls out of the middle of the nave to the sides of the Royal Chapel, opened up bricked-in windows and hung a large canopy over the altar; the one you see is a model of the intended final version. Josep Maria Jujol and Joaquín Torres García worked with him, and the project stopped in 1914 after disputes.

Barceló: from 2001 to 2006 the Mallorcan artist Miquel Barceló remade the Chapel of Sant Pere at the end of the south nave. He covered about 300 m² of wall in painted ceramic showing the miracle of the loaves and fishes and sea life, designed the altar and furnishings, and added 12 m grisaille windows meant to evoke light under the sea. The work drew strong criticism at the time.

Opening hours and tickets

We could not open the cathedral’s own website from our research tools, so check opening times and prices at catedraldemallorca.org before you go. Spain’s tourism site links to the official online ticket sales. As a guide only, OpenStreetMap (last checked by its contributors in December 2025) lists visiting hours of Monday to Friday 10:00–17:15 from April to October and 10:00–15:15 from November to March, and Saturday 10:00–14:15. OpenStreetMap lists no Sunday visiting hours; it is a working church.

• Toilets: free public toilets, one of them wheelchair accessible, are mapped just east of the building.
• Organ: the great organ was built in 1795–1797 inside a case from 1477 and has 54 stops.

Accessibility

Best time to visit

Go at opening time or late in the visiting day to avoid the busiest hours, and pick a sunny morning to see light through the rose window and Barceló’s chapel. The outside is at its best from the Parc de la Mar and the seafront promenade, especially at dusk.

Nearby alternatives

• Puerto Portals, 8 km away: a marina in Portals Nous, west of Palma.
• Aqualand El Arenal, 12 km away: a large water park east of the city.
• Mirador de Ses Ànimes, 18 km away: a viewpoint over the sea at Banyalbufar.
• Port de Sóller, 26 km away: the harbour of Sóller on the north-west coast.
• Sa Dragonera, 28 km away: the island off Sant Elm, Andratx.

Distances are in a straight line from the cathedral.

FAQ

Is it worth going inside Palma Cathedral?

Yes, for the rose window, Gaudí’s work around the altar and Barceló’s ceramic chapel. If you are short of time, the outside and the view from the Parc de la Mar are free.

What are the opening hours of Palma Cathedral?

OpenStreetMap lists weekdays from 10:00 (to 17:15 in April–October and 15:15 in November–March) and Saturdays 10:00–14:15. Confirm on catedraldemallorca.org, as hours change.

What did Gaudí do in Palma Cathedral?

Between 1904 and 1914 he moved the choir out of the nave, opened windows and designed the canopy over the altar, among other changes.

Where can I park near Palma Cathedral?

In the paid underground car parks at Parc de la Mar or Antoni Maura, both about 200–230 m away. City buses stop at Plaça de la Reina.

How old is Palma Cathedral?

Building began after 1229 and the main door was finished in 1601. The west front was rebuilt in the 19th century and the interior changed by Gaudí in the early 20th.

Sources and freshness