Is Palma de Mallorca Worth Visiting? Reasons To Visit and Not

If you’re here, I bet you’re asking yourself: “Is Palma de Mallorca worth visiting?” Then you’re in the right place.

Short answer: Absolutely yes! It’s worth visiting Palma de Mallorca!

But there are pros and cons to all places, and in this post, I’ll break it down for you so you can decide whether it’s the right place for you to visit.

Even though I love the city, I’ll be completely honest about the pros and cons of visiting Palma de Mallorca so that you can make your own decision.

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Is it worth visiting Palma de Mallorca?

Before I start talking about all the reasons to visit Palma de Mallorca, I’ll sum up the pros and cons about visiting the city here, so that you can get an overview and see if it’s worth your time reading on, or if you already know Palma is not for you.

Pros

• Beautiful old town
• Endless art galleries
• Walkable city
• Historical attractions
• Great vegan food scene
• Great base for day trips

Cons

• Costly
• Crowded in high season

Reasons to visit Palma de Mallorca

Beautiful Old Town

Palma Old Town is easily one of the top reasons to visit the city because of its animated vibe. It’s filled with charming, pastel colored houses, cute cafés, art galleries, and historical buildings.

I love all the pedestrian areas, as it’s always relaxing to walk around without the stress of cars. There are cute boutique shops if you’re looking for some great shopping.

Besides, there are so many art galleries with sculptures and paintings that if you’re looking for something truly unique, you’ll find it in Palma’s historic center.

The old town is also where you’ll find the impressive palaces, like the 17th-century Town Hall and the Palau del Consell, and other historical attractions, like the Arab Baths and the magnificent Palma Cathedral.

Walkable city

Palma de Mallorca is a very walkable city, and you can easily walk around to the top attractions. Parts of the old town are pedestrian too, which makes it very relaxing, as you don’t have to worry about cars.

The short distance between most attractions makes it easy to see quite a lot even with one day in Palma de Mallorca, even though I always recommend spending more time in the city if you can, as there’s so much to do.

The only two attractions that are a little outside are the Poble Espanyol and the Castell de Bellver, but both of these are part of the Hop-on-hop-off train, so you can still reach them easily without spending money on a taxi.

Interesting history

Palma de Mallorca has an intriguing history that dates way back, and has left a lot of interesting landmarks.

From the Moors who ruled between the 8th and the 13th centuries and built incredible sites like the Alcazaba (now the Royal Palace of La Almudaina) and the Arab Baths, to the Christian reconquest, which left sites like the majestic Palma Cathedral and a whole lot of opulent palaces.

The kingdom of Mallorca was formed, and after the War of the Spanish Succession in the 1700s, Palma eventually became the capital of the island.

But before all this, the Romans were there. Sometimes, I wonder where the Romans haven’t been.

Great vegan food scene

One of the reasons I love Palma de Mallorca is the fantastic vegan foodie scene. On an island that uses so much pork lard in baked goods that it’s even demanding to be a vegetarian, it’s great to see that there are plenty of vegan-friendly restaurants and cafés popping up.

We enjoyed trying different vegan restaurants in Palma and also found many places with vegan options on and off the menu.

Great base for day trips

Finally, Palma is a fantastic base for your Mallorca itinerary. There are so many amazing day trips you can do from Palma de Mallorca, like to the bays and beaches nearby or some of the prettiest towns in Mallorca, like Deia, Fornalutx, and Valldemossa.

The latter is one of my absolute favorites. There are so many reasons to visit Valldemossa, like the intriguing history, the monastery, Chopin’s Cell, and the magnificent views.

But the most popular day trip from Palma is taking the train to Soller, and further taking the tram to Port de Soller. The historic train is the most scenic way to travel to Soller, though you can get there easily by bus too if you’re on a budget.

There are many things to do in Soller, and you can easily spend the day between the hillside town and Port de Soller, which boasts beautiful beaches in a near-closed bay.

I also love visiting Pollensa in the north of the island, and Alcudia is popular. You should also visit at least one of the many caves in Mallorca. I recommend visiting Drach Cave if you can only do one.

Reasons not to visit Palma

Costly

When looking at the downsides of Palma de Mallorca, I find it very costly compared to other places in Mallorca – and in Spain as a whole.

Coffee, baked goods, ice cream… it all had the little tourist extra on the price, which I guess you notice more as a local in Spain than as a traveler from other countries.

Yet, I think there are other places to base yourself that are better for the wallet if you’re on a budget.

Crowded in high season

On my last trip to Mallorca, I visited in August, which I obviously would never recommend doing. It was very crowded, and I assume it’s generally crowded in the summer.

I think Palma de Mallorca can be a great place to visit in the low season or even the shoulder seasons. I’ve usually always traveled to Mallorca in winter because prices are lower and the crowds are elsewhere.

If you avoid the summer, this can be avoided, and there’s one less con of traveling to Palma. As you can tell, I love the city, but I’m trying my best to be objective here. I actually didn’t enjoy it much when it was too crowded and tourists were bumping into me at every corner.

Conclusion: Is it worth visiting Palma?

Summing up, there are so many reasons to love Palma, though I’m sure you’ve made up your own mind by now whether it’s a match for you or not.

I think the best time to visit Palma de Mallorca is during the winter months, as you avoid the crowds and prices are generally lower.

Happy travels!