Excursions and tours in Palma de Mallorca: how to choose well

If you're looking for Palma de Mallorca tours and excursions, the choice is overwhelming: hundreds of tours that are often the same product resold by three websites at three different prices. The good news is that almost everything fits into four types, and in each there's a cheap do-it-yourself option and a comfortable booked one.

We don't repeat the guides to each place here: we give you the map to decide. Which type of tour suits you, what it should cost, what happens with hotel pick-up and when the operator direct is cheaper than the platform. At the end you'll find the most-booked excursions and links to all our guides.

Types of excursions and tours in Palma

A tip for reading the listings: a platform's price is rarely "the" price. In many cases the operator sells the same thing direct, sometimes cheaper and sometimes for the same. We show examples below.

City tours: on foot, by sightseeing bus or by bike

You don't need to spend much on the old town. The free tours on the GuruWalk platform last about 2 hours and run on tips: you pay at the end what you think is fair (the platform suggests €15 to €50 per person). Many leave from the Parc de la Mar, opposite the tourist office; the one with the orange umbrella is Mallorca Free Tour. If you book and can't make it, cancel: the guide pays a fee for every person signed up.

Paid tours in the city's official directory range from €35 (3 h on foot) to €40 (75-minute Segway, over-12s); a private guide costs about €180 for a group of up to 15. Palma's by-laws limit guided groups to 20 people, which you notice in narrow streets. Tip: take the tour on a weekday morning and visit the cathedral afterwards, because the route ends nearby and on Sunday it's closed to sightseeing.

The sightseeing bus has a single operator, City Sightseeing: 19 stops, 10:00 to 17:30, every 30 minutes until 14:30 and every 45 after that. GetYourGuide, Tiqets and Headout resell the same product, so only the price and conditions change. If you want Bellver Castle, get on before 16:30. For bikes, see bike and scooter: the public BiciPalma scheme isn't open to tourists.

Boat excursions from Palma

Boat trips leave from two piers 1.5 km apart, and mixing them up is the most common mistake:

• Muelle de las Golondrinas, on the Passeig Marítim opposite the Auditòrium: day catamarans, sunset and dolphin trips.
• Escala Real, below the cathedral next to Sa Llotja: the Mallorca City Boat panoramic cruise (€19, 55 min, Monday to Saturday) and some luxury catamarans.

Direct reference prices: Magic Catamarans runs the 5-hour trip with a barbecue for €59 (€74 for the Plus version, maximum 35 passengers) and a sunset sail for €20. The bay catamarans anchor off the Llucmajor coast (Cova Verda, Cap Rocat, Cala Vella). Dolphins: Palma Cruises, 3 hours, €55 at the pier or €65 with transfer, and 10% less online. All of it in dolphins and Cabrera, the longest day trip by sea (€90 from the bay with Life & Sea).

Island excursions from Palma

The three most-booked inland excursions from Palma are the Caves of Drach, the Serra de Tramuntana (Valldemossa, Deià, Sóller) and the round-the-island trip by train, tram and boat to Sa Calobra. All three can be done independently by public transport; the guide to day trips from Palma has timetables and buses.

The half-day Drach tour from Palma is sold by Nofrills, an agency in Port d'Alcúdia that resells local operators: roughly 09:20–14:15, with entry, concert, boat ride, coach and guide. Here's how it stands today on each channel:

Headout looks cheapest, but adds a service fee at checkout: compare the final total. If you'd just like to visit another cave in the area, the Coves dels Hams cost the same on the official website as on the platforms:

For the round-the-island trip, the Sa Calobra boat company sells the "on your own" combo for €65 (Tiqets offers it at the same price) and the guided version with pick-up in the south for €78. There are equivalent tours on platforms for more than €100: before paying for them, check what they add. More details in Sóller train and Valldemossa and Deià.

Half day or full day: which suits you

In Palma the coach draws the line. A half day (4–5 hours) covers a single destination: Drach, the Sóller train or a catamaran. A full day (8–10 hours) strings together three or four stops, but a good chunk of it goes on the road.

Our rule: half a day for Drach and for the sea; a full day only when the destination has no easy public transport, such as Sa Calobra by the mountain road or Formentor during the car-restriction season.

Hotel pick-up and meeting points

"With pick-up" doesn't always mean at your hotel door. This is how it works on the most common tours from Palma:

• Areas covered. Free pick-ups only cover certain areas. On the boat company's guided round-the-island tour, for example, the southern zone includes Palma, Illetes, Cala Major, Santa Ponça, Playa de Palma, Can Pastilla, El Arenal, Peguera and Magaluf; the point and days are assigned according to your hotel, and you can book online up to two days before.
• Central meeting point. On Nofrills' Drach tour from Palma, the exact point is emailed after booking. If in doubt, choose the central point: reviews keep complaining about time spent on the coach collecting from hotels (one mentions 2.5 hours before reaching the cave).
• "From the north" or "from the south". Many island tours leave from Alcúdia or Pollença. A tour "from the north" doesn't go through Palma.
• Boats. Palma's catamarans leave from the pier; Magic offers a coach from some coastal areas at extra cost.

Where to book: direct, GetYourGuide, Tiqets or Headout

There's no single answer; it depends on the product. What we do know:

• GetYourGuide (our main partner) usually allows free cancellation up to 24 hours before. With "reserve now, pay later" you don't pay when you book, but the full charge hits your card 72 hours before the activity, not 24.
• Tiqets is strong on tickets and has the round-the-island trip at the official price; you can only cancel if the listing says so.
• Headout adds a service fee at the end and sometimes refunds as platform credit.
• Direct usually wins when the operator publishes its price online: Palma Cruises takes 10% off on its website, the official Sa Calobra combo costs €65 and Nofrills promises to match prices. But careful: many official tickets are non-refundable (Drach, the Sóller train).

We've looked at each platform in its review: GetYourGuide, Tiqets, Headout, Civitatis and Nofrills. For tickets, the price comparison table brings all the matches together.

Shore excursions for cruise passengers in Palma

If you arrive by cruise ship, time rules. The port is 2.7–3.4 km from the cathedral as the crow flies, not 6–8 km as some guides say. EMT 1 links the quays with the centre (every 20 minutes on weekdays and every 25 at weekends, €2 in cash, about 30 minutes). Catch it at its first stop, Dic de l'Oest, if your ship docks there. EMT 30, hourly, drops you at the Parc de la Mar, at the foot of the cathedral. The advertised water bus isn't running.

With a 6–8 hour call, the realistic plan is the city plus a boat on the bay, or half a day at Drach if you don't depend on a coach doing pick-ups. The 10:10 Sóller train only works with long calls. On Saturdays several big ships are in at once and the centre fills up: go in early. It's all in the cruise port guide.

Adventure, sport and special plans

Some excursions don't leave from Palma city, even if it looks that way:

• Buggies: leave from Son Oms, by the airport; drivers over 21, from €240 per buggy. Quads leave from El Arenal (18+). See buggy and quad.
• Jet skis: from Cala Gamba or S'Arenal; without a licence, only on a circuit or a guided tour. See jet ski and speedboat.
• Parasailing: from S'Arenal or Magaluf (water sports).
• Diving: try dives from €115 in Santa Ponça, next to the Malgrats marine reserve (diving).
• Motoring: sports car hire and convoy drives (driving experiences).

If you're travelling with children, as a couple or in a group, there are dedicated guides: with kids, for couples and stag and hen dos. For rainy days, Palma in the rain.

The most-booked excursions from Palma

GetYourGuide

Day trip· Rest of the island

Mallorca: Island Trip by Train, Tramway and Boat

4.4 (1,305)

from €65Check availability

GetYourGuide6 - 8 hours

Day trip· Rest of the island

Valldemossa, Soller & Port Soller Tour by Bus and Tram

4.7 (784)

from €49Check availability

GetYourGuide2.5 hours

Sea· Rest of the island

Mallorca: Caló des Moro and Cala Marmols Boat Tour

4.8 (873)

from €45Check availability

GetYourGuide3 - 6 hours

Sea· Rest of the island

Colonia Sant Jordi: Premium & Fast Boat Tour around Cabrera

4.6 (154)

from €56Check availability

GetYourGuide5 - 6 hours

Day trip· Rest of the island

Mallorca: Exclusive Soller Train and Tram Half-Day Tour

4.4 (381)

from €56Check availability

GetYourGuide4 - 8 hours

Day trip· Rest of the island

Mallorca: Caves of Drach Day Trip & Optional Caves of Hams

4.3 (3,018)

from €56Check availability

See everything on GetYourGuide →Prices checked on 6 October 2026

Our pick

1

First time in Mallorca

Valldemossa, Sóller and Port de Sóller in a day, with bus and tram. Well rated and sensibly priced.

GetYourGuide6 - 8 hours

Day trip· Rest of the island

Valldemossa, Soller & Port Soller Tour by Bus and Tram

4.7 (784)

from €49Check availability

2

Half a day without a car

Caves of Drach with concert and boat ride, leaving from Palma, back by lunchtime.

GetYourGuide5 hours

Day trip· Rest of the island

Palma: Caves of Drach Entrance, Music Concert and Boat Trip

4.4 (1,492)

from €54Check availability

3

Round the island at your own pace

Train, tram and boat to Sa Calobra for the same price as the official combo.

GetYourGuide

Day trip· Rest of the island

Mallorca: Island Trip by Train, Tramway and Boat

4.4 (1,305)

from €65Check availability

4

Southern coves from the sea

Caló des Moro and Cala Màrmols by boat, without fighting for a parking space.

GetYourGuide2.5 hours

Sea· Rest of the island

Mallorca: Caló des Moro and Cala Marmols Boat Tour

4.8 (873)

from €45Check availability

Island day tripsDay tripsfrom €18.50 Sea and beachesBoat tripsfrom €19 Sights and ticketsWalking toursfrom €28 Island day tripsCaves of Drachfrom €17 Island day tripsSóller trainfrom €49 Island day tripsValldemossa and Deiàfrom €12.50 Island day tripsEs Trenc & Caló des Morofrom €42 Sea and beachesCabrera boat tripfrom €45 Island day tripsPalmanova & aroundfrom €33