Palma

Palma de Mallorca is one of the great surprises of the Mediterranean. The Balearic capital — often reduced to a stopover on the way to the beach or a cruise port of call — richly deserves a stay of its own. Within a few square kilometres it concentrates an exceptional architectural heritage, a flourishing gastronomic scene and an authentic neighbourhood life that hurried travellers never discover.

The city's absolute symbol is the cathedral La Seu, a masterpiece of southern Gothic perched on a promontory above the sea since the 13th century. Catalan architects, and later Antoni Gaudí (who worked on the interior from 1904 to 1914), shaped a building that is both monumental and luminous: its main façade, its soaring flying buttresses and its 12-metre rose window make it one of the most spectacular cathedrals in Europe. Inside, the late-afternoon light filters through the stained glass and bathes the nave in an unforgettable golden glow.

Adjacent to the cathedral, the Almudaina Palace — once the residence of the Kings of Aragon and still the official Balearic residence of the Spanish royal family — is a 14th-century Arab-Gothic palace of rare elegance, with inner courtyards, state rooms and sea-facing gardens. The Llotja, a 15th-century Gothic exchange with its twisted columns, is another civil medieval masterpiece.

Palma is then best explored on foot through its historic quarters: the Casc Antic (old town), the Arab-origin neighbourhood of Es Puig de Sant Pere with its winding lanes — remnants of the original medina — and the Passeig del Born, the main boulevard lined with boutiques, cafés and early 20th-century Modernista architecture. The Mercat de l'Olivar, the island's largest covered market, is the living heart of Palma's food culture: Balearic charcuterie, fresh ensaimadas, local cheeses and Mediterranean fish side by side in the atmosphere of a proper neighbourhood market.

Within an hour of Palma, the Serra de Tramuntana unfolds — reachable by vintage train to Sóller (1912, 45 minutes, one of the Mediterranean's great railway journeys), then by tram to the port. The village of Valldemossa, where Chopin spent the winter of 1838-39 with George Sand, is 17 km north. And the wild beach of Es Trenc, 45 km south-east, offers 4 km of preserved white sand facing the turquoise water that is Mallorca's signature.