To see Palma in a day, go between Tuesday and Friday: on Sundays the cathedral is closed to sightseeing and on Mondays the Almudaina palace shuts. Start at La Seu at 10:00, when it opens, cross to the palace opposite, leave the afternoon for the old town and finish at Bar Ábaco, which opens at 20:00.
01Which day to go: the calendar matters more than the map
The two monuments on the bay stand a hundred metres apart and don't open on the same days. The cathedral takes visitors Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 17:15 in summer and until 15:15 in winter; on Saturdays from 10:00 to 14:15; on Sundays, not at all. The Almudaina opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 19:00 from April to September and until 18:00 from October to March, with the ticket office closing an hour earlier. On a Monday you only get the cathedral, on a Sunday only the palace, and on a Saturday the cathedral in the morning. Tuesday to Friday fits both comfortably.
The second filter is the port. Palma takes at most three cruise ships a day, and only one of them can carry more than 5,000 passengers: that is the 2022 agreement between the Balearic government and the cruise lines, renewed in February 2026 until 2031, which from 2027 also lowers the average to 7,500 cruise passengers a day between June and September. Even with the cap, the day a big ship docks you notice it around La Seu and the Born. The port authority publishes its forecast of ship calls up to three months ahead on its «ships in port» page: check it before you pick the day.
0210:00 · La Seu, as it opens
You go in through the museum on Plaça de la Seu, and a standard ticket is €10 including the museum. The central nave is about 44 metres high, one of the tallest in Europe, and inside are the two interventions that explain the building: Gaudí's, in the early twentieth century, and Miquel Barceló's Chapel of the Holy Sacrament. First thing, with the morning light coming through the rose window, is when it looks best and when it's least crowded.
In season you can go up to the terraces: €25, in one-hour slots leaving every half hour, across the flying buttresses up to the bell tower. It is the best view of the bay in the centre, and it's booked on the cathedral's website. Allow an hour and a half for all of it.
03Midday · The Almudaina, right opposite
The royal palace is across the square, on top of the old sea wall. A standard ticket is €8, or €16 with a Patrimonio Nacional guide. On Wednesdays and Sundays from 15:00 to 19:00 (18:00 in winter) it's free for EU citizens and residents, but those tickets are only issued at the ticket office and there's a queue.
If you visited years ago, it's worth going back: it closed for the first half of 2026 to finish its restoration, and in July it opened a new route and, for the first time, the Queen's Palace. An hour is enough, and then it's time for lunch in the centre.
04Afternoon · The old town, slowly
Between the cathedral, Plaça Major and the Born is the part of Palma that doesn't make the bay photos: narrow streets, long-standing family shops, and the courtyards of the old town houses, which you can see from the doorway when the gate is open. There's no order to follow here; it's the part of the day for walking and going in wherever you like.
If you want the view from above, Bellver Castle, the round castle on the hill over the city, is a few minutes away by car. On foot from the centre it's a long climb; by car or with a driver, it's a half-hour stop before sunset.
0520:00 · Bar Ábaco, as it opens
It's at number 1 Carrer de Sant Joan, in a seventeenth-century mansion full of flowers, antiques and candles, and it opens at 20:00. It doesn't take table bookings, so people queue before the doors open; arrive at opening time and you're in, with your pick of the courtyard. Cocktails are around €17. You come for the place, not the menu.
06On foot, by car or with a concierge
Palma's historic centre has restricted-access zones for cars, and parking near the cathedral is hard work, so a hire car gets you there and not much further. Everything in this article except Bellver is done on foot.
The private Palma experience runs four hours with hotel pick-up, in a van with driver and concierge: La Seu, the Almudaina, the old town and a cocktail at Ábaco. It costs €550 for one to three people and €620 for four to six, per vehicle; for a couple, €275 each. An extra hour is €110. With the opening times above, the start time depends on the day and the season: we suggest it when you enquire. The proposal sets out what's included; as a rule, what you eat and drink is extra.
What is the best day to see Palma in one day?
Tuesday to Friday. On Sundays the cathedral is closed to sightseeing and on Mondays the Almudaina palace shuts; on Saturdays the cathedral only opens in the morning, 10:00 to 14:15. Check the port authority's cruise forecast too: on days with a big ship in port, the centre is busier.
How much does it cost to visit Palma cathedral and the Almudaina?
The cathedral is €10 for a standard ticket with the museum, or €25 with the terraces in season. The Almudaina is €8 standard or €16 with a Patrimonio Nacional guide; on Wednesdays and Sundays from 15:00 to 19:00 it's free for EU citizens and residents, at the ticket office only.
What time does Palma cathedral open?
At 10:00. In summer sightseeing runs Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 17:15 and in winter until 15:15; on Saturdays from 10:00 to 14:15. There are no sightseeing visits on Sundays. The entrance is through the museum on Plaça de la Seu.
Can you book a table at Bar Ábaco?
No. Ábaco, at Carrer de Sant Joan 1, doesn't take bookings and opens at 20:00; people queue before it opens. Arrive at opening time and you'll get in without much of a wait and can choose a spot in the courtyard.
How much is a private tour of Palma?
The private Palma experience lasts four hours, with hotel pick-up, driver and concierge, and costs €550 for one to three people and €620 for four to six. The price is per vehicle; an extra hour is €110. Food and drinks are extra.
