Mallorca is a destination you don’t want to miss. After spending 6 days here, I wrote a Budget Travel Guide to Mallorca to help maximize your experience. During high season (August,) over crowded beaches and finding parking spots can really put a damper to your vacation. Mallorca is a large island so you’ll want to plan ahead so you don’t miss the hot spots!

Flights from Barcelona are fairly cheap. Accommodations range from $40 – $400/night. The car rental cost $70 for 5 days. We spent an average of 35€ – 40€ per person in almost every meal. Furthermore, we rented a boat for the day to split between a group of 7 friends. Below is a breakdown of my budget travel costs.

Travel Cost Breakdown – Flights to Mallorca

BCN –> PMI (Palma de Mallorca) Vueling Airlines: $75 USD round trip
Azuline Hotel Palmanova Garden: $121 USD/night + 2.20€ tax per person/night
Car Rental: Wiber (off airport location) 5 day rental for $71 USD
Boat Rental: 395€ for 7 passenger boat

Where To Stay in Mallorca

Azuline Hotel Palmanova Garden:

$121 USD/night + 2.20€ tax per person/night
This hotel is located in Calvia, away from party central in Magaluf. Based on reviews of properties in Magaluf, that area is an epic area for partying. Loud music blaring all night and drunks roaming the streets is something I do not want to deal with.

This hotel was nice and quiet and included a free breakfast buffet. In short, it’s conveniently located 5 minutes walking from the beach and restaurants. Although renting refrigerator and a safe is extra money, the positive side is in the event you have a late flight departure,  a 30 minute complimentary room is available to freshen up FREE of charge!

Transportation

Car Rental: Wiber (Off Airport Location)

5 day rental for $71 USD + 700€ hold on credit card (if you decline insurance) and 57€ deposit for gas. You must have your International Divers Permit and most cars are manual transmission.

Tip: To find car rentals I use the search engines: DoYouSpain.com, RentalCars.com, HolidayAutos.com. The best option is to select unlimited miles with Fuel Full to Full policy. Avoid GoldCar at all costs! They scam you into getting insurance upon signing paperwork without your knowledge.

If your car rental company is an off airport location, upon exiting the arrivals and out the doors head down Aisle 3 toward the parking garage and that’s where the shuttles will pick you up.

Boat Rental Budget Travel Guide to Mallorca

The search engine ClickandBoat.com provided many quotes. The company “SmartBoatsMallorca.com” was the best option. 7 passenger boat for 395€ + 45€ for gas. A skipper is additional 200€. Luckily our friend had a license and saved us that money.

Next, a 20 minute drive from Calvia to Port d’Andratx and we were ready for departure. We sailed about 35 minutes to Cala de Ses Ortigues (not accessible by car) and hung out there all day.

My Personal Reviews of Calas/Beaches & Restaurants

Cala Mago

This is the first cala we went to. Arriving early to get a decent parking spot is highly suggested. As you walk down to the water you have a choice of going left or right. Right is a nude beach so we chose left. Chair rentals are 4.50€ for the whole day and there’s a little beach bar. I love that there was tons of shade yet many spots in the sun. Want a little lunch? Check out the next place.

El Mago Restaurant 

A group of 7 of us were able to score a last minute table but reservations are highly recommended. The seafood platters are huge portions. I’d say we spent around 35€ per person including drinks. Budget Travel Guide to Mallorca

S’Esponja Restaurant 

Beautiful sunset views and okay food. The surrounding area is very lively and it’s paid parking. Food was overpriced….talking about an 18€ store bought hummus plate.

Ses Covetes Beach 

Extremely difficult to find parking so get there early. There are two sides. If you are walking down facing the water, the left side has pretty clear water and tons of places to lay out. The right side unfortunately was full of stinky dead seaweed.

La Mar De Bo Restaurant 

Came here for lunch after hanging out at the beach. We mostly ordered seafood and again, it was alright. Nothing amazing.

Playa De Muro 

Big parking area as well as street parking. Nice sandy beach but lots of seaweed near the wooden boardwalk from which you can jump off.

Cala Deià 

We drove 1 hour to get there and I was so disappointed. The last 15 minutes of the drive is through a very scary windy and narrow road. There’s parking but you have to pay 1 € per hour or 6 € for the whole day. We walked down to the cala and yes it’s a beautiful view but that was it! No place to lay down since it was all rocks. After 2 minutes of taking photos we left and gave away our parking slip. I do NOT recommend coming here.

Other Places To See

Puente Natural 

There’s a beach, a beautiful cala, and the highlight is the natural arch. To get there is a journey. Park at “Fig Parking Place” and it’s about a 35 minute walk down to the beach. Once you reach the beach there’s a little beach bar that sells water, drinks and sandwiches. Then you can walk around to the left to see the cala and if you continue you will see the natural arch (approximately a 15 minute hike)

Es Pontàs 

Another beautiful natural arch but easy to reach. From parking to the view point is a 5 minute walk.

Mirador Pollenca

 Because we got turned away for the access road to the lighthouse, we decided to check out this busy view point. There’s a parking lot but during high season you might have to park on the adjacent street or somewhere along the road.

Places That I Missed

Lighthouse of Cap De Formentor 

I wish someone had told me that the road to the lighthouse is closed to the public from 10 am – 7 pm. We arrived at the spot where the road starts to get windy around 10:30 am and we got turned away. Only tour buses and cyclists were allowed in. So if you plan on going make sure to arrive before 10 am or go for the sunset after 7 pm.

Valldemossa & Deià are quaint little towns where you can stop

Cathedral de Santa Maria – Gothic Roman Catholic Church

Sa Calobra 

By the looks on google maps this place is highly rated but to get there you have to drive through a very windy road and good luck finding parking!

Torre del Verger – beautiful viewpoint

There were a lot of places that I missed but overall I got to really enjoy my time at the locations that we did get to see. With flights being quite inexpensive from Barcelona, I’ll just have to make another trip…but definitely during OFF SEASON.

If you want to explore other parts of Spain, please check out my other Spain destinations here.

Budget Travel Guide