Es Princep - The Leading Hotels of the World

Es Princep occupies a prime position along Palma's historic waterfront, where the honey-toned stone ramparts of the old quarter meet the calm Mediterranean. This is La Calatrava, a neighbourhood of narrow cobbled streets and Gothic arches, where the cathedral's vast sandstone facade rises above the Parc de la Mar and morning light strikes the bay in flat, golden sheets. The property sits steps from the palm-lined Passeig Marítim and the medieval lanes that wind toward Plaza Mayor, a location that places guests within the pulse of Palma's living history: Renaissance palaces converted to private homes, artisan workshops tucked behind carved wooden doors, the scent of sobrasada and almonds drifting from corner bakeries.

Palma itself is no mere beach resort but the working capital of the Balearics, a city where 13th-century merchants' mansions stand alongside galleries showing contemporary Mallorcan artists. The cathedral, La Seu, dominates the skyline, its rose window flooding the interior with coloured light each dawn. Beyond the old quarter, the island unfolds: the UNESCO-listed Serra de Tramuntana mountains to the northwest, their terraced slopes testament to millennia of agriculture, and eastward the calmer bays and fishing villages of the coast.

Palma de Mallorca Airport lies seven kilometres east, connected to the city by taxi or bus in under twenty minutes, delivering arrivals directly into the warmth and light that have drawn visitors here since the Romans founded Palmaria two thousand years ago.

The on-site Zaranda holds one Michelin star, where Fernando Pérez Arellano stages creative, multi-course dinners in a dining room that opens separately onto the street, allowing non-guests to discover his inventive work with Mallorcan ingredients. Book a table at DINS Santi Taura, just 200 metres away on the ground floor of El Llorenç Parc de la Mar, where the chef reimagines traditional island recipes with modern precision (one star). Marc Fosh, tucked along a narrow lane in a converted 17th-century seminary less than a kilometre from the property, delivers refined modern cooking rooted in regional produce, another single-starred experience worth the short walk.

The Mercat de l'Olivar, central Palma's covered market, sprawls 900 metres inland, its stalls piled with glistening sardines, ruby tomatoes, and baskets of capers and pickled guindilla peppers. Punta des Gas, a sandy cove, lies 300 metres along the waterfront for unhurried swimming in clear, shallow water. The Serra de Tramuntana, a 19-kilometre drive northwest, rewards walkers with ancient stone-walled trails, olive groves, and views over terraced valleys that have remained largely unchanged for centuries. Several wineries, including Macià Batle and Sebastià Pastor, offer tastings among the vines 13 to 14 kilometres from the city.

July and August blaze hot and dry, temperatures pushing close to 29°C, the streets quieter in the siesta hours as locals retreat indoors and the light turns white and hard. June and September offer the best balance: warm days in the mid-twenties, long evenings on terrace tables, the sea still warm enough for swimming without the peak-season crowds.

Autumn arrives with sudden downpours in October, the island turning green again after the dry summer, the air smelling of wet stone and pine. Winter is mild, daytime highs around 14 to 15°C, the city regaining its local rhythm as tourists thin out, though occasional rain sweeps in from the sea.

Spring blooms early, almond trees flowering across the island in February and March, the Serra de Tramuntana vivid with wildflowers by April, temperatures climbing steadily into the low twenties by May.