maidut Posted February 25, 2010 #1 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Trying to figure out what to do on Palma. The trip we had planned was cancelled, so now I am re-thinking what I am doing. Any suggestions, ideas, expertise, etc will be greatly appreciated. Some ideas...rental car, hire a driver, HOHO, train to Soller, cave of Ham or Caves of Drach, the beach...??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_uk Posted February 26, 2010 #2 Share Posted February 26, 2010 We've been to Palma a few times, both n holidays & on cruises. Here are mu thoughts: a) do Palma old town. Especially, visit the Cathedral (gothic, which is a surprise in the Med, and one of the very biggest anywhere); wander round the lanes in the old town; visit a museum or two (we loved the studio/gallery/museum for the painter J Torrents Llado); b) visit Castell Belver, high above the city. There's an interesting museum inside on the history of Palma; c) as you suggest, do the train ride to Soller, and then the old tram to Port de Soller. Get the bus back. d) go to the beach! - that's what Mallorca is famous for. There are many beaches and resorts, but you can get a bus from near the cruise port to a good beach at Illetes. e) for longer trips you'll need to hire a car. Possible targets for day trips would include Port de Soller, Valldemosa & Deia on the NW coast; the Monastir de Lluc, way up in the mountains (but beware of the mountain road with hairpin bends and very steep drops....); Pollenca & Alcudia up in the NE of the island. There are lots of choices on Mallorca. Here are a couple of website that might be useful:- TIB, for buses around the island; EMT, for buses in Palma. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maidut Posted February 26, 2010 Author #3 Share Posted February 26, 2010 Thanks for the great replies. I will look into those options. Did you reply on public tranpsort, or hire a car? (when there for a day w/ a cruise?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_uk Posted February 26, 2010 #4 Share Posted February 26, 2010 Thanks for the great replies. I will look into those options. Did you reply on public tranpsort, or hire a car? (when there for a day w/ a cruise?) When we were there for the cruise we were in fact only there for about 6 hours, so we got a taxi straight to Castell Belver, then walked from there down the hill (along a path winding through bushes & trees) to the main road and then into the city, where we enjoyed a drink & an ice, then got a taxi back to the port. Since then we've had a holiday on the island, and we spent some days at a hotel in Palma and a few more days up at Port de Pollenca. We used public transport, both city and island-wide buses during our time in Palma, and hired a car for the later days at Port de Pollenca. We thought the city buses especially were very good: modern buses with electronic displays of the next stop inside, and a flat fare of €1 per person per trip when we were there. (The #1 bus, from the airport through the city to the cruise port, has a flat fare of €2.) But the island-wide buses, the TIB buses, were also very good - we've used them quite a few times. Depending on the route they can be quite slow, however: we went from Palma to Port d'Andratx on the west coast, which isn't many miles, and it must have taken nearly two hours because the bus visits a lot of small resorts on the way. However the direct bus from Palma to Port de Soller (the route described as 'tunel' - it goes through a tunnel under the mountains) is quite fast - I think the scheduled time is just under 40 minutes. So my view is that public transport on the island is worth using, and safe to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyQuinn Posted February 26, 2010 #5 Share Posted February 26, 2010 Tom-UK: can you offer any comments on Bellver Castle? Would you say it's a don't miss? I understand it's in the opposite direction of Old Town & most other attractions on Palma, so we're not sure whether to go there or not. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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