Palma (Majorca) port guide
nclrollcall Researched by NCL Roll Call · verified by Paolo Melendez, CLIA Master Cruise Counselor · Oct 2, 2026 · how we check things
Palma's cathedral is about four kilometers from one cruise terminal and considerably further from another. Which one you get is not your choice and it changes the whole day.
Who this guide fits
- Your first NCL sailing. Freestyle Cruising is how NCL runs the ship — no fixed dinner seating, no formal night, eat and dress when you like. It is not how the gangway runs. All-aboard is a hard time, the ship sails without stragglers, and every timing figure below is written for that.
- Sailed NCL before. Skip to the excursions and the timing: what is bookable here, which operators commit to getting you back, and how long the day really leaves you.
- Booking independently. 15 of the 36 tours here show a return-to-ship guarantee — each one read on its own page, not taken from a filter.
- Planning around access. Every guide here carries an accessibility section, and says plainly where something could not be verified rather than guessing.
Two terminal areas, two different days
The port map shows Estacion Maritima 1 to 4 around the Poniente and Paraires quays, and Estacion Maritima 5 and 6 out at the Dique del Oeste, the West Breakwater. Those are not interchangeable starting points.
From the Poniente and Paraires area it is roughly 3.5 to 4 km to La Seu, the cathedral. From the West Breakwater it is longer.
Norwegian's port page identifies the call as a docked visit at Muelle Peraires, Estacion Maritima 1 Poniente Sur. Your sailing may differ.
Confirm the berth before you decide whether this is a walking port. It is the one variable that changes every margin on this page.
Fifteen of 36, one accessible
On 30 September 2026 we opened each of this port's 36 independent listings and read it on its own page. Fifteen carry a Back to Ship Guarantee.
At 41.7% that is rank 19 of the 61 catalogues we read end to end, which sits comfortably in the better half.
Nine of the 36 have a review inside the last 12 months, so 27 carry no recent feedback at all. One of the 36 is marked fully wheelchair accessible.
One accessible listing on an island this developed is a thin result, and it is the figure to plan around rather than the headline.
Fifty-nine dollars against nine hundred
The spread here is among the widest in this collection. From-prices read on 30 September 2026:
Caves of Hams Excursion Including Audio Visual Tour — 5 hours, from $58.70
Deluxe Mountain Private Tour to Valldemossa and Deia in a Mercedes V — 4 hours, from $292.05, no review inside 12 months
Castles & Cathedrals, Palma de Mallorca Luxury Private Shore Excursion — 4 hours, from $292.93, no review inside 12 months
Private Tour: Valldemossa, Soller and the Serra de Tramuntana — 5 hours, from $888.59, 5.0 stars from 4 reviews
Private Tour: Mallorca Caves of Drach & Majorica Pearl Factory — 5 hours, from $920.81, 4.5 stars from 6 reviews
Fifty-eight dollars and seventy cents buys five hours at the Caves of Hams. Nine hundred and twenty dollars buys five hours at a different set of caves with a pearl factory attached. Both are guaranteed.
Check the pricing unit on every private listing here before you compare it with anything. At these figures the unit is the entire argument.
The mountains are the real Mallorca
Valldemossa, Deia and the Serra de Tramuntana appear in the catalogue as four and five-hour private tours, and they are what the island is actually known for beyond Palma.
They are also a mountain road in both directions from a berth whose location you do not control.
The Caves of Drach and the Caves of Hams sit on the other side of the island entirely. A five-hour cave tour and a five-hour mountain tour point in opposite directions from the same quay, and neither leaves room for the other.
Pick a direction. Mallorca is bigger than a port day and the catalogue is honest about that.
Walking into town, if you can
The Old Town, La Seu and the waterfront are the free version of this port, and Bellver Castle sits above the city.
Three and a half to four kilometers each way is a real walk in Mediterranean heat, and that is from the nearer terminal. From the West Breakwater it is not a walking proposition at all.
Spanish and Catalan are both used locally, and English is common in tourism settings.
If you are berthed at Poniente or Paraires and the weather is kind, the walk into the Old Town is the best unpaid thing at this port. If you are at the breakwater, plan transport and stop pretending otherwise.
Accessibility, honestly
One of the 36 independent listings is marked fully wheelchair accessible. One option is not a choice, and it is the central fact of this section.
The berth compounds it. Without knowing which terminal you have, you cannot establish the distance, the surface or the transport, and no source publishes an accessible route from either area into the Old Town.
The cave tours involve stairs by their nature, and the mountain tours involve a winding road.
Go through Norwegian, and settle the berth question before you settle the tour. At this port the terminal assignment is an accessibility variable, not a logistics detail.
Devil's advocate: is the berth fuss justified?
Most Palma calls use the main terminals, taxis are plentiful at every quay, and a few extra kilometers is a fare rather than a crisis. Plenty of people never think about which Estacion Maritima they were at.
If you are taking a tour with a pier pickup, the berth genuinely does not matter.
It matters for the plan this port otherwise deserves, which is walking into one of the better Old Towns in the Mediterranean. That plan works from Poniente and collapses from the West Breakwater, and you will find out which you have on the morning rather than when you are deciding. A four-kilometer walk you did not expect is how an afternoon disappears.
Taxis solve it. Knowing in advance solves it better.
The bottom line
Cheapest by a distance. Caves of Hams, 5 hours from $58.70, guaranteed.
The island's signature. Valldemossa, Soller and the Serra de Tramuntana, 5 hours from $888.59 — a private price, so confirm the unit.
Nothing booked. La Seu, the Old Town and the waterfront, about 3.5 to 4 km from the nearer terminals. Check your berth first.
Planning around access. One of 36 listings is marked accessible. Go through Norwegian and start with the berth.
Palma is a good walking port when it is a walking port. Find out whether yours is.
Common questions about Palma (Majorca), Spain
- How many Norwegian Cruise Line ships call at Palma (Majorca), Spain?
- 8 Norwegian Cruise Line ships call at Palma (Majorca), Spain across 52 sailings we track: Norwegian Dawn, Norwegian Epic, Norwegian Escape, Norwegian Pearl, Norwegian Prima, Norwegian Star, Norwegian Sun, Norwegian Viva.
- Do shore excursions at Palma (Majorca), Spain include a return-to-ship guarantee?
- Yes — 15 of the 36 independent tours at Palma (Majorca), Spain showed a Back to Ship Guarantee when each listing was opened individually on 2026-09-30. A guarantee belongs to one listing on one date, so confirm it on the tour you book.
- What is the Norwegian Cruise Line port code for Palma (Majorca), Spain?
- Norwegian Cruise Line uses port code PMI for Palma (Majorca), Spain, in its Extraordinary Journeys and Greek Isles and Mediterranean and Northern Europe and Transatlantic itineraries.
- What does one guest pay to sail to Palma (Majorca), Spain?
- The lowest fare we track for a single guest on a sailing that reaches Palma (Majorca), Spain is $409 — 3-Day Mediterranean From Rome to Barcelona: Palma de Mallorca. Fares move daily; always confirm on ncl.com.
- When is the next Norwegian Cruise Line sailing to Palma (Majorca), Spain?
- The next sailing we track departs Oct 11, 2026. We list every one of the 52 sailings on this page.
Verify before you pay
- Your terminal. Estacion Maritima 1 to 4 at Poniente and Paraires is a different day from 5 and 6 at the West Breakwater.
- Whether a private price is per vehicle or per person. The spread here runs from $58.70 to $920.81.
- The Back to Ship Guarantee on your listing. Fifteen of 36 carry one.
- The date of the most recent review. Twenty-seven of the 36 listings have none inside 12 months.
- For any access requirement, the berth as well as the tour. One of 36 listings is marked fully wheelchair accessible.
- The all-aboard time printed for your own voyage, against a five-hour tour on the far side of the island.
What the judgments on this page rest on
- 15 of 36, rank 19 of 61, 1 wheelchair-accessible and 9 recently reviewed: computed in guide-verdict-facts.json from every listing opened individually on 2026-09-30.
- Tour names, durations, from-prices and review recency: read off each tour's own page on the same date.
- The terminal layout, the Poniente, Paraires and Dique del Oeste positions and the 3.5 to 4 km benchmark to La Seu: the port map checked for this guide.
- The docked status and the Muelle Peraires, Estacion Maritima 1 Poniente Sur identification: Norwegian's own port page.
- No climate figures are published for this port, because none was verified from a primary source.
Commission disclosure: NCL Roll Call may earn a commission when a reader books through certain links on this page. Prices below are for reference only - click on the individual link and double check live prices on Viator, Get Your Guide or Project Expedition on the links provided below.
Guide last verified 2026-10-01. Facts that move — shuttle fares, opening hours, tender arrangements — are checked on the morning of publication and re-checked when the guide is updated.
