I do a Mallorca circumnavigation with charter clients about 4-5 times a season and I’ve refined the route quite a bit over the years. Here’s my standard 7-day itinerary for anyone planning one:
Day 1: Palma → Cala Pi (short hop, settle in)
Day 2: Cala Pi → Cala d’Or or Porto Petro
Day 3: Cala d’Or → Cala Ratjada (longer leg, 25nm)
Day 4: Cala Ratjada → Port de Pollença (beautiful coastline)
Day 5: Port de Pollença → Port de Sóller (the big one — round Cap Formentor)
Day 6: Port de Sóller → Sant Elm or Sa Dragonera
Day 7: Sant Elm → Palma
The key decisions are weather-dependent: rounding Cap Formentor and the northwest coast. If the Tramuntana is blowing, you might need to skip Port de Sóller and go direct from Pollença to Andratx.
Happy to go into detail on any of these legs.
I did a version of this when I first arrived and it was wonderful. I spent two days in Port de Sóller because I loved it so much — the setting with the mountains behind is incredible. One tip: the refuelling dock in Sóller can be busy, plan ahead.
Solid itinerary Katrin. The Cap Formentor leg is the one that catches people out. I’d add that you really want a settled forecast for days 5-6. The Tramuntana coast has very few places to duck in if things go sideways. Port de Sóller is fantastic though — well worth the effort.
This is now officially on our bucket list. Probably not this year but maybe next spring? How early in the season is it doable? We were thinking April/May.
@tom_lisa Late April onwards is fine — the weather is usually more settled than you’d think and the anchorages are empty. May is probably the sweet spot. Water’s still a bit cool for swimming but the sailing conditions are ideal — good breeze, no crowds.