Where to stay in Palma: The 9 Best hotels in palma to suit every budget

We have visited Palma several times in recent years and regularly choose to use it as our base for exploring Mallorca.

Palma is a great city in itself, with a similar feel to Barcelona and the added bonus of a being a city close to the sea so you can add in beach days along the way.

Palma is also the main hub to use for exploring the rest of Mallorca, particularly if you want to travel by public transport, with the majority of buses and trains starting their route in the city.

In terms of choosing where to stay in Palma, the city is largely walkable and so the specific area you choose to stay in won’t have a huge bearing on your access to the centre.

You can choose to stay outside the city in areas like Portopi where many of the cruise ships will dock, or in the Can Pastilla area where you will find Palma Aquarium, but our main focus here will be on city centre hotels.

With that, the key consideration in terms of where to stay in Palma isn’t so much the location, as most are quite central, but instead, the type of hotel & budget that you have in mind.

Palma has a wide range of luxury hotels, some with incredible rooftop views etc., as well as some budget friendly options that we would also recommend from our experience.

How many days do you need in Palma?

If you only plan to visit Palma itself, then 3 days is enough time to enjoy the area and include a day trip to Valdemossa or Soller.

Ordinarily, we would suggest you spend at least 3 days in any city to allow sufficient time to explore and enjoy the city, without feeling like you are in a huge rush to move from one place to the next. 

If you are staying 3 days in Palma, we would recommend spending one day exploring the city, one day on going on a boat tour before having dinner in the city and watching sunset at Parc del Mar and the final day taking a guided tour to Soller and Valdemossa for the perfect blend to your time there.

Best Hotels in Palma for every budget

Best luxury hotels in Palma

Palma has a fairly wide range of luxury hotels to choose from – as with everything else in recent years, prices continue to increase on a daily basis so it can be more difficult to find a luxury hotel that is great value as such.

That being said, there is one luxury hotel in Palma that stands out above the rest in Palma and that is the Hotel Sant Francesc Singular.

While the hotel has all the luxury amenities that you would expect to find at a hotel in this bracket, it is the hotel rooftop that sets this hotel apart from the rest.

The rooftop comes with a bar and beautiful swimming pool but is the view this hotel has of the Seu Cathedral that makes the premium price worth it for this hotel.

Watching the sunset from this dimly lit rooftop with that view will make it incredibly difficult for you to want to spend your evenings anywhere else in the city, and for that alone we would recommend a stay at this hotel.

Alternatively, if you want a hotel right in the heart of the city with a beautiful aesthetic, then we would have to recommend Hotel Cappuccino.

This hotel is really beautiful, it has a nice outdoor terrace where you can sit for a coffee and watch the city come to life in the mornings and it has every facility you can think of, including a private cinema for guests for those rare occasions when the rain curtails your outdoor plans.

For a stylish hotel that also carries a lot of substance and ease of access to everything you need, Hotel Cappuccino is definitely a hard place to look beyond.

Our final recommendation for a luxury hotel in Palma would be the Sant Jaume Design Hotel, set in Palma’s Old Town.

Again, the thing that really stands out about this hotel are the interiors and the more boutique style feel that it has to it. The hotel is perfectly located to access all of Palma’s main attractions, as well as being a short walk from the Port for evening walks.

On site you can access indoor and outdoor pools, a plunge pool, spa facilities and a beautiful rooftop terrace to go sun bathing.

Best Mid Range Hotels in Palma

When it comes to choosing a hotel in Palma, the mid range bucket is usually the one that we tend to fall in to and with that, it is the one where we have the most experience.

On our last visit to Palma, we wanted something that was within walking distance of the city centre and provided access to an outdoor swimming pool.

Our favourite hotel group in Mallorca that ticks those boxes is the Melia group. The Melia hotels don’t carry the luxury price tag but often come with Bali beds at the pool, complimentary drinks added to your mini bar and a great breakfast option.

The Melia group have several hotels in Palma but our personal favourite is the Meliá Palma Bay, which is a little bit outside the city centre but gives you easy access to Ca’n Pere Antoni Beach so you have a more resort style feel to your stay.

Similar to some of the offerings in more luxury hotels, the Melia Palma provides you with an outdoor pool, fitness centre and spa facilities as well as a smaller ‘Adults Only’ style offering as well.

Alternatively, for a mid range option that also has spectacular rooftop views of the city, we would highly recommend la Almudaina.

This hotel has great views of the cathedral, is only a 5 minute walk to the centre and you can get a room here for around 160 Euro in off peak season, which is significantly lower than the luxury hotels carrying the same view as their selling point.

Our final mid range suggestion would be the HM Palma Blanc, which is in the heart of the city.

The key feature that makes this hotel stand out for us is their beautiful rooftop terrace and swimming pool.

If you are looking for a hotel with easy access to the city centre (the Old Town is only a 5 minute walk) and a luxurious area to relax and sunbathe during the day then this is the hotel for you.

HM Palma Blanc is very modern in style, with a clean, minimalist feel to it and has a spa, sauna, gym and restaurant on site.

Budget Friendly Hotels in Palma

While it is possible to stay in Palma on a budget, we have found Palma hotels to be more expensive than some other European cities by comparison. That being said, cities in Western Europe tend to be less budget friendly overall than some of those in Easter Europe like Budapest & Krakow etc.

With that, if you do want to visit Palma on a budget, we would recommend going in off peak months like March/April in the Spring or October/November in Autumn/Winter.

Timing is everything for European stays and the big thing with Palma is that although the crowds get smaller off peak, the weather is still quite good so you won’t feel like you have missed out by going during these months.

Our first recommendation for a budget friendly hotel in Palma is Isla Mallorca & Spa. The hotel is around a mile from the city centre but has great facilities on site including a large outdoor swimming pool, fitness centre, spa and sauna.

This hotel is also just a short walk from Bellver Castle and one of Palma’s best beach clubs, Terreno.

Our final budget friendly hotel pick in Palma is Hotel Artadams – this hotel has a more unique, quirky style and is only a 20 minute walk from Palma City centre.

Again we selected this hotel because the range of facilities they have available for guests on site. This hotel has both an indoor and outdoor pool available, a sauna, Turkish bath and fitness centre meaning you have everything you need for a relaxing stay in Palma.

Inside the hotel, they also have a wide range of paintings and sculptures, with the artsy feel on the facade meaning you’re unlikely to get lost on your way back to this hotel.