A visit to Palma de Mallorca Map
Mallorca is 5,130.5 sea miles from Port Canaveral and 334 sea miles from Cartagena. Since December 2016 Palma is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is situated on the south coast of Mallorca on the Bay of Palma. The Cabrera Archipelago, though widely separated from Palma proper, is administratively considered part of the municipality. As of 2018, Palma de Mallorca Airport serves over 29 million passengers per year.
Palma Quick History Lesson: Palma was founded as a Roman camp upon the remains of a Talaiotic settlement. The city was subjected to several Vandal raids during the fall of the Western Roman Empire, then reconquered by the Byzantine Empire, then colonised by the Moors (who called it Medina Mayurqa) and, in the 13th century, by James I of Aragon.
A few interesting facts about Mallorca:
- The name of the island comes from an old Latin phrase ‘insula maior’ that means ‘larger island’, as Mallorca is the largest island in all of Spain. Gradually the phrase was mispronounced and the island became known as Mallorca. The British often call the island Majorca, whilst everyone else calls it Mallorca – there appears to be no reason for this other than the British love of the letter J rather than L!
- The island has been inhabited by humans since 7000 BC. Due to its significant geographic location in the middle of the Mediterranean, many armies have attempted to invade Mallorca. In 123 BC, the Romans claimed the island. The most famous invasion was that of King Jaime of Aragon in 1229, which was the start of the creation of Mallorca as we know it today.
- Artists and writers have been attracted to the dramatic and picturesque west coast of the island for many decades. Robert Graves, known as one of England’s greatest poets, was one of the first English to move to the island. He resided (& was buried) in the pretty mountain village of Deia, which has since become a hub for the creative crowd and celebrities.
This was day 15 of our transatlantic cruise on the Norwegian Epic. The ship arrived in Palma de Mallorca harbor at 8AM, however, by this stage of the trip I was feeling bad with a cold that was causing coughing fits, sneezing, etc. Even though we had shore excursion tickets, I did not relish infecting everyone on the tour bus so I asked Celeste to go ahead on the tour without me.
As the Norwegian Epic entered the harbor, the La Seu Cathedral was the first thing visible as it is so large. It turned out to be yet another Gaudi project!
Bellver Castle: is a Gothic-style castle on a hill 3 km to the west of the center of Palma. It was built in the 14th century for King James II of Mallorca, and is one of the few circular castles in Europe. First serving as the residence of the Kings of Mallorca, and afterward long used as a military prison throughout the 18th to mid-20th century, it is now under civilian control, being one of the main tourist attractions of the island, as well as the seat for the city's History Museum.
Valldemossa: is a village and municipality on the island of Mallorca, part of the Spanish autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. It is famous for one landmark: the Royal Charterhouse of Valldemossa, built at the beginning of the 14th century, when the mystic and philosopher Ramon Llull lived in this area of Majorca.
Since the 19th century Valldemossa has been promoted internationally as a place of outstanding beauty, largely as a result of the affection of distinguished traveller and cultural writer, the Austrian Archduke Ludwig Salvator.
Valldemossa is a very attractive tourist destination, as it shows early Spanish culture. There are many shops and restaurants to indulge in Spanish culture. It is approximately 21 kilometers from Palma de Mallorca.
The Norwegian Epic Trans-Atlantic Cruise Overview & Guide
This is a large ship; 1,081 feet long, 155,873 gross tons in weight, and 133 feet wide. We
cover the ship from end to end in our overview page,
click here to read more.
Ponta Delgada Portugal: 3,198 miles from Port Canaveral. It is located on São Miguel Island, the largest
and most populous in the archipelago. 137,856 (2012) island population and 62.1 kilometers in
length by 15.8 kilometers in width. Click here to view our Ponta Delgada page.
Funchal Madeira Portugal: 599 miles from Ponta Delgada. Population of 267,785. The island is 35 miles
long and 13 miles wide and has 99 miles of coastline, but the shore is all rock and
cliffs. It's a mountainous island; the highest peak is 1862 meters/6,100 feet high. Madeira
is all mountains, no beaches. Click here to view our Funchal Madeira page.
Cadiz & Seville Spain: 659 miles from Madeira. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in
Western Europe, with archaeological remains dating to 3100 years and was founded by the Phoenicians. Click here to view our Cadiz/Seville page.
Malaga Spain: 141.5 miles from Cadiz. With a population of 571,026 in 2018, it is the
second-most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth-largest in Spain. The southernmost large city in Europe, it
lies on the Costa del Sol (Coast of the Sun) of the Mediterranean. Click here to view our Malaga page.
Cartagena Spain: 199 miles from Malaga. With a population of 213,943 inhabitants, being
the Region’s second-largest municipality and Spain’s sixth-largest non-Province-capital city. Click here to view our Cartagena page.
Palma de Mallorca Spain: 334 miles from Cartagena. The capital and largest city of the autonomous community of the Balearic
Islands in Spain. Population of 409,661. Click here to view our Mallorca page.
Barcelona Spain: 153 miles from Palma. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous
community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million
within city limits. Click here to view our Barcelona page.
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