Mallorca Sailing Itinerary: 7-Day Loop from Palma via Cabrera
A week from Palma is enough to sail the south-west, south and south-east coasts of Mallorca and spend a night in the Cabrera National Park. This loop covers about 127 nautical miles in six sailing days: Palma to Port d’Andratx, across the Bay of Palma to Cala Pi, along the beaches of Es Trenc to Colònia de Sant Jordi, up the east coast to Portocolom, out to Cabrera and back to Palma. Legs run from 8 to 29 NM. The one thing to book before you leave home is your Cabrera buoy.
Key takeaways
- The loop covers about 127 NM in six sailing days, with legs of 8 to 29 NM and the longest days at the start and the end.
- A night in Cabrera needs a free navigation permit and a paid buoy booking; anchoring is forbidden everywhere in the park.
- Never anchor on Posidonia seagrass: drop the anchor on sand or use a buoy field.
- The summer sea breeze in the Bay of Palma usually builds from mid-morning, peaks in mid-afternoon and fades by evening.
- June and September give warm water, steady breezes and slightly lower prices than July and August.
The route at a glance
Distances below were measured on the OpenStreetMap coastline, following a sensible line around headlands, and rounded. Charter companies publish similar figures: Palma to Cabrera is given as 27 to 30 NM (HELM; Katamarans), which matches our 29 NM.
| Day | Leg | Distance | Night |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (Sat) | Check-in in Palma | Marina, Palma | |
| 2 | Palma to Port d’Andratx | about 19.5 NM | Marina or buoys, Port d’Andratx |
| 3 | Port d’Andratx to Cala Pi | about 27 NM | Anchor in Cala Pi, or S’Estanyol marina (+4 NM) |
| 4 | Cala Pi to Colònia de Sant Jordi, via Es Trenc | about 8 NM | Anchor or harbour, Colònia de Sant Jordi |
| 5 | Colònia de Sant Jordi to Portocolom, via Cala Mondragó | about 20 NM | Harbour or buoys, Portocolom |
| 6 | Portocolom to Cabrera | about 24 NM | Park buoy, Cabrera harbour |
| 7 (Fri) | Cabrera to Palma | about 29 NM | Marina, Palma |
| 8 (Sat) | Check-out |
Total: about 127 NM. At 5 to 6 knots that is 1.5 to 6 hours of sailing a day.
Day by day
Day 1: Palma
Most charter companies hand over boats on Saturday afternoon. Use the evening to provision, check the safety gear and walk to the cathedral and the old town. Keep the first day’s shopping light: Andratx, Colònia de Sant Jordi and Portocolom all have shops.
Day 2: Palma to Port d’Andratx (about 19.5 NM)
Sail south-west across the bay, round the Calvià peninsula and turn north-west to Port d’Andratx. Stop for lunch and a swim in one of the coves on the way. Port d’Andratx is a sheltered natural harbour surrounded by hills. Since June 2026 the main marina is run by a new operator, Marina Port Andratx, while the Club de Vela keeps a temporary permit for 114 buoys and some pontoons (Forbes España, June 2026). Book ahead in summer.
Optional detour: Sant Elm and Sa Dragonera are about 3.5 NM further north. Sa Dragonera is a natural park: stay more than 50 m off its coast, and private boats may land only on the beaches of Cala Cucó and Cala Llebeig (Govern de les Illes Balears). Off Sant Elm you must use the buoy field rather than anchor. With a spare day, spend a night there.
Day 3: Port d’Andratx to Cala Pi (about 27 NM)
This is the second-longest leg of the week, back across the Bay of Palma to the south coast. Leave early, as it is a long day; by early afternoon the south-westerly sea breeze usually fills in, putting you on a reach or broad reach across the bay. Cala Pi is a narrow inlet under cliffs, best in settled weather. If there is swell from the south, or the cove is full, continue about 4 NM to the marina at S’Estanyol.
Day 4: Cala Pi to Colònia de Sant Jordi, via Es Trenc (about 8 NM)
A short day for swimming. Es Trenc is one of the longest natural beaches on Mallorca and part of the Es Trenc-Salobrar de Campos natural park, created in 2017 (Govern de les Illes Balears). Anchor on sand, not on seagrass. Colònia de Sant Jordi is the closest port to Cabrera. Note that its public berths can only be booked online for boats up to 12 m long and 4 m wide (Ports IB), so larger yachts usually anchor off.
Day 5: Colònia de Sant Jordi to Portocolom (about 20 NM)
Round Cap de Ses Salines, the southern tip of Mallorca, and sail up the east coast. Stop at Cala Mondragó, a natural park since 1992 with two sandy coves (Govern de les Illes Balears). Portocolom is a large natural harbour and one of the best shelters on this coast. The yacht club’s maximum transit rate in July and August is about €2.78 per m² of berth per day, so a 12 x 4.25 m berth (51 m²) costs up to about €142 a night (Ports IB tariff, CN Portocolom, 2024 tariff published January 2025; the document does not say whether VAT is included).
Day 6: Portocolom to Cabrera (about 24 NM)
Sail south along the coast, then out to the Cabrera archipelago, about 5 NM south of Mallorca. Overnight buoys are available from 18:00, so you have time for a swim stop on the way. Cabrera is a protected marine and land national park of about 90,800 hectares, most of it sea (Govern de les Illes Balears). Ashore, walk up to the castle above the harbour.
Day 7: Cabrera to Palma (about 29 NM)
Leave the buoy before 17:00 at the latest; earlier is better, as this is the longest leg. The route runs north across open water to Cap Blanc and into the Bay of Palma. Charter boats usually have to be back in the marina on Friday evening for the check-out inspection.
Cabrera National Park: permit and buoys
You cannot just turn up in Cabrera. The park is managed by the Balearic government, which sets these rules (Govern de les Illes Balears, retrieved October 2026):
- Navigation permit: free, valid for 12 months, requested online.
- Overnight buoy: booked online and paid by the day. Up to 50 boats a day.
- Stay: a maximum of 2 nights in July and August and 7 nights the rest of the year.
- Times: the buoy is yours from 18:00 on the first day to 17:00 on the last day.
- No anchoring anywhere in the park.
| Boat length | 1 Oct to 30 Apr | 1 May to 30 Sep |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 12 m | €9.30 a day | €18.60 a day |
| 12 to 15 m | €20 a day | €40 a day |
| 15 to 20 m | €35 a day | €90 a day |
Book the buoy as soon as your dates are confirmed. If you cannot get one for day 6, reverse the loop so that Cabrera falls on a day with a free buoy, or visit it from Colònia de Sant Jordi, about 11 NM away.
Anchoring rules: Posidonia and buoy fields
The clear water around Mallorca owes a lot to its Posidonia seagrass meadows, and the Balearic decree 25/2018 forbids anchoring on them (Govern de les Illes Balears). In practice:
- Look for sand. Light patches of sea floor are sand; dark green-brown patches are seagrass. The official Posidonia map shows where the meadows are.
- Use the buoy fields. In the regulated fields of Sant Elm (Sa Dragonera) and Cala Blava, at the east end of the Bay of Palma, you must use a buoy and may not anchor.
- Book buoys online. Ports IB, the Balearic ports authority, runs seasonal buoy fields such as Sant Elm, booked on its website (Mallorcadiario). Its conditions: a maximum of 3 nights in a row, arrival between 18:30 and 19:30, departure by 18:00, and charter boats must show their rental contract (Ports IB conditions).
Anchoring on seagrass is an offence that can be fined, so check the seabed before you drop the anchor.
Winds and the best time to sail
In summer the main wind around Palma is the sea breeze, called the embat locally. A 2022 study of the Bay of Palma found that it blows mainly from April to September, usually builds from about 09:00, peaks around 15:00 and dies by about 21:00, reaching about Beaufort 4 (Alomar-Garau and Grimalt-Gelabert, Coasts, 2022). Mornings are often calm, which suits motoring out of harbour and a swim before lunch.
Stronger northerlies, the tramontana and the mistral, are more common outside summer, but can still arrive in June or September. Check the forecast every morning before the open-water legs to Cabrera and back to Palma.
- May: quiet anchorages and lower prices; the sea is still cool.
- June and September: the best balance of warm water, steady breezes and space.
- July and August: the hottest and busiest months, with the highest prices.
Prices follow the season. The average weekly price of a sailing yacht in Mallorca ranges from about €2,600 in January to €5,300 in August, with about €4,500 in both June and September, according to 12knots (fleet averages, October 2026). Our Balearics yacht charter cost guide breaks down prices and extras.
Licence and crew
To skipper a charter yacht yourself in Spain you need a recognised qualification. For Spanish-flagged charter boats, the RYA lists the International Certificate of Competence (ICC) as valid for boats up to 24 m within 12 nautical miles of the coast, and Day Skipper within the same limits (RYA, updated August 2026). Every leg of this route stays within that limit. Confirm in writing with your charter company which certificates it accepts for your nationality. If nobody on board holds one, book a skipper: see bareboat or crewed charter for the pros and cons.
Getting to the marina
Palma airport is about 8 to 10 km from the marinas on the Paseo Marítimo, roughly 15 to 20 minutes by taxi outside rush hour (Dream Yacht Charter base guide). With a crew of five or more and luggage, book a minivan in advance, for example with Welcome Pickups, which offers fixed-price airport transfers in Mallorca. The A1 airport bus also runs to the city centre.
Useful to bring
- Balearic Islands pilot (Imray, RCC Pilotage Foundation, 12th edition, 2023): harbours, anchorages and approaches for Mallorca, Cabrera, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera.
- RYA Weather Handbook: to read forecasts and understand sea breezes and northerly winds.
- Reef-safe sunscreen: for long days at anchor in the coves.
- A snorkel set: the water around Cabrera and Es Trenc is very clear.
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Shorter and longer versions
- More relaxed: skip Portocolom and go from Colònia de Sant Jordi straight to Cabrera (about 11 NM). That leaves a spare day for Sa Dragonera or bad weather.
- Two weeks: continue up the east coast to Cala Ratjada and on to Pollença and Formentor in the north, or cross to Menorca. See our Balearic Islands guide for the other islands.
- Ibiza instead: our Balearics guide also includes a 7-day loop around Ibiza and Formentera.
Frequently asked questions
Is one week enough to sail around Mallorca?
Not comfortably. The full coastline is too long for a relaxed week, and the north-west coast has few shelters. A loop of the south-west, south and south-east coasts with Cabrera, about 127 NM, is a better fit for seven days.
Do you need a permit to visit Cabrera by boat?
Yes. You need a free navigation permit, and an overnight stay also needs a paid buoy booked online. Anchoring is forbidden in the whole park, and stays are limited to 2 nights in July and August.
Can you anchor anywhere in Mallorca?
No. Anchoring on Posidonia seagrass is forbidden, and some areas, such as Sant Elm and Cala Blava, have regulated buoy fields where you must use a buoy. Elsewhere, anchor on sand.
What is the best month to sail around Mallorca?
June and September offer the best mix of warm water, steady sea breezes and fewer crowds. May is quieter and cheaper; July and August are the busiest and most expensive.
How far is Cabrera from Palma by boat?
About 29 NM from Palma, or 5 to 6 hours under sail. From Colònia de Sant Jordi it is only about 11 NM.
