Best Things to Do in Pollença, Mallorca

Pollença (or Pollensa) is a lovely small town in the northern part of Mallorca (Majorca) that radiates this typical Majorcan charm: narrow cobbled streets, lined up with sandstone houses with green and blue shutters. Read further to find out what are the best things to do in Pollença.

When I arrived in Pollença I knew next to nothing about the place. I was surprised to discover that it has been a source for inspiration for many South-American artists who discovered the island at the beginning of the 20th century. The little town also boasts some long-standing traditions and has quite a few stories to tell. I wish I could have spent more time in Pollença, as I was visiting only for a day, or at least I hope I can return one day to see it during a different time of the year, as I was visiting in late November, which also had its advantages, as the tourist crowds were gone.

a narrow street lined up with yellowish buildings in Pollenca

a tiny street with stairs and potted plants on one side and rugged mountains in the background; a street in Pollenca

Pollença is the Catalan name of the place and the Spanish one is Pollensa. So, you’ll see the name of the place spelled both way. It is pronounced: poh-yen-suh. The name comes from the name of the Roman settlement Pollentia, built around 125 BC, located near the present-day Alcúdia, some 12 km to south-east of Pollença.

Pollença makes it the perfect day trip from Palma, if you are visiting Palma for a city trip, or from anywhere on the island, if you are spending your holidays in a resort on Mallorca. Also you can combine a visit to Pollença with further sightseeing and visit Port de Pollença, Cala Sant Vicenç and Cap de Formentor. If you are road-tripping on the island, Pollença should be a compulsory stop on your Mallorca itinerary.

Contents

How to get to Pollença from Palma
Things to do in Pollença
Things to do near Pollença

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I have visited Palma for the Traverse21 Conference. The trip to Pollença was provided by the organizers from Visit Palma and the town of Pollença. All opinions are mine.

a park with trees and a medieval towers and a large boulder in the foreground; Desbrull tower in Joan March Gardens in Pollenca — *The Desbrull Tower in the Joan March Gardens*

How to get to Pollença from Palma

If you are renting a car during your stay in Mallorca, it’s quite easy to reach Pollença. The distance between Palma and Pollença is about 60 km, a greater part of which are on the Ma-13 highway. You can park just outside the town. There’s one parking at the beginning of the town when you come from Palma and another one on the other side on the way to Port de Pollença. Check out the map below for the exact locations.

Pollença is also very well connected by bus to Palma. Take bus line 301 in Palma to Port de Pollença and get off in Pollença (bus stop #42002). The trip takes about an hour.

If you don’t feel like organizing the logistics yourself, my recommendation is to book a tour.

4 pictures of small town with overlay text Best things to do in Pollenca Mallorca - complete guide pus free map

Things to do in Pollença

Although Pollença is quite small, I was amazed how much it has to offer in terms of historical and cultural heritage. So, here you can read about the best things you can do in Pollença.

1. Visit the Museum of Pollença

The Museum of Pollença is not your average small-town museum with a few archeological pieces and some local arts and crafts, although you’ll find these there as well. It hides an amazing collection of modern and contemporary art, which is quite understandable as Pollença has been for over a century now a source of inspiration for many artists.

a corridor in a museum with pictures on the walls and sculptures in the middles; the Museum of Pollenca — *The Museum of Pollença*

The museum was born in 1975 and initially was meant to exhibit the award-winning artworks from the summer art competition organized in the town. Today, you can see in the museum beside the legacy of Anglada Camarasa, Tito Cittadini, Bellini, López Nagil, Montenegro, also an extensive collection of works of Atilio Beveri, and of course lots of contemporary artists who participated in the competition.

The museum prides itself in having one of the 5 existing sand Buddhist mandalas in the world. This Kalachakra mandala has been gifted in 1990 by Dalai Lama himself who visited Pollença for the Tibetan Buddhist Art exhibition. The sand mandalas are typically destroyed after they are made, as a part of the ceremony, so it’s pretty unique that this one is on display in the local museum.

a medieval sandstone church with an orange tree with oranges in front and a small wild olive treee; the Dominican cloister in Pollenca — *The chapel of the Dominican cloister*

The building where the museum is housed, is a former 16th-century Dominican cloister. In 1833 the Dominicans left the cloister and the building was used as a hospice, barracks, a school, and it wasn’t until 1975 when it became a museum.

Practical info: Museu de Pollença
Address: Carrer Pere Josep Cànaves Salas s/n, 07460 Pollença, Illes Balears, Spain
Admission fee: free of charge
Opening times: June – September: Tuesday-Saturday, from 10 am to 1 pm, and from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm; October – May: Tuesday-Saturday, from 10 am to 1 pm

2. Learn more about the artist at the Museum of Dionís Bennàssar

The house where the famous local artist Dionís Bennàssar has lived, has been turned into a museum. There you can see an extensive collection of his works, his studio and lots of personal objects. In his early years Dionís Bennàssar was heavily influenced by Anglada-Camarasa and his entourage, but in the later years he developed a unique style characterized by great plastic expression.

Unfortunately, when I went to Pollença, I couldn’t visit the museum.

Practical info: Museu Dionís Bennàssar
Address: Carrer de la Roca, 14, 07460 Pollença, Illes Balears, Spain
Opening times: at his moment only with an appointment. Check the website of the museum before you go.
Website: www.museudionisbennassar.com

lush green vegetation in a park and a sculpture at one end; the Joan March Gardens in Pollenca — *The Joan March Gardens*

3. Take a stroll at the Joan March Gardens

Just in front of the Museum of Pollença, you’ll find another famous attraction of Pollença – the Joan March Gardens (Jardins Joan March). This is a small-scale botanical garden that showcases the indigenous plants and trees of Mallorca: wild olive trees, oranges, cyprusses, yews and the only palm tree that’s native to Europe. The botanical gardens were created in the 1980s on a plot which has been donated to the town by the famous Joan March family, hence the name of the gardens.

a tall medieval tower with an old cannon in front; the Desbrull tower in Pollenca — *The Desbrull Tower*

a small patio paved with rounded stones framed by a tree on one side and a sand-stone structure on the other; remains of the Desbrull mansion in Pollenca — *The Desbrull Tower*

The botanical garden is a home of another interesting landmark in Pollença – a medieval Gothic tower, which was a part of the old manor house that belonged to the prominent Desbrull family. The so-called Desbrull tower (Torre Desbrull) dates back to 13th century.

4. Relax at Plaça Major

Plaça Major is the throbbing heart of Pollença. This lovely square, lined up by a few restaurants and cafes, is the meeting point for the locals and a must-see for the tourists. It is here where the famous weekly market of Pollença is held on Sundays and where all local feasts and festivals are organized. The square was built in the 1850s as the population outgrew the capacity of the old town’s square, referred to todays as Plaça Vella (the Old Square).

a meadieval church on a square with a cafe next door with tables on the square and beautiful plane trees, Pollensa town on mallorca — *Plaça Major with Our Lady of the Angels Chruch*

5. Visit Our Lady of the Angels Parish Church

Located at one corner of Plaça Major is Our Lady of the Angels Parish Church (Parròquia de la Mare de Déu dels Àngels). The first church at this place was built in the 13th century and belonged to the Knights Templar. After the Order of the Knights Templar was dissolved at the beginning of the 14th century, the church was given to the Order of the Knights Hospitallers and remained in their hands until 1836. The church, as we see it today, was constructed between 1714 and 1790.

inside a church with colorful reflections on the walls casted through a stained glass rosette window; the Church of Our Lady of the Angels in Pollenca — *Our Lady of the Angels*

When I visited the church early in the morning, the sunlight was flowing through the stained glass rosette window above the entrance, casting beautiful colorful patterns on the church walls and playing hide-and-seek with the sober church art.

Practical info: Parròquia de la Mare de Déu dels Àngels / Església de Nostra Senyora dels Àngels
Address: Plaça Major, 1, 07460 Pollença, Illes Balears, Spain
Opening times: 15 April to 15 November: Monday-Saturday, from 11 am to 1 pm, and from 4 pm to 6 pm; Sundays, from 10 am to 1 pm

6. Get lost in the narrow medieval streets

Stroll along the narrow cobbled streets and discover a myriad of hidden treasures. Besides Plaça Major, there are a few other smaller squares scattered around in the town. At Plaça de l’Almoina you’ll find a public fountain crowned by a rooster – the symbol of Pollença.

a stone fountain in an egg form with a rooster on top of it in the middle of a small square in Pollenca — *The fountain with the rooster*

There are a few of these public fountains around the town. They were built at the beginning of the 19th century as a part of the continuous modernisation of the place. The first public fountain was the Fountain of the Lion (La Font del Lleò) on Carrer Gruat nearby the Roman bridge.

a sun-lit medieval chapel with some Bougainvillea flowers in the foreground; the Chapel of Saint George in Pollensa — *Oratori de Sant Jordi*

Wandering the streets of Pollença, you’ll come across other lovely churches, like the Oratory of Saint George (Oratori de Sant Jordi) and the Oratory of Roser Vell (Oratori de la Mare de Déu del Roser), dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary.

7. Cross the Roman Bridge

They call it the Roman Bridge (Pont Romà) and one would expect that this bridge over de Torrente de Sant Jordi has been built by the Romans, but nothing is less true. The bridge was first mentioned in historical sources in 1403 under the name of Puente de Cubelles. and it was called the Roman Bridge only in the 19th century.

a stone bridge crossing a small river near Pollensa - The Roman Bridge in Pollenca — *The Roman Bridge*

an arched stone bridge over a small river with; the Roman bridge in Pollenca — *The Roman Bridge*

Some believe that the bridge was part of an aqueduct of the ancient town of Pollentia (now Alcúdia), built by the Romans, who who were on the island between 123 BC and 425 AD. But Pollença as we know it today, didn’t appear at its current location until the 13th century, so it’s quite unlikely that the Romans would build a bridge where there was no settlement.

a view from the top of Calvari hill in Pollenca with the 365 steps of the stairway lined up with cypresses and a mountain hill at the background — *The 365 steps to Calvari Hill*

a stairway lined up with yellowish buildings and tall cypruss trees and people walking down the stairway; The steps to Calvari hill in Pollenca — *The 365 steps to Calvari Hill*

8. Climb the Calvari hill and enjoy the views

Climbing the 365 stairs to Calvari hill is one of the most popular things to do in Pollença. However, I’ll give you a pro-tip here, which I was given on my turn by our tour guide in Pollença. The best way to visit Calvari hill is to walk Carrer de les Creus (the Road of the Cross) up the hill to the church and then to descend via the stairway. Thus, on the way in both directions you will be having the most stunning views of the town, the mountains and the sea.

a steep cobbled-stone street going up a hill with a large tree at one end and sandstone buildings with green shutters on both sides; the street behind the Montision convent in Pollenca — *The Montision Convent*

If you going to the hill from Plaça Major, walk to the lovely Montision convent, built in the 17th century by the Jesuits, and then make your way up the hill following Carrer de les Creus. Or if you are coming from the Roman Bridge and the Fountain of the Lion, take first Carrer de Gruat, which flows into Carrer de les Creus, and marvel the views along the way.

a panorama view of a town from above with some mountains at the background and a small patch of a sea, View from Calvari hill in Pollenca — *View from Calvari Hill*

Just before you reach the top of the hill, there is large area with benches, where you can relax and soak up the breathtaking views. At the top of the hill there’s a small chapel built at the end of the 18th century.

Calvari hill is not only about the stunning views, it’s a part of the traditions in Pollença, when on Good Friday the Removal of the Cross is re-enacted with a procession from the top of the hill to the Our Lady of the Angels Church.

a modern statue of a women in front of a yellow building and a stairway lined up with cypress trees to the right; Pollenca town hall and the stairway to Calvari hill — *The Town Hall of Pollença*

Things to do near Pollença

You can combine a visit to Pollença with a visit to Port de Pollença, Cala Sant Vicenç, or Cap de Formentor. Port de Pollença is the part of the town that emerged at the beginning of the 20th century, as the coastline near Pollença began to attract locals during the summer. Then it was just a matter of time before Port de Pollença became one for the biggest resorts in a response to the booming tourism on the island. Pollença Old Town is at just 8 km from Port de Pollença and can be easily reached by public transport if you don’t have a car.

Cala Sant Vicenç is a small resort at some 6 km from Pollença and 5 km (8 km by car) from Port de Pollença. It offers some breathtaking views and there you can also visit the prehistoric Alzineret caves (Hypogeum of Cala Sant Vicenç), dug around 1600 BC in the Middle Bronze Age.

If you are visiting Pollença, you can’t just not visit one of the main attractions on the island – Cap de Formentor (about 20 km from Pollença). The dramatic coastline with rugged cliffs is just breathtaking. There are a few viewing points on the promontory, a few small beaches and of course the famous Formentor lighthouse at the most northern tip of the promontory.