Mallorca & Balearic Islands

Carefree Cycling in Mallorca

Imagine someone gives me a blank sheet of paper and asks me to design an island that is perfect for cyclists. What would it look like?
It would have challenging mountains, but also flat and rolling areas. There would be well-paved roads everywhere, connecting beautiful villages. In those villages, there would be cozy squares where you could relax in the sun with a good cup of coffee. There would be an extensive and well-marked cycling route network. And there would be a large number of businesses making things easy for cyclists: companies renting bikes, arranging transportation, or organizing all-inclusive cycling weeks. Above that island, the sun would usually be shining, and you could cycle there most of the year.

Contents

• Mallorca from North to South
• Road Cycling in Mallorca
• Climbs in Mallorca
• Mountain Biking in Mallorca
• Leisure Cycling in Mallorca

Mallorca, the (Almost) Ideal Cycling Island

Thinking about what the ideal cycling island looks like is a waste of my time. It already exists and is called Mallorca. It was discovered as a cycling destination in the 1990s and has since developed into one of the top cycling destinations in Europe. How did that happen so quickly? Because everyone benefited. Hotel owners found that their hotels could use some extra guests during the off-season (winter and spring). Cycling tour organizers bought hotel rooms at reasonable rates and set up bike storage and workshops in the hotel basements. And the cyclists loved it. A nice hotel, good rental bikes, and beautiful routes. What more could you want?

Now, between February and June, there’s a massive influx of cyclists here, especially groups of road cyclists. And yes, some people now find Mallorca too crowded with cyclists.

Facts and Figures

Mallorca is part of the Balearic Islands along with Ibiza, Menorca, and Formentera
The island is approximately 70 km wide and 80 km long
Nothing is more than 90 km away from you
The capital is Palma de Mallorca with 400,000 inhabitants
The island is very focused on German-speaking tourists
The airport is located in the south, right behind the Bay of Palma

Everything You Need, The Choice is Yours

The options for cyclists on Mallorca are immense. You can choose from hundreds of bike rental shops that collectively rent out tens of thousands of bikes. There’s really no need to bring your own bike. Next, you can choose from many different routes. There are beautiful route maps available (Clips Mallorca Cycling has them), and bike rental shops often have GPS devices with pre-programmed routes. And then you can choose routes with more or fewer elevation changes.

As mentioned, there are so many facilities on Mallorca that you can organize your cycling trip yourself. But you can also join one of the cycling tour organizations, so you don’t have to think about anything. Often, they offer a hotel both in the north (Alcudia) and in the south (Playa de Palma). If you want to avoid the large tourist hubs, there are plenty of alternatives available on the island….

Renting a Villa Yourself

Many cycling groups, for example, rent a house or villa on Mallorca themselves. These houses are often large enough, and if you do the math, it can also be quite cost-effective.

Climbs in Mallorca

The climbs in Mallorca are rarely extremely steep. However, in the Tramuntana Mountains, you can easily accumulate a significant amount of elevation in a single day. The roads there are beautiful, with good asphalt and smooth turns.

Our favorite climbs in Mallorca are:

• Sa Calobra – A unique experience, no matter how many mountains you’ve cycled in your life. The road winds like spaghetti through a stunning mountain landscape. 13 kilometers at an average of 7%.
• Puig Major – Nearly 15 kilometers at an average of 6%. The longest climb on the island.
• Col de Sóller – An average of 6% over 7.5 kilometers. A nice, quiet road as car traffic to and from Sóller now takes the tunnel.
• Col de Sa Batalla
• Coll de Femenia
• Col d’Honor
• San Salvador
• Puig de Randa
• Coll de la Creueta
• Cap Formentor

Mallorca for Mountain Bikers

An excellent mountain biking area is the Llevant Mountains on the east coast. There are several great routes for mountain bikers of all levels. Cala Bona and Cala Millor are good starting points for these routes. The Llevant Mountains, despite their modest height (400 meters max), offer a challenging mountain biking landscape.
Mountain bikes are available for rent everywhere, and in Cala Millor, there is a good company that organizes guided mountain bike trips and also offers mountain bike clinics.
The Tramuntana Mountains also offer MTB opportunities. In this range, there is an extensive network of footpaths, some of which are open to MTB riders. Be careful, the Tramuntana is a wild and steep range with challenging singletracks, so it’s not terrain for beginners.
All over Mallorca, there are paths and unpaved agricultural roads. But beware: all farmland on the island is privately owned, and this also applies to those paths. You should technically have permission to ride on them, and even then, you often encounter gates, whether open or closed.
Mountain biking in Mallorca requires good preparation, and it seems wise to opt for a guided tour. There are plenty of bike companies that are happy to help.

Mallorca for Recreational Cyclists

Mallorca also offers plenty of opportunities for recreational cyclists. You can rent a touring bike or trekking bike in many places. In the capital Palma, but also along the boulevard on the Bay of Palma, there are plenty of rental companies. You can cycle perfectly along that boulevard, and in fact, in many places on Mallorca, a touring bike will suffice. Large parts of the island are flat or gently rolling.

Mallorca also has a via verde (a bike path on an old railway line), but it was severely damaged by heavy flooding in 2019 and is currently not rideable.