Mallorca Airport, officially called Palma de Mallorca Airport and known by the code PMI, is around 8 kilometres from the centre of Palma. From the airport, public transport runs in three directions: the A1 city bus heads into Plaça d’Espanya and Passeig Mallorca, the A2 runs along Playa de Palma to s’Arenal, and TIB’s airport buses go straight out to the resorts around the island.
Most people who land here aren’t staying in Palma at all, but in Magaluf, Alcúdia, Cala Millor or somewhere else on the coast. That’s why your choice mostly depends on where your hotel is and whether you land in the middle of the day or late in the evening. Below, you’ll find fares, timetables, stops and taxi rates, so you know exactly what to do when you walk out into the arrivals hall. For the rough conversions I’ve used about £0.84 and $1.12 per euro.
Contents
At a glance
- Bus A1: €5 (about £4.20/$5.60) in cash or around €3 (about £2.50/$3.40) by bank card, 25 minutes to the last stop on Passeig Mallorca, running from 05:30 in the morning until around 02:15 at night.
- TIB airport buses: Around €4.05 (about £3.40/$4.50) to Calvià and around €8.10 (about £6.80/$9.10) to Alcúdia and Cala Millor by card, running all year from early morning until late in the evening.
- Bus A2: €5 (about £4.20/$5.60) in cash or around €3 (about £2.50/$3.40) by card, 35 minutes to s’Arenal via Can Pastilla and Playa de Palma, running from 06:15 until around 00:15.
- Taxi: At least €16.95 (about £14.50/$19) from the airport and around €20 (about £17/$22.50) to the centre of Palma during the day, on the island’s fixed rates.
- Uber: The app shows the fare before you book, and the car picks you up outside the arrivals hall.
- Shared transfer: Booked in advance, it takes you to the door of your hotel together with other travellers.
Finding your transport at the airport
The arrivals hall is on Planta 0, which is street level, and this is where almost all transport starts. The buses stop on Planta 0 at arrivals, in front of the car park. EMT’s airport buses A1 and A2 and TIB’s airport buses all use the stop at arrivals, so you won’t have to look for two different places. The A1 and A2 also stop on Planta 2 at departures, which is mostly useful on the way back.
The taxi rank is also on Planta 0 at arrivals. The airport advises you to take a taxi only from the signposted rank and not to accept offers from drivers anywhere else. Uber and other pre-booked cars with a driver pick up on Planta 0 outside the terminal building at arrivals. You can see all the stops on the airport’s bus page.
If you’re hiring a car, most of the rental companies have their desks in the arrivals hall on Planta 0, and Europcar, Record Go and Sixt also have a desk in the baggage reclaim hall. You collect the car itself in the car park on level 0, 1 or 2, depending on the company. The list of companies is on the airport’s car hire page.
1. Bus A1 to central Palma
The A1 is EMT Palma’s airport bus and the easiest way into Palma. From arrivals, it takes the Ma-19 motorway to Palau de Congressos and then continues into the city via Porta des Camp, Sindicat and Plaça d’Espanya to the last stop on Passeig Mallorca by Jaume III. The whole journey takes 25 minutes according to the timetable. The route is only for journeys to and from the airport, so you can’t use it between two stops in the city.
During the day, the A1 runs every 15 minutes on weekdays and every 12 minutes at weekends and on public holidays. The first bus leaves the airport at 05:30. In the evening, it runs every 20 minutes until around 01:15, and after that there’s only one more bus, which is the last one, at around 02:15. In other words, there’s a bus almost around the clock. The timetable changes between summer and winter, so check the departures with EMT Palma if you’re landing late.
The A1 suits everyone staying in Palma, as well as anyone travelling on by train or bus from Estació Intermodal at Plaça d’Espanya. The catch is that it doesn’t go to the resorts. If you’re heading for Magaluf, Alcúdia or Cala Millor, you’ll save both time and a change by taking one of TIB’s airport buses straight from the same stop.
Fares and tickets
A ride on the A1 costs €5 (about £4.20/$5.60) if you pay in cash on the bus. If you pay by bank card, the first passenger gets a 40 per cent discount, so the journey costs around €3 (about £2.50/$3.40). If you’re travelling together and pay for everyone with the same card, the others in the group get an even bigger discount of up to 60 per cent. This applies to groups of up to five people.
EMT has scrapped the multi-trip cards and prepaid airport tickets you could buy in the past, so these days you pay by card or in cash when you board. The island’s travel card, the Tarjeta Única, is the cheapest option for residents, while according to TIB, a bank card gives visitors the best price.
Pay by card on the bus
You hold your bank card against the card reader when you board. The system accepts Visa, Mastercard and Maestro, both debit and credit cards, and you don’t need to buy a ticket first. All of the day’s journeys are charged together as one amount the following day, and your bank may hold up to €20 (about £17/$22.50), which is released automatically once the journeys have been paid for.
If you’re paying for several people, hold the card against the reader once for each person when you board. Use the same card or the same phone all day, otherwise the system can’t add your journeys together. The rules are explained by TIB, which runs the payment system together with EMT.
Where to get off
Palau de Congressos: The first stop in the city is by the conference centre in the eastern part of Palma. Get off here if your hotel is nearby. If you’re heading into the Old Town, stay on the bus.
Porta des Camp: The stop is on Avinguda Gabriel Alomar by the old city gate on the edge of the Old Town, which is called Casco Antiguo in Spanish. Get off here if you’re staying in the eastern part of the Old Town, and walk the last bit through the narrow streets.
Plaça d’Espanya - Estació Intermodal: This is Palma’s transport hub. Estació Intermodal is on the square, and it’s where TIB’s buses to the rest of the island leave from, along with the metro and the trains to Inca, Manacor and Sa Pobla. Get off here if you’re travelling on around the island or if you’re staying in the northern part of the centre. Read more about Estació Intermodal on TIB’s website.
Passeig Mallorca - Jaume III: The last stop is on Passeig Mallorca by Jaume III, a shopping street. From here, you can walk into the western part of the Old Town, and many of the city’s hotels are within walking distance.
2. TIB airport buses to the resorts
If you’re not staying in Palma, TIB’s airport buses are the ones to look out for. TIB is Mallorca’s public bus network, and its airport routes are called Aerotib and have numbers beginning with A. They run direct from the airport to the big holiday areas, so you won’t need to change in Palma. The buses run all year, including in the low season, but in winter there are different routes and fewer departures.
Four routes run in summer. The A11 goes to Calvià and stops at places including Portals Nous, Palmanova, Magaluf, Santa Ponça and Peguera, ending at Camp de Mar. The A32 runs via Inca and sa Pobla to Alcúdia, Port d’Alcúdia and Playa de Muro, ending at Can Picafort. The A42 runs via Manacor and Porto Cristo to Sa Coma, Cala Millor and Cala Bona on the east coast, and the A51 runs via s’Arenal and Llucmajor to Campos.
The summer routes usually start running at the end of March, and the winter timetable applies from November. In winter, the A11 and A51 keep running, while the A33 replaces the A32 and ends at Port d’Alcúdia, and the A43 replaces the A42 and ends at Manacor, where you can change at the railway station. The winter A11 also runs only as far as Peguera rather than Camp de Mar. The changes are listed in TIB’s overview of the winter routes.
In summer, there are usually 45 to 50 minutes between departures, and the A32, for example, runs every 50 minutes on average, with the last departure from the airport at 00:05. In winter, the routes run roughly once an hour, and the last buses leave the airport between 22:30 and 23:40. If you land after midnight, there are no TIB buses, so it’s a taxi or a pre-booked transfer. The journey time depends on how far along the route you’re going, so check your departure on TIB’s airport page before you fly.
Fares and tickets
The fare depends on how far you’re going. To Palmanova, Magaluf and Santa Ponça, the journey costs around €4.05 (about £3.40/$4.50) by card and around €6.75 (about £5.70/$7.60) in cash. To Alcúdia and Can Picafort on the A32 and to Cala Millor on the A42, it costs around €8.10 (about £6.80/$9.10) by card and around €13.50 (about £11.50/$15) in cash. Paying by card is around 40 per cent cheaper, which makes it the obvious choice.
Cash fares are paid to the driver, but only with notes of up to €20 (about £17/$22.50), and the cash ticket is only valid on the route you’re travelling on. See the rules for the cash ticket on TIB’s website.
Remember to tap out with your card
On TIB buses, you hold your card against the reader both when you get on and when you get off. If you forget to tap out, you’ll be charged a penalty fee of €0.30 (about £0.25/$0.34) per person. If several of you are travelling on the same card, each person has to tap in, but the card only needs to be held against the reader once when you get off. One card can cover up to five people, and with the card you can change twice within 60 minutes if you’re continuing on another bus or a train.
Where to get off the TIB bus
Palmanova and Magaluf (A11): These are the resort areas in Calvià, west of Palma. The bus stops in both towns, so ask your hotel which stop is closest. Santa Ponça, Peguera and Camp de Mar are further along the same route.
Inca (A32 and A33): Inca is inland, in the Raiguer region. Get off here if you’re staying in or around the town. There are also trains to Palma from here.
Alcúdia and Port d’Alcúdia (A32 and A33): Get off in Alcúdia if you’re staying inside the town walls, and in Port d’Alcúdia if you’re staying by the harbour and the beach. In winter, Port d’Alcúdia is the last stop, and from here you can change to buses towards Pollença.
Playa de Muro and Can Picafort (A32): This is where you’ll find the hotels along the Bay of Alcúdia. Can Picafort is the last stop in summer. In winter, the A33 ends at Port d’Alcúdia, so check your connection for the final stretch.
Sa Coma, Cala Millor and Cala Bona (A42): These are the beach resorts on the east coast. Cala Bona is the last stop. In winter, the A43 only goes as far as Manacor, so check your onward connection out to the coast.
Campos (A51): The last stop is the town on the route that’s closest to the beaches of the Migjorn, such as Es Trenc. From here, take a taxi for the final stretch.
3. Bus A2 to Playa de Palma and s’Arenal
The A2 is EMT’s second airport bus, and it runs in the opposite direction from the A1, along the coast east of the airport. From arrivals, it goes to Cala Estància and Can Pastilla and then along Playa de Palma, past the numbered beach pavilions from Balneari 13 to Balneari 1, and into s’Arenal. It reaches the last stop by the water park in s’Arenal in 35 minutes. Like the A1, it’s only for journeys to and from the airport.
During the day, there are 35 minutes between buses on weekdays and 25 minutes at weekends and on public holidays. The first one leaves the airport at 06:15 and the last at around 00:15. The fare and payment are the same as on the A1, so it’s €5 (about £4.20/$5.60) in cash or around €3 (about £2.50/$3.40) by card. If you’re staying at Playa de Palma, the A2 is the cheapest way to your hotel, and the pavilion numbers make it easy to find the right stop.
4. Taxis and Uber
Taxis in Mallorca run on the meter, with rates that apply across the whole island. During the day on weekdays, from 07:00 to 21:00, the starting fare is €2.50 (about £2.10/$2.80) and each kilometre costs €1.20 (about £1/$1.35). At night and all day at weekends and on public holidays, the starting fare is €2.85 (about £2.40/$3.20) and each kilometre costs €1.35 (about £1.15/$1.50). Journeys from the airport carry a supplement of €4.65 (about £3.90/$5.20), charged once per journey, and luggage doesn’t cost extra.
A journey from the airport costs at least €16.95 (about £14.50/$19), which covers the starting fare, the airport supplement and the first 7 kilometres. The bus route to Plaça d’Espanya is around 9 kilometres, so expect to pay around €20 (about £17/$22.50) to the centre of Palma during the day. To the resorts, the fare depends on the distance, and if there are five or six of you in a large car, it costs €3 (about £2.50/$3.40) extra. All the rates are listed by Palma’s mobility department, and you can read the airport’s advice on its taxi page.
Uber also operates from the airport. The app shows the fare before you book, and it shows where you’ll meet your driver, which isn’t always at the nearest exit. According to the airport, the cars pick up on Planta 0 outside the terminal at arrivals. Find out more from Uber and on the airport’s page about pre-booked cars.
Private transfer
If you’re landing late with children, or there are several of you with lots of luggage, you can book a private transfer from the airport to Palma here. The driver waits for you, and the price is agreed in advance. If you’re only going to Palma, though, an ordinary taxi is cheaper.
5. Shared transfer to your hotel
If you’re going to a resort that no airport bus reaches, such as Cala d’Or, or to a finca inland, a shared transfer is a halfway house between the bus and a taxi. You share a minibus with other travellers, and it drops each of you at your hotel. The downside is that the journey takes longer because the minibus stops at several hotels.
The transfer has to be booked at least two days in advance, and you can book a shared transfer from the airport to your hotel here. It’s a good option if you land in the evening after the last buses have gone and don’t want to pay for a long taxi ride on your own.
6. Car hire from the airport
If you’re staying in the mountains of the Serra de Tramuntana or at a finca in the Pla de Mallorca, a hire car is often the most practical option, because many of the villages only have a few buses. Pick up the car at the airport so you don’t have to drive through Palma first. The desks are in the arrivals hall on Planta 0, and the cars are in the car park. If you’re only staying in Palma or in one of the resorts with an airport bus, you won’t need a car from day one.
Getting back to the airport
From Palma, the A1 runs from Passeig Mallorca by Jaume III via Plaça d’Espanya and Porta des Camp to the airport. The first bus leaves at 04:17, and during the day it runs every 12 to 15 minutes. The last departure is at around 00:20, and after that there’s no A1 to the airport until 04:17. The journey takes around 30 minutes, and the bus stops first on Planta 2 at departures and then at arrivals. Get off at departures.
The A2 runs from s’Arenal from 05:15 until around 22:30. TIB’s airport buses start early in the morning at the far ends of their routes. Check the time for your stop in TIB’s timetable, and remember to tap out with your card when you get off at the airport.
If you’re catching a very early flight from a resort, a taxi is the safe choice. The airport supplement of €4.65 (about £3.90/$5.20) also applies to journeys to the airport. Book your taxi with the local taxi association the evening before. The phone numbers for the associations in each town are on TIB’s taxi page. You can also book a shared transfer from your hotel to the airport here at least three days in advance.
Which option should you choose?
Here’s what I’d recommend, depending on where you’re staying:
Palma de Mallorca: Take the A1 and pay by card. For the Old Town, get off at Porta des Camp or at the last stop on Passeig Mallorca by Jaume III.
Playa de Palma and s’Arenal: Take the A2, which runs along the whole beach. If you’re staying in s’Arenal, you can also take the A51.
Palmanova and Magaluf: Take the A11, which runs direct for around €4.05 (about £3.40/$4.50) by card.
Pla de Mallorca, Alcúdia and Can Picafort: Take the A32 in summer and the A33 in winter, but the A33 only goes as far as Port d’Alcúdia, so for Can Picafort a taxi is the easiest option for the last stretch. If you’re staying at a finca inland, a hire car or a transfer is easier.
Raiguer and Inca: Take the A32 or A33, which stop in Inca, or the A1 to Plaça d’Espanya and then the train to Inca.
Cala Millor and the east coast: Take the A42 in summer. In winter, the A43 only goes as far as Manacor, so a taxi or a transfer is easiest for the final stretch.
Cala d’Or: There’s no airport bus, so take a taxi or a shared transfer.
The Migjorn and the beaches in the south: Take the A51 to Campos and a taxi from there, or hire a car if you want to get around to Es Trenc, Es Caragol and Cala Llombards.
Serra de Tramuntana: Take the A1 to Plaça d’Espanya and then the TIB bus from Estació Intermodal towards Valldemossa, Deià and Sóller, or hire a car at the airport.
If you land at night: The A1 runs until around 02:15, but there are no TIB buses after midnight. To the resorts, it’s a taxi or a transfer you’ve booked in advance.
If there are three or four of you: Four people on the A1 using the same card pay at most around €12 (about £10/$13.50), while a taxi to the centre of Palma costs around €20 (about £17/$22.50) and takes you to the door.
Practical tips for getting from Mallorca Airport to Palma and your hotel
Pay by card instead of cash. On both EMT and TIB buses, paying by bank card is around 40 per cent cheaper than a cash ticket, and you don’t need to have change ready.
Use one card for the whole group. One card can cover up to five people, and the others in the group get a bigger discount than the first person. Hold the card against the reader once for each person.
Remember to tap out on the TIB bus. If you forget to hold your card against the reader when you get off, you’ll pay a penalty fee of €0.30 (about £0.25/$0.34) per person.
Only take a taxi from the rank. The airport advises against accepting offers from drivers outside the signposted rank, and you should ask for a receipt if you want to make a complaint.
Choose your hotel with the connection in mind. If you’re staying in Palma’s Old Town, the A1 runs to the edge of the area almost around the clock, and you can see hotels in the Old Town here. At Playa de Palma, the A2 runs past the whole beach, and you can see hotels at Playa de Palma here. In Magaluf, the A11 stops in the town, and you can see hotels in Magaluf here. If you’d like to stay in Alcúdia, the A32 and A33 go all the way, and you can see hotels in Alcúdia here.
If you’re not sure which area suits you, read my guide to where to stay in Mallorca. If you’re heading on to the neighbouring island, I’ve also written about where to stay in Menorca.
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