Castell de Bellver
Perched on a pine-clad hill just 3 km west of Palma's old town, this flawless 14th-century Gothic fortress is the only circular castle in Spain — and from its rooftop you earn a 360° sweep of Palma Bay, the cathedral spires, and the Serra de Tramuntana mountains. Arrive early or at golden hour when the honey-coloured stone glows and the crowds are thin.
Architecture & History
Commissioned in 1300 by King James II of Mallorca, Bellver was built as a royal residence before serving as a military prison for centuries — among its notable inmates was the Enlightenment minister Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos.
The three-tiered circular courtyard ringed with Gothic arches is genuinely rare in European castle design, and the independent keep tower, linked to the main body by a stone bridge, once formed the castle's last line of defence.
Walking the levels from dungeon to battlement feels like a slow-motion time machine, with each floor revealing a different chapter of Mallorcan history.
Views & Museum
The upper terrace delivers the castle's headline act: a full panoramic view of Palma Bay, the cathedral, and on clear days the distant peaks of the Tramuntana range — sunset here is genuinely spectacular.
Inside, the ground-floor Museu d'Història de la Ciutat traces Palma's past through ceramics, statues, coins, and medieval artefacts; the building itself often upstages the collection.
During local festivals the courtyard transforms into an open-air concert venue, giving the Gothic arches an unexpectedly modern soundtrack.
Getting There & The Forest Walk
The castle is surrounded by Bellver Forest, a fragrant pine woodland where locals jog, picnic, and walk dogs — a stroll through the trees before or after your visit is a pleasure in its own right, especially in summer's heat.
You can reach the hilltop on tourist bus line 50 (alight at Castell de Bellver stop) or drive in via Camilo José Cela road, where a car park sits at the base.
Free entry on Sunday afternoons for EU residents makes the end of the weekend the savviest time to visit.
Castell de Bellver on video
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