Glass-Bottom Catamaran Cruise along the East Coast Mallorca

Calas de Mallorca, the starting point

Calas de Mallorca is a small resort on the east coast in the municipality of Manacor, built from the 1960s on the clifftops above a series of sheltered coves. Its pier sits at the foot of the cliffs, and from the water you see how the coast here is cut into narrow inlets, each with a small beach of pale sand at its head.

This is the departure point for the coves-and-caves route, which heads north along one of the least developed stretches of Mallorca's coastline. As the catamaran moves away from the pier, the glass panels in the hull already show the rocky seabed and the first fish, giving you a taste of what glass-bottom boat trips in Mallorca are all about.

Cala Magraner and Cala Virgili

Cala Magraner is a long, narrow cove at the mouth of a stream valley, framed by high limestone walls and pine woods, with a beach of sand and pebbles at its end. Next to it, tiny Cala Virgili hides between rocky points and is often almost empty. Neither has roads or buildings, and on land they can only be reached by rough footpaths through the countryside.

From the catamaran you see both coves in full, with the deep green of the pines against the turquoise water. On calm days the seabed below is clearly visible through the hull, with meadows of seagrass and rocks where fish gather. The host shares the stories of these wild coves, which have stayed untouched while the resorts grew around them.

Cala Varques, the jewel of the east coast

Cala Varques is one of the best-known unspoiled beaches of Mallorca, a wide cove of white sand and transparent water with no buildings or roads in sight. Visitors who come by land must walk about 20 minutes along a dirt track, which is why so many people search for how to get to Cala Varques; arriving by boat is the easiest way to enjoy it.

Around the cove the cliffs are pierced with caves and arches carved by the sea. On this route the swimming stops are made in coves such as Cala Varques when the sea allows, giving you time to dive from the boat into some of the clearest water on the island. Bring a mask if you have one, as the rocky edges are full of small fish.

The Pirate Cave and the sea caves

The limestone of the east coast is riddled with caves, from the vast chambers inland to the small sea caves that open at water level along the cliffs. Many carry old names linked to smugglers and sailors, such as the Pirate Cave, where boats once hid from view, and the Cova dels Coloms, the cave of the pigeons that still nest in its roof.

The catamaran makes short entries into several of these caves, nosing into the shade where the water glows an intense blue and the light plays on the rock. Through the glass hull you see the seabed drop away beneath you, a moment that most guests remember as the highlight of the trip, especially children.

Cala Romàntica and Porto Cristo

Cala Romàntica, also known as S'Estany d'en Mas, is a sandy beach where a small stream forms a lagoon behind the dunes, a little further north along the route. Beyond it, Porto Cristo is the old fishing port of Manacor, set around a long natural inlet that made it one of the safest harbours on the east coast. Just outside the town lie the famous Caves of Drach with their underground lake.

Porto Cristo is the turning point of this route. The catamaran sails into the inlet with views of the harbour and the promenade, then heads back south to Calas de Mallorca with a second swimming stop on the return, completing a Porto Cristo boat trip of about two and a half hours.