Multi-Day Trips Across the Balearics
Inter-island ferries and flights eat entire days here, so a multi-day Balearic trip needs to be planned around transit legs first and sightseeing second. Don’t attempt more than two islands on anything shorter than five days.
The island-hop: Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza (7-10 days)
Days 1-4 on Mallorca cover Palma’s cathedral, the Sóller train through the Serra de Tramuntana, Valldemossa, Deià, and the Cuevas del Drach; the official Illes Balears tourism site is a reasonable starting point for checking what’s actually open on your dates before you book a base in Palma. Days 5-7 move to Menorca by high-speed ferry to hike sections of the Camí de Cavalls, visit the Talaiotic prehistoric sites, and swim at the island’s quieter calas. Days 8-10 use an inter-island commuter flight to reach Ibiza for Dalt Vila, a day ferry across to Formentera’s Ses Illetes, and a sunset at Es Vedrà. Adding Formentera pushes this comfortably past the 10-day mark once ferry timing is accounted for.
Trekking the GR 221 Dry Stone Route (6-8 days)
A 135-kilometer long-distance trek across the Serra de Tramuntana from Andratx to Pollença, overnighting in traditional stone mountain refuges (refugis) along the way. This is a Mallorca-only itinerary and a serious hiking commitment, not a casual walking holiday; guided GR 221 trekking options exist for travelers who’d rather not plan refugi logistics solo.
Cycling or hiking the Camí de Cavalls loop (4-6 days)
A multi-day circuit of Menorca’s full 185-kilometer coastal path, the Camí de Cavalls (GR 223), completed by mountain bike or on foot depending on fitness and time available. Guided day stages are a lower-commitment way to sample the trail before deciding whether to attempt the full loop, all of it inside Menorca’s UNESCO Biosphere Reserve .
When to go
Both the GR 221 trek and the Camí de Cavalls loop are best attempted in the shoulder seasons, April to May or September to October, when daytime temperatures sit in the 20 to 25°C range and the trails are far quieter than during the June-to-August peak. Summer heat on exposed coastal and mountain stretches makes the same distances noticeably harder, and refugi space along the GR 221 books up fastest in high season.
Accommodation on a multi-day island-hop ranges from boutique hotels to rural agroturismos converted from old farmhouses, and both fill up well ahead of peak season, so book lodging before you finalize ferry times, not after. Expect to pay the region’s sustainable tourism tax, roughly one to four euros per adult per night, on top of your room rate at every stop.
Verdict: if the trip is under a week, pick one island and go deep rather than chase all four; the ferry and flight legs alone will eat the extra days you’d need to do justice to a second or third island.
Book inter-island ferry and flight legs before you book accommodation. Sailings and flights both thin out sharply outside the May-to-October season, and a missed connection can cost you a full day you didn’t budget for. For single-day versions of these same routes, see the day trips guide .