The perfect small city: Palma has year-round holiday homes on this health-conscious Mediterranean island

Palma, the capital of Majorca, serves up perfect urban beachfront living.

The city is big enough to provide culture and shopping opportunities from international designers to local arts and crafts yet is also on a human scale.

Cycle or walk along the promenade that runs from Palma past the superyachts lined up in the marinas and the expensive terrace cottages in pretty Portixol and you’ll find few buildings are taller than the magnificent 13th-century cathedral.

Palma is just over two hours’ flight from London and the efficient road infrastructure puts all Majorca’s sporting charms within easy reach.

This is a health-conscious island with 24 golf courses, 47 marinas and nearly 800 miles of cycling routes.

The city has only really raised its profile in the past decade as a place that is much more than just a gateway to the island’s 208 beaches. Hoteliers have responded by opening boutique hotels in old palaces: eight opened in the Old Town last year.

Hotelier-restaurateur Miguel Conde opened the Can Cera Hotel in 2011 and now has three other city-centre hotels, all in historic buildings with a chic mix of intimate spaces, rooftop terraces and atmospheric design.

His latest, beautiful Boutique Hotel Sant Jaume, opened last summer in a quiet road near the sea.

Palma is now a destination in its own right offering year-round living,” agrees Terence Paton of Engel & Volkers. “Buyers in Palma Old Town are primarily looking for apartments with some outdoor space.”

LUXURY CITY CENTRE HOMES

Palma’s most prestigious location is El Born, a wide, tree-lined street of shops and pavement restaurants and the focus of Palma’s annual fiestas.

British developers Dominic Shapeero and Simon Jansen of Blue Asset Management have taken Palau Can Puig, a 400-year-old palace overlooking the Plaza Juan Carlos at the top of El Born and created five

large and elegant and high-quality apartments. These are truly historic gems and outstanding homes.

The three apartments still for sale are finished with French antique fireplaces, oak floorboards and contemporary Crittall-style interior windows.

The 9,690sq ft Planta Nobile first-floor apartment has a statement 1,076sq ft terrace over El Born.

Prices at Can Puig range from £2.6 million to £8.7 million.

“What buyers want in central Palma, and what is especially difficult to find in the city’s narrow streets, is great light and outside space,” says Shapeero.

CITY LIVING

Away from the city centre, value can be found in Playa de Palma. Average apartment prices here are under €450,000 (£400,000), making it one of the most affordable seafront areas, while substantial investment in five-star hotels and beach bars is shifting its image to sophisticated cool.

Engel & Volkers is selling a two-bedroom, first-floor, 635sq ft contemporary and stylish apartment on the seafront for £435,000.

Further west on the prestigious Paseo Maritimo, buyers keen to do their own refurbishment might like a spacious 1,722sq ft three-bedroom apartment overlooking Palma harbour.

It requires some updating but has a large terrace, shares a communal pool and is for sale with Engel & Volkers for £790,000.

Boutique Hotel Sant Jaume. Nightly room rates start from £155, boutiquehotelsantjaume.com