Capdepera Lighthouse

Working lighthouse from 1861 on Mallorca's easternmost point, a white tower above rocky cliffs

Capdepera Lighthouse stands on the easternmost point of Mallorca, in the municipality of Capdepera near the resort of Cala Ratjada. The white tower, about 18 metres tall, has been in service since 1861 and is still a working lighthouse, closed to the public. It is known for the views from the headland around it: cliffs along a rocky coastline, the ruins of old watchtowers and, on a clear day, Menorca across the sea.

Lighthouse

Entrance: Free; there is no ticket for the headland. The lighthouse tower is closed to visitors.
Accessibility: No wheelchair-accessible entrance. The tower is closed to visitors, and the viewpoints around it are reached on foot.
Parking: Free car park beside the lighthouse with room for about ten cars, reachable by car only outside the summer closure; a second car park about 1 km away in a straight line. Free street parking and a paid car park are also available nearby.
Difficulty: Easy. The walk up from Cala Ratjada takes about 45 minutes and suits most fitness levels; outside the summer closure you can drive up and park beside the lighthouse.
Transport: In summer a bus runs up to the lighthouse during the road closure and stops near the car park; the nearest other stops, Restaurante Los Arcos and Hotel Allsun Illot Park, are about 1 km away in a straight line.
Advance booking: Not needed to visit the headland.
Hours: Open at all times. In summer the access road is closed to cars from 10:00 to 22:00; only the bus and bikes may use it then.
Address: Carrer de sa Comassa, 5, 07590, Illes Balears, Spain

What makes it special

On a clear day Menorca shows on the horizon, across the open sea from the last point of Mallorca. The lighthouse holds that point: a white tower about 18 metres tall, roughly the height of a six-storey building, in service since 1861 and still working. The door stays shut, but the tower is worth seeing close up.

The headland is the reason to come. You can walk around the top between several viewpoints, looking down on the cliffs and the rocky coastline, and past the ruins of old watchtowers that kept watch over the same sea. This is the island's eastern tip, so at dawn the sun comes up straight out of the water in front of you.

Good to know

The tower is a working lighthouse and is closed to visitors; you come for the headland and the views.
In summer the road up is closed to cars for most of the day and evening, and a car still up there once the closure starts risks a fine.
The road is narrow and the car park at the top holds about ten cars, so it jams when everyone tries to drive up.
There are no toilets or drinking water at the lighthouse, and none nearby. Bring water with you.

Getting there

Most people start from Cala Ratjada. The walk up takes about 45 minutes and is not a hard one, and it spares you the queue of cars on the road.

By car the road is short, narrow and winding, and it ends at a free car park beside the lighthouse with room for about ten cars. In summer the road is closed to cars for most of the day and into the evening. During the closure only the bus and bikes go up, and the bus stops near the car park. If you drive up early in the morning, be back down before the closure begins.

A second car park sits about 1 km away in a straight line, and walking up from there avoids the jam at the top.

Best time to visit

Best: dawn, or sunset in summer by bus.

Avoid: driving up in the middle of a summer day.

From the easternmost point of the island the sun rises straight out of the sea, and in summer the early morning is also the only daytime window when cars may still use the road. At sunset in summer the road is still closed to cars, so either take the bus up or watch from the viewpoint a little before the closed section of road.

Sun & daylight

Beach

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