Private sunset yacht cruise in Palma

Depending on where the yacht is based, the evening can start from Palma, Puerto Portals or Port Adriano, and many routes stay within the Bay of Palma. Heading west from Palma you pass Bellver Castle, the circular Gothic fortress built for King Jaume II in the early 14th century, then Marivent at Cala Major, the Spanish royal family's summer residence, and the small islets that give Illetes its name. At the bay's western point, the lighthouse on Cap de Cala Figuera, first lit in 1860, takes over as dusk falls.

Timing shapes everything. In summer the embat, the sea breeze that builds across the bay from late morning, usually eases towards evening, which often means calmer water for a swim from the stern. The point where the sun meets the horizon shifts through the year, so your captain chooses the anchorage, on sand or an authorised buoy to protect the Posidonia seagrass, for the clearest sightline west. Around the full moon, the moon rises in the east close to sunset, and you can watch one go down as the other comes up.

On the run home, La Seu is floodlit above Parc de la Mar. If watching the sun sink into open water matters most, ask about an evening on the west coast towards Sant Elm, where, depending on the season and the yacht's position, it sets over Sa Dragonera or the open sea beside it. A sailing catamaran gives the quietest passage and lets a large group spread out, a motor or sport yacht reaches farther anchorages before dark, and a superyacht adds a full crew and space to host. Prices are on request.