If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (including tax) available in the next 60 days.
Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (EUR450.00), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.
The timeline might be all over the place at Nobis Hotel Palma (the second Mallorcan stay for the group after Concepció by Nobis), housed in an Arabic palace dating back 1,000 years, yet furnished in the sharpest modern Scandi style by the noted Wingårdhs studio – but, it looks so well put together. Within its thick stone walls (some still frescoed), there are pieces by Carl Hansen, Audo, Flos, and Örsjö; courtyards for cooling dips and chilled drinks; petite spa; and an impeccably dressed bar, topped off with a buzzy roof terrace (cathedral views abound), making it a stay for the ages.
Smith Extra
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A glass of cava each and a selection of local tapas
Noon. Earliest check-in, 3pm. There is some flexibility, subject to availability, but otherwise guests can shower and refresh in the spa and gym ahead of check-in.
Prices
Double rooms from £385.37 (€450). Please note the hotel charges an additional local city tax of €1.10 per person per night on check-out.
More details
Rates include breakfast with treats from the local bakery and more, and a welcome drink (plus shoe shines, on request, are free).
Also
Palma’s palaces of old unfortunately weren’t built to be the most accessible, but guests with reduced mobility can request a step-free room.
At the hotel
Two courtyards, roof terrace; lounge; bikes to borrow; gym; charged laundry and dry-cleaning service; and a concierge. In rooms: Bang & Olufsen Bluetooth sound-system, air-conditioning, beach bags, bathrobes and slippers, and Byredo bath products.
Our favourite rooms
Legendary Swedish architect Gert Wingårdh’s firm took on design duties for updating interiors, while keeping the original palace’s aesthetic bones in place (sturdy stone walls, thick wooden beams). The result is custom and statement pieces from the likes of Carl Hansen, Menu, Flos, and Örsjö in wood, leather and wool, alongside sleek marble and local handicrafts. We like the Rooftop Suite for its cathedral view and vaulted ceiling, and the Nobis Suite for its special extras: a massage, free minibar snacks and airport pick-up.
Poolside
A fountain in the interior courtyard has been repurposed into a petite saltwater plunge pool, large enough for two guests at a time (from 11am to 6pm). It’s set a few steps down from the sun terrace (outfitted in pieces from Skargaarden, Carl Hansen, Santa & Cole, and Nanimarquina) where drinks can be served. And there’s a heated plunge pool in the spa.
Spa
Uniquely, the spa is built in part of a centuries-old subterranean tunnel designed to be used as an escape route for the resident family (the exit of which was obscured by an elevated garden in the 18th century). Now, it’s used as a getaway from life’s stresses, with a pool and hydrotherapy jets, infra-red and dry saunas, and soothing treatments using natural oils from the Tramuntana mountains. In-room massages (in collaboration with Stockholm spa Heat by Sophia Lie) can be arranged on request, and on the ground level there’s a gym with an elliptical, stationary bike, free weights and yoga kit. Or, for €10 a go, the hotel has partnered with the larger MC Fit gym, a short walk away.
Packing tips
No, you can’t fit that Carl Hansen bedframe in your suitcase, but you can order your home a whole new look with Palma’s interior-design stores, such as vast Trends Home, artisan-supporting Degüayhaus, or Living Dreams concept store.
Also
Even the hotel’s meeting rooms are styled to perfection, with original Gothic accents, Carl Hansen seating, Tacchini’s Elefant chair, Arflex sofa and Dusty Deco seashell lamp. The Library also has a small balcony.
Kids can stay, but there are a lot of stone stairs and many precious designer furnishings. Babysitting can be arranged on request with 24 hours notice (€50–60 an hour, three hours minimum).
Sustainability efforts
The hotel has taken residence in one of Palma’s oldest buildings, an Arabic palace, parts of which date back 1,000 years. So, they’ve tried to leave as much history in place as possible, and you’ll spy remnants of ancient frescoes and snatches of Arabic script on the rough stone walls, plus intricately painted Moorish tiles, throughout.
From the rooftop you look out over a sea of terracotta tiles surrounding the bulk of iconic Palma cathedral. And Noi spills out onto one of the palace’s two symmetrical courtyards for leafy alfresco dining.
Dress Code
When the set dressing is this Scandi-liciously stylish, you'll need to look the part.
Hotel restaurant
Set in the palace’s vaults, Noi restaurant carries on the hotel’s impeccable design nous – the Wingårdhs studio have outfitted the stone-arch-lined space with alabaster pendant lighting from Contain, chunky Alba chairs from Dusty Deco, striped banquettes, and bespoke tables with intricate intarsia woodwork. Chef Xema Álvarez (who also oversees Xalest Restaurant at sister stay Concepció by Nobis) shows his love of the land through an as-zero-kilometre-as-can-be menu, showcasing the spoils of Mallorcan fishermen, growers, winemakers and more – so the made-for-sharing plates you’ll enjoy will be full of local flavour.
Hotel bar
Back in the 17th and 18th centuries, when the former palace was comfortably in its stride as a noble residence, ceiling height was a bit of a status symbol – the higher the stature, the bigger the deal you were. And the Mirall Bar’s nine-metre height still impresses, and allows for veils swooping down the original stone walls, statuesque plants and lamps, a dramatic moon-shaped light, and large Philip Smith artworks on the walls. And keep your eyes peeled for the 15th-century fresco. Mirall is Catalan for mirror, referencing the bar’s shiny backing – rock up here for apéritifs, creative cocktails and chill-out DJ beats as drinks flow into the night. Otherwise, refresh and pick at pintxos on the sun terrace or rooftop.
Last orders
The Mirall Bar pours from noon till midnight (last orders 11.30pm) from Sunday to Thursday, and till 1am (last orders 12.30am) on Fridays and Saturdays.
Room service
You can dine in your room round the clock, athough there’s a reduced menu overnight.
Nobis Palma is ideally positioned at Carrer de les Caputxines in a peaceful part of the Mallorcan capital’s charming Old Town.
Planes
Palma Airport is a 20-minute drive from the hotel. Transfers can be arranged on request.
Trains
At the Plaça d'Espanya, a 10-minute drive or 15-minute walk from the hotel,there’s the station for the Intermodal train, which runs to a handful of destinations beyond the city limits. It’s also where you can catch the charming vintage wooden train that chugs out to Sóller.
Automobiles
If you’re staying in Palma, the capital has many pleasant strolls, whether through the maze of Old Town alleys, along the seafront, or along its gleaming, grand shop-lined boulevards. Handy, because the hotel is in a car-free ACIRE zone. You only really need a car if you’re exploring the wider island – devoted drives can stash their wheels at the Parking Plaça Major SMAP, a five-minute walk away (€25 a day). If you use public parking for a rental car, please note that you must leave the rental agreement visible.
Other
From the mainland, the ferry from Valencia to Palma takes about seven hours on a good day.
Worth getting out of bed for
From Nobis Hotel Palma’s Old Town perch on Carrer de Caputxines, you can cover the city's major sights in one fell swoop. Cross over to Carrer de Sant Jaume and amble south to the intersection of Avenida de Jaume III and Passeig del Born, both wide elegant boulevards with plenty of designer-boutique windows to ogle. Then head south to the Royal Palace of La Almudaina, the remains of Moorish Arab Baths and La Seu Cathedral. The latter’s Gothic buttresses and stained-glass windows are impressive enough, but an installation by artist Miquel Barceló (a take on the New Testament), and Gaudí’s original plans for the altarpiece are intriguing more modern additions. Then veer right to see what’s on display at 15th-century Llotja de Palma and Es Baluard contemporary art museum, and stroll along the waterfront – you'll hit sandy Cala Major soon enough (there are lovelier beaches elsewhere on the island, but this is perfectly serviceable for city sunbathing). On the way back, meander through the Old Town, stopping to gaze up at art nouveau wonder Can Forteza Rey, bustle through Plaça Major and admire the 20th-century art at the Juan March Foundation Museum (concerts and workshops are often held here too), with a pitstop at place of plenty Mercat d'Olivar to admire the plump, glossy produce, giant fish and fulsome sobrassadas and ham haunches.
Local restaurants
Mallorca may not be a huge island, but its culinary prowess is great, with fertile farmland, brimming-with-catches coastline and fruitful vineyards. And this glittering reputation is made all the sparklier by its sprinkling of Michelin stars for big-deal chefs such as Adrian Quetglas and Marc Fosh (both of whose namesake restaurants are worth your time). A short stroll from Nobis, Fera gives Asian-inspired flair to Mediterranean flavours (think a dash of XO foam here, mango and ginger sauce there, desserts punched up with matcha and yuzu) using extremely artful plating. Chef Andreu Genestra stays closer to home with Aromata’s tasting menu, with the likes of typically Mallorcan fish in gazpachuelo sauce, or suckling pig; while Andana aims to stay zero-kilometre (the chef sources most produce from her own garden). Then head off on another journey of globe-spanning tastes at Vagabundos in hip ‘hood Santa Catalina.
Local cafés
Small plates have big personalities in Palma. For top tapas, prop up the long marble counter at El Camino to watch as chefs finely chop ham and prep tortillas in tiny copper pots; order up the Basque-style cod (and maybe the suckling-pig rolls with spiced apple) at El Txoko de Martín; take on the raw bar at Tast Club; and pair sweet-sour scallops, tataki and panko-crusted prawns with cool cocktails at El Neo.
Local bars
In an atmospheric antique vault in La Missió, you’ll find Door 13 – a suitably secretive locale for a speakeasy-style bar. This lively spot has suspender-clad barkeeps who go off-book when crafting cocktails. And, for aperitivos (traditionally a vermouth and bowl of olives), La Rosa is a chic central spot.
Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this Scandi-Spanish hotel in Palma’s Old Town with a touch of Stockholm syndrome (willingly so), a full account of their design-led break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside Nobis Hotel Palma in Mallorca…
The clean precise lines of Scandinavian interiors and the arabesques and arches of Mallorcan Moorish architecture might seem to be from disparate design worlds, but Nobis Hotel Palma proves how perfect a pairing they can be. The 1,000-year-old palace adds historic gravitas with thick stone walls (some with patches of protected fresco still on them), arch-lined interior courtyards, hefty wood-beamed ceilings, decorative tiling, and remnants of script; while Nordic nous comes in the form of furnishings by the likes of Carl Hansen, Audo, Flos, and Örsjö; and the interiors expertise of legendary architect Gert Wingårdhs’ studio. The past has been masterfully repurposed here: the nine-metre-high reception room from the 17th century is now a funkily dressed bar; the rooftop is a cocktail-sipping suntrap hangout; a former tunnel used as an escape route for the resident family is a petite spa; and its twin courtyards are lovely leafy spots for dainty plunge-pool dips and unhurried aperitivos. It’s a culture and eras clash that’s proved seismically stylish.
