Mallorca Sea Caves - Adventure & Swimming
A complete guide to Cova des Coloms, the Blue Cave, and coastal caving tours.
A complete guide to Cova des Coloms, the Blue Cave, and coastal caving tours.
For travelers looking for adventure speleolgy, Mallorca's coastline offers several marine cave systems. Unlike the dry walking paths of the show caves, these sites are only accessible from the sea. They involve swimming through narrow entrances to reach hidden underground chambers. Visiting these sites requires wetsuits, headlamps, and certified local guides.
Located along the rocky coastline between Cala Varques and Cala Romàntica, Cova des Coloms is the most famous sea caving system. It features massive sandy chambers, underground lakes, and spectacular limestone columns. It is the cave you can swim in to discover hidden beaches inside the cliffs. To reach the entrance, participants must take a 30-minute coastal hike, followed by a short 80-meter swim from the rocky shore.
Situated on the northern peninsula of Cabrera Island (part of the Cabrera Archipelago National Park), the Blue Cave is famous for its glowing blue light effects. The light is created by the afternoon sun refracting through the deep marine entrance. Excursions depart by boat from Colonia de Sant Jordi, allowing visitors to jump directly into the water inside the cave.
Cova de na Genovesa (near Palmanova) is a popular training ground for cave divers, featuring deep submerged galleries. Cova de Jack Sparrow (in the northeast near Cala Ratjada) is a smaller coastal chamber that can be combined with sea kayaking or coastal paddleboarding tours.
Never attempt to swim into marine caves without a certified local guide. Rising sea swells and changing tidal currents can trap swimmers inside narrow entrances. A helmet and wetsuit are mandatory for all coastal caving tours.
