Pollentia, the Roman city of Alcudia: a guide to the most important archaeological site in the Balearics

The best-preserved Roman city in Mallorca is right next to the old town of Alcudia

If you walk through the old town of Alcudia and go out through the south gate — the Porta de Sant Sebastià, right opposite the Town Hall — and walk five minutes in a straight line, you suddenly come across something that does not appear in the usual tourist brochures: the ruins of an entire Roman city. Fallen capitals on the grass, broken marble columns, remains of mosaics, the foundations of a forum, the seating carved into the rock of a Roman theatre. All of that, just five minutes' walk from the centre of Alcudia, at the side of the road, with admission for a few euros. It is called Pollentia — 'the powerful' in Latin — and it was, for six centuries, the most important city in the Balearic Islands. Founded in 123 BC by the Roman consul Quintus Caecilius Metellus after the conquest of the island, it grew to 5,000-10,000 inhabitants at its peak (a colossal figure for an ancient city in the western Mediterranean), an active port, a theatre with capacity for 2,000 people, mosaics in the houses, temples dedicated to Jupiter, Juno and Minerva, and a network of roads that linked the heart of Mallorca with the entire Roman Empire. And yet, it is still one of the least-visited places in northern Mallorca. The vast majority of the thousands of people who walk every year through the old town of Alcudia — pretty, photogenic, perfectly preserved — don't realise that the medieval walls of the 14th century are literally built on top of, and out of, stones from the Roman city that lies just outside. That every time you walk along a street in the old town, you are walking on some Roman substrate. That 600 metres from the Town Hall, across a road, there is a Roman theatre — the only one preserved in Mallorca — where spectators still sit on seats carved into living rock 2,000 years ago. This article is the complete guide that Pollentia deserves: what it was, what remains, what you'll see, how to visit it, how much it costs, how to get there and why you should set aside at least half a day during your holiday in Alcudia. If you are even slightly interested in history — or if you simply want to add a different experience to the beach-and-restaurant routine —, we promise you it is one of the easiest, cheapest and least crowded plans you can do in northern Mallorca. And, most curious of all: it is very likely that after visiting it you will look at the old town of Alcudia with new eyes.

From Roman colony to Mediterranean metropolis: 2,000 years of Pollentia

The history of Pollentia is the story, in miniature, of how Rome reshaped the Mediterranean world. And understanding it a little — just a little — completely changes how you experience the visit to the site.

123 BC: the conquest of Mallorca.

The Roman consul Quintus Caecilius Metellus landed in the Balearics at the head of several legions. Mallorca, until then controlled by the local Talayotic culture (with commercial links to Carthage and the Iberian peoples), fell quickly. Metellus decided to found two new cities to secure Roman control: one in the south of the island — Palma or Palmaria — and another in the north, Pollentia. The choice of location for Pollentia was no accident: it sits between two natural bays (the Bay of Pollença and the Bay of Alcudia), with two possible harbours, on a fertile and easily defended plain. Metellus received the nickname 'Balearicus' for these feats — and returned to Rome a hero.

1st century BC – 3rd century AD: the golden age.

For more than four centuries, Pollentia was a prosperous city. It had a forum, temples, theatre, baths, stately houses with mosaics. Its population is estimated at 5,000-10,000 inhabitants at its peak — an enormous figure for a Roman provincial city. The city exported wine, oil, salt, purple dye and, above all, Balearic slingers: the famous islander mercenaries whose skill with the sling had made them an elite corps in the Roman army (Hannibal himself recruited them in the Second Punic War). When you walk through the ruins, you are walking through a city that was connected to Rome, Carthage, Alexandria and Constantinople by regular maritime routes.

426 AD: the Vandal sack.

In 426 AD, the Roman legions no longer controlled the Mediterranean basin as they once had. The Vandal kingdom of Genseric, which had established itself in North Africa after passing through Hispania, launched a series of raids against the coasts of the Balearics. Pollentia was sacked and burned. Houses burned, temples fell, the population fled. It was the beginning of the end — and, paradoxically, the ultimate cause of its excellent preservation: the city was abandoned, slowly covered by earth and vegetation, and stayed 'frozen' beneath the ground for more than 1,000 years.

8th–13th centuries: the Muslim silence and the new Alcudia.

When the Moors conquered Mallorca in 902 AD, the ruins of Pollentia were already partly buried. The Muslims settled on the hill immediately to the north and called it Al-Qudya ('the hill' in Arabic) — the origin of the current name 'Alcudia'. But the hill they chose is exactly the same one where the upper part of Pollentia stood. The new Muslim houses, the orchards and, later, the medieval walls of the 14th century were built reusing stones from the Roman city — capitals, columns, ashlars — that are literally embedded in the walls of the old town. If you walk past the Porta del Moll and look closely, you will find blocks with Roman inscriptions reused as masonry.

1923 – today: the archaeological rediscovery.

The first serious excavations began in 1923, driven by the American archaeologist William J. Bryant and the Bryant Memorial Fund. Later, in the 1950s and 60s, the archaeologist Antonio Arribas Palau led the major campaigns that brought to light much of what can be visited today. Excavations continue: every summer, archaeological teams from the University of the Balearic Islands and the University of Barcelona keep digging. There is more of Pollentia under the ground than above it — and that is probably the best news for future visitors.

If you are interested in this deeper layer of local history, we also recommend our guide on the history of the Bay of Alcúdia, which covers the other part of the story — the maritime one — and connects directly with what you are about to see at Pollentia.

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The four zones of the site: what to see and where to start

The site of Pollentia is organised in four large excavated and visitable zones. Some are inside the main enclosure (with a single ticket) and others are on separate plots a short distance away. We'll walk you through them in the order that makes most sense if you arrive at the main gate, on Avenida Príncipes de España, next to the Alcudia Town Hall.

11. La Portella: the residential quarter with houses, streets and mosaics

The first zone you see on entering — and the one that gives the most immediate sense of what it was like to live in Pollentia — is La Portella, the residential quarter. Here, three large domus (stately houses) of the 1st and 2nd centuries AD have been excavated, with their central courtyards, columns, partially preserved mosaic floors and remains of wall paintings in Pompeian red. The best known are the House of the Two Treasures, the House of the Bronze Head and the Northwest House.

The House of the Bronze Head owes its name to one of the most spectacular discoveries at the site: a life-size bronze bust that was found carefully buried under the floor (probably hidden during the Vandal sack). The bust is today displayed in the Monographic Museum in the old town, alongside other extraordinary pieces. If you have a good eye, you can still locate on the ground the exact spot where it appeared.

Among the houses you can see traces of paved streets, remains of taverns, workshops and warehouses. La Portella is probably the most photogenic zone for understanding the city as a lived space — not as isolated monuments, but as a neighbourhood with people walking, neighbours talking, children running between walls that are now foundations.

22. The Forum: the civic, political and religious heart of Pollentia

After the residential quarter, the path leads you to the Forum: the central public space of any Roman city, the equivalent of the main square of a medieval village or the Town Hall square of any modern city. It was here that political acts, trials, official announcements, major markets and religious ceremonies took place.

The Forum of Pollentia was built in the 1st century AD and preserves the foundations of three temples dedicated to the Capitoline Triad — Jupiter (king of the gods), Juno (his wife) and Minerva (wisdom). These three temples shared a single elevated podium with front steps and faced onto the public square of the forum. The podiums are still visible, and the material — blocks of marès, the sandstone typical of Mallorca — is the same that continued to be used for 2,000 years to build Alcudia.

Around the forum there was also a civil basilica (not religious: in Roman times 'basilica' meant a public building for administration and trade), a macellum (covered market) and various smaller buildings. The excavation continues: each annual campaign brings some new element to light. If you come in August, there is a real chance that you will see archaeologists working in situ.

33. The Roman Theatre: the only one preserved in Mallorca, carved into living rock

The Roman Theatre of Pollentia is, without question, the most spectacular monument on the site and one of the great unknowns of Mallorca. It is outside the main enclosure, about 600 metres to the south, across the Ma-12 road (the one linking Alcudia with the port). There is a separate plot with free admission — yes, free — and an information panel.

What makes this theatre unique is how it is built: instead of erecting the seating with stacked stone (as they did at Mérida or Tarragona), the Roman architects of Pollentia took advantage of a natural slope and carved the seats directly into the living rock. That is what has allowed it to survive 2,000 years almost intact: there was nothing that could fall, because the whole structure is the mountain itself.

The theatre had a capacity of approximately 2,000 spectators — once again confirming the size and importance of the city. It functioned for several centuries as a space for theatrical performances, religious ceremonies and public meetings. After the sack of 426 AD it was abandoned, and centuries later the area was used as a quarry (hence some visible rectangular hollows) and as a late necropolis — several tombs cut into the rock, on top of and next to the seats, are still visible today.

Visiting the theatre at sunset, when there is almost nobody around and the golden light falls on the limestone, is one of the most magical and quiet experiences you can have in Mallorca. You sit on a seat carved 2,000 years ago, look towards where the stage used to be, and you think about who was sitting right there, in that same seat, in 150 AD, listening to a comedy by Plautus. It is a free time-travel trip with no queue.

44. The necropolis of Sa Tanca: the city of the dead

The fourth great zone — and the least visited — is the necropolis of Pollentia, located south of the theatre. In the Roman world, cemeteries were always placed outside the city, alongside the entrance roads, so that travellers would remember those who were no longer there as they passed by.

The necropolis of Pollentia is known as Sa Tanca de Can Domenech and dozens of tombs from the 1st to 5th centuries AD have been excavated — some by inhumation, others by cremation, others with elaborate funerary stelae. Important grave goods have appeared: oil lamps (lucernae), small amphorae, coins, jewellery and tools. Many of these pieces are now on display in the Monographic Museum.

The necropolis is not always open to the public (it depends on the archaeological campaign), but its very existence adds another dimension: Pollentia was not only public buildings and stately houses. It was an entire city, with its dead, its families, its trades, its poor and rich neighbourhoods. Recent excavations have also identified pottery workshops, ceramic kilns and industrial areas — parts of the city that were alive for 600 years and are slowly becoming visible again.

The Monographic Museum of Pollentia: the other essential half of the visit

What you see at the site are foundations, fallen columns, carved seats, partial mosaics. But all the small pieces, the objects, the bronzes, the complete mosaics, the inscriptions, the coins — all of that is at the Monographic Museum of Pollentia, in the heart of the old town of Alcudia.

Where it is and what it's like.

The museum occupies a 19th-century stately house, the former Cas Capellà Lleonard, restored to hold the collection. It is at calle Sant Jaume, next to the parish church of the same name, only a 5-minute walk from the site. It is a relatively small building — the complete visit takes between 45 minutes and 1 hour, depending on your level of interest — but densely packed with exceptional pieces.

Highlights of the collection:

The museum admission is included in the site ticket (you don't pay twice), and the rooms normally have panels in Spanish, Catalan and English. For visitors who are not archaeologists, the museum is what gives a human face to the site: it stops being stones and becomes people.

Visiting the site first and the museum afterwards is the recommended order — but if it rains or is very hot, you can invert it without losing anything. If you come with children, the museum is a great complement: there are specific pieces (the bronze head, the lamps with little figures, the shiny coins) that catch their attention in a way that the ruins don't always manage.

How to visit: prices, hours, how to get there and practical tips

Visiting Pollentia is one of the easiest, cheapest and best-organised things you can do in Mallorca. Here are all the practical details.

Exactly where it is.

The main entrance to the site — where you buy the ticket and the visit starts — is at Avenida Príncipes de España s/n, 07400 Alcudia, right opposite the Town Hall and 100 metres from the old town. The Roman Theatre is about 600 metres south along the same road (with its own small car park). The Monographic Museum is at calle Sant Jaume, 30, in the heart of the old town of Alcudia.

How to get there from the Port of Alcudia or Playa de Muro:

Hours and prices:

Hours can vary slightly each season — always check the official, up-to-date website before you go (see links below).

Up-to-date official information: check the website of the Consorci de la Ciutat Romana de Pollentia and the official tourism website of Alcudia for current hours and prices.

Practical tips for the visit:

Beyond the ruins: combining Pollentia with the medieval old town of Alcudia

Once you have seen Pollentia, there is something almost obligatory: take a walk around the medieval old town of Alcudia with fresh eyes. Because now you know that a good part of what you see is recycled Pollentia.

The 14th-century medieval walls, which give the old town its unmistakable silhouette, were built during the reign of James II of Mallorca to protect the population from Barbary pirate attacks. They were built — as was usual in the Middle Ages — reusing every available material: and that means, literally, stones, ashlars, capitals and inscribed blocks from Pollentia. If you walk past the Porta del Moll (the main gate) and look closely, you will see blocks with marks, remains of Roman mouldings and shapes that don't match the medieval masonry — they are the Roman city itself, broken up and incorporated into the walls.

Inside the old town, other must-see spots:

If you want a complete itinerary of the old town, we recommend our detailed guide A perfect day in Alcudia: from the old town to the port, which covers everything step by step and complements the visit to Pollentia perfectly.

One detail that closes the circle: the Vandals sacked Pollentia in 426 AD and the city was abandoned. But the local inhabitants did not disappear — they moved to the hill immediately to the north, which is where the old town stands today. Alcudia is, literally, the living heir of Pollentia. They have been inhabiting the same piece of land for more than 2,500 years. You rarely think about it when walking down an alley of the old town — but that is the truth.

The perfect plan: combining Pollentia with a day at sea from Alcudia

As with S'Albufera, what we most recommend is not to choose between culture, old town and sea — but to combine it all. It is perfectly possible, and the combination works because each activity has its optimal moment of the day.

The perfect cultural + maritime plan (how we organise it):

1. 8:00 – 13:00: Pollentia + Old town of Alcudia.

Arrive early at the site (8:00 – 9:00, before the summer heat kicks in). Start with La Portella, continue at the Forum, and cross over to the Roman Theatre (~600 metres). Take your time at the theatre — sit, breathe, look. Then walk up to the old town of Alcudia, stroll around the Porta del Moll, the Town Hall Square, the alleys, and step into the Monographic Museum. Close the morning with a coffee or a beer on a terrace next to the walls.

2. 14:00 – 18:30: Open sea with Coral Boats.

Head to the Port of Alcudia (10 minutes' walk or 5 by car from the old town) and board our boat excursion in the Bay of Alcudia — the morning one leaves first thing and the sunset one between afternoon and night. While you sail, remember that you are crossing exactly the same stretch of sea where Roman cargo ships entered 2,000 years ago: wine from Italy, oil from Hispania, marble from Greece, slaves, Balearic mercenaries setting off for Rome. The Bay of Alcudia was an active Roman port for six centuries, and swimming in its turquoise waters after an archaeological morning adds a narrative layer that conventional tourist excursions don't have.

3. Dinner at the Port or in the old town.

Finish the day with a dinner of local produce (sobrasada, frito mallorquín, D.O. Pla i Llevant wines). There are excellent restaurants both in the old town and at the port.

Why this plan works so well.

Because it connects two stories that seem separate but are the same. Pollentia and the sea are the same story: a Roman port city, a strategic bay, a Mediterranean crossing. And today, 2,000 years later, the geography is still the same. Only the scale changes: instead of cargo ships, passenger boats sail. Instead of Balearic slingers setting off to fight, holidaymakers set off to snorkel. But the sea, the coves, the cliffs, the sunset light — all of that is exactly what the Romans saw.

If you want a more intimate and private plan — for a couple, a small group, a special celebration —, consider our private charters: the same landscape, a different way of living it. And if you want to go deeper into the natural context, also read our guides on the magic of the Bay of Alcúdia and on Posidonia oceanica — the marine ecosystem that kept Pollentia's waters crystal clear 2,000 years ago and still keeps them so today.

Pollentia is probably the best cultural secret of northern Mallorca: an entire Roman city, preserved beneath and next to the old town of Alcudia, with a theatre carved into living rock, a forum with temples, a residential quarter with mosaics and a museum full of bronzes, coins and inscriptions — all for a few euros, with no queues and 5 minutes from your hotel.

Setting aside half a day during your holiday is one of the easiest and most rewarding decisions you can make. You don't need to be a historian, nor to be interested in archaeology, nor to arrive with any preparation. It is enough to walk through the ruins with an open mind and let yourself be carried along. You will leave with a layer of understanding about Alcudia you didn't have before — and, almost without realising, walking through the old town you will see the stones differently.

And if you combine the cultural morning with an afternoon at sea, you will have in less than 24 hours a complete portrait of northern Mallorca: the Roman city on land, the Roman sea still alive. The same geography, the same winds, the same coves, separated by 2,000 years of history but connected by the same Mediterranean light. Come and sail with us from the Port of Alcudia and take advantage of being in one of the few corners of the Mediterranean where history and nature still live exactly together.