Your first 72 hours in Palma

You don't need to beat Spanish bureaucracy this week. You need a phone that works, a way around, food in the fridge, and one appointment hunted down. Here's the first 72 hours, in order.

Hour 1: out of the airport

From Son Sant Joan you've got one good bus option: the EMT A1 (€5 a ride, every 12 to 20 minutes depending on season, about 20 to 30 min to Plaça d'Espanya). There's no metro or train to this airport, just the bus or a taxi. A taxi to the centre runs €20 to 30. Ride apps exist but Palma taxis are regulated, metered, and honestly fine, the rank is faster than the app at the airport.

Hour 2: the pickpocket briefing

Palma is a safe city with a world-class pickpocket industry. It's not paranoia, it's the local sport: phones on café tables, open bags on crowded buses, and anything on a beach towel are how newcomers pay their tuition. Phone in a front pocket, bag zipped and forward, nothing valuable visible at terraces, adopt the habits on day one and you'll likely never have a story. The airport bus, the Cathedral and old-town lanes, and the Passeig Marítim are where it happens.

Day 1: SIM card

Any Vodafone, Orange, or Movistar shop sells prepaid with generous data for €10 to 20, passport only, no NIE needed. Lobster is the English-language-first operator if you want signup without charades. A Spanish number matters fast: Bizum, delivery apps, and every cita previa confirmation want one. (Full steps in the SIM how-to.)

Day 1: cash, cards, and Bizum envy

Cards work everywhere, contactless included; Spain runs on them. You'll notice locals settling dinner debts by phone number, that's Bizum, and you'll get it the moment you have a Spanish bank account. Withdraw cash only from bank-branded ATMs; the freestanding Euronet machines at tourist corners charge piracy rates.

Day 2: transit card and orientation

Palma runs on EMT city buses, with TIB buses, the train and a small metro for the rest of the island. Until you have a padrón, pay per ride by contactless card. Once you're registered, get the free Tarjeta Intermodal: in 2026 every bus, train and metro ride on it is free for residents. The old town is compact enough to walk. Bicipalma (the red bikes) needs the resident Tarjeta Ciutadana, so it joins the later list.

Day 2: supermarkets and the basics

Mercadona is the national default, Eroski the islands quality pick, Lidl and Dia the budget fill-ins, Spar the corner shop. Tap water is safe (Palma's tastes of minerals; most people filter or shrug). Pharmacies, green cross, handle anything mild, and every district has a 24h farmàcia de guàrdia posted on the door. The numbers to save tonight: 112 for emergencies, 061 for the health line.

Day 3: start the cita previa hunt

Palma's first real errand is less an errand than a campaign: the cita previa (appointment) for your NIE/TIE, and the padrón registration at the town hall. Neither finishes in 72 hours, but both queues start when you do, so on day 3, create your folder of documents, fill the forms, and start checking the sede electrónica each morning (slots drop early). The padrón appointment is usually easier to get and unlocks healthcare, so book whichever appears first. (Both have full how-tos in this app.)

Landing in the off-season

From late October to March the island exhales. Hotels and beach bars in the resorts close, TIB buses and ferries drop to winter timetables, and some restaurants shut for weeks at a time, so check opening days before you set out. The upside is real: long-term rentals are at their most plentiful, offices are back on full hours, and the coves and mountain trails are yours. Treat the quiet months as the time to sign a proper annual contract and get the paperwork moving before the spring rush.

Eat like you mean to stay

The menú del día (€13 to 16, three courses, wine included at the honest places) is Spain's greatest welfare programme for newcomers, lunch is the big meal and the bargain. Dinner starts at 9pm and the kitchens mean it; vermut at noon on a Sunday is a civic duty. One cultural note worth absorbing early: you're in Mallorca: street signs and school systems run in Catalan, "bon dia" lands warmer than "buenos días", and noticing the difference earns goodwill that lasts.

What can wait

The bank account, IB-Salut card, internet, the NIE itself, all real, none urgent this week. Open the checklist in this app and work down it in order. For now: find your nearest plaça, order a caña, and watch the neighbourhood do its evening lap. The hard part, moving, is already done.