Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs)
On Gingerguide's self-guided Palma de Mallorca audio tour, Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs) is a stop worth about ~20 min. Stand in front of it, press play for a short narrated story, and put any follow-up question to the built-in AI guide.
- Type historic
- Suggested visit ~20 min
- Palma de Mallorca Palma de Mallorca guide
About Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs)
A small domed bath-house hidden in a garden of the old town, one of the few surviving pieces of Muslim Madina Mayurqa, with a brick dome carried on twelve reused columns.
The Banys Arabs, or Arab Baths, lie in a walled garden at Carrer de Can Serra in the old town, and are among the very few surviving fragments of Muslim architecture in Mallorca. They are usually dated to about the 10th to 12th century, during the island's Islamic period, though sources differ and some suggest the bath served a private house rather than the public. Only the hot room, the caldarium, and an annexed barrel-vaulted room survive; the cold room is lost.
The square caldarium is roofed by a brick dome pierced with small round skylights and carried on twelve columns linked by horseshoe arches. Many of the capitals look reused from older buildings, variously described as Muslim, Byzantine or Roman. Traces of the heating survive, with channels for hot water and steam. The baths stood in the garden of the Can Serra house, and are a listed monument of cultural interest, one of the key relics of Madina Mayurqa, the Islamic city that preceded Palma.
Did you know? The baths are among the only buildings left standing from Madina Mayurqa, the Muslim city that occupied this site from the early 10th century until the Christian conquest of 1229.
How much time do you need at Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs)?
Around ~20 min works well for Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs) — time to look properly and listen to its story on the spot. Linger if you like; nothing on a self-guided walk is on a clock.
Should you stop at Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs)?
Yes — Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs) made the cut as one of 13 places the Gingerguide team researched and narrated across Palma de Mallorca. The story tells you why it is worth the stop, and the AI guide fills in anything you still wonder.
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Hear the story of Arab Baths (Banys Àrabs)
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