The short version: Portals Nous, Bendinat and Illetes are three neighboring places on the western shore of the Bay of Palma, in the municipality of Calvià. Portals Nous has the marina of Puerto Portals, with its yachts, its restaurants and the terrace where everyone is seen. Bendinat is a carefully kept residential area of apartments and villas around a golf course. Illetes is denser, with small urban coves, hotels and apartments looking out to sea. Palma begins about ten minutes away by road, and two international schools sit inside Portals Nous itself.
Three places on one stretch of coast
Driving west along the bay, Palma ends at Porto Pí and, a few minutes later, Calvià begins. The first names on the road are Cas Català and Illetes, on a rocky shore broken by small beaches. Next comes Bendinat, which climbs inland around a wooded valley and its golf course, and then Portals Nous, built around the marina of Puerto Portals. Calvià’s tourism office, run by the municipal foundation Calvià 365, places Bendinat barely ten minutes from Palma (Visit Calvià).
They are three different ways of living: Portals Nous turns toward the harbor, Bendinat toward its gardens and fairways, and Illetes toward the sea from every balcony it can. To compare this corner with the rest of the island, our guide on where to live in Mallorca covers every area, from Palma to the south-east.
Puerto Portals: the marina and the terrace
Puerto Portals was officially opened on July 4, 1986, and the marina says it soon became the center of the island’s social life. Today it has 701 berths for boats from 8 to 60 meters long and a commercial area of restaurants, bars, fashion boutiques, jewelers and nautical companies (Puerto Portals).
For residents, the marina works as the village square: coffee on the promenade in the morning, dinner by the boats at night, and one terrace in particular where, in summer, everyone sees everyone. Next to the harbor, the beach of s’Oratori, also called Cala Portals, has fine, darker sand and looks out to the green islet of Illa d’en Salas, according to the tourism office. The marina’s municipal sailing school teaches children and adults all year.
Portals Nous: homes around the harbor
Behind the marina, Portals Nous is lived in rather than visited. Homes spread over the slopes between the coast road and the hills: apartment buildings with sea views, villas on larger plots and, closer to the water, homes that look straight down at the boats.
The beach of Portals Nous, also known as Cala Bendinat, is a U-shaped inlet about 100 meters long, framed by pines and low cliffs, which the tourism office describes as one of the quietest in the area. For families, what defines Portals Nous is that two international schools, Agora Portals International School and King Richard III College, are inside the village itself.
Bendinat: gardens, golf and quiet streets
Bendinat is the calm part of the trio. The tourism office sums it up as tranquility, rest and coast. It is a residential area where gardens are kept, streets are quiet at night and homes range from apartment complexes to large villas.
The Real Golf de Bendinat sits in a wide wooded valley at the heart of the area. According to the club, it was designed by Martin Hawtree, opened in 1986 with nine holes, was extended to 18 holes in 1995, and looks out over the Bay of Palma, the island of Cabrera and the Castell de Bendinat (Real Golf de Bendinat). Nearby, the tourism office points to small, quiet coves of fine sand facing the sunset, and Puerto Portals is about seven minutes away by road.
Illetes: urban coves and views
Illetes is the most built-up of the three, and its appeal is the sea. The tourism office describes coves of fine sand alternating with rocks, a wide choice of hotels and restaurants, and a place visitors choose both in summer and in the quiet winter. The beach of Ses Illetes has lifeguards, showers and sunbeds, with beach clubs around it. Next to it, Cala Comtesa is a rectangle of sand about 100 meters by 20, ringed by pines and low rocks, facing the islet of sa Caleta; Cala Xinxell, a small cove of golden sand and gravel, is beside it.
Illetes is mostly apartments, many in buildings stepping down the cliff and chosen for a terrace over the water; villas exist, but fewer than in Bendinat. The trade-off is density: more neighbors, more visitors in summer and, as the tourism office itself warns, very limited parking near the main beach.
Getting around: Palma, the airport and the schools
The times below come from OpenStreetMap routing, in free-flowing traffic, to Plaça d’Espanya in central Palma and to the airport terminal:
- Puerto Portals: about 17 minutes to central Palma and about 23 to the airport.
- Bendinat: about 14 minutes to central Palma and about 21 to the airport.
- Illetes: about 15 minutes to central Palma and about 23 to the airport.
Porto Pí, where the city begins, is about 8 to 11 minutes from any of the three, and Son Espases University Hospital about 13 to 16. Summer and the morning rush hour into Palma add time.
Agora Portals International School and King Richard III College are between 1 and 7 minutes from anywhere in this guide. Baleares International College has a campus in Sant Agustí, on the edge of Palma, about 6 to 10 minutes away, and another in Sa Porrassa, also in Calvià, about 9 to 13 minutes away. Our guide to international schools in Mallorca lists the curriculum, ages and official details of each one.
Summer and winter
In summer, the bay fills with yachts, the Illetes coves are busy from mid-morning and the marina’s terraces stay full late into the night.
In winter, this coast does not empty the way a holiday resort does, because people live here all year and the schools keep their calendar. The marina keeps a winter program of its own: the Dragon Winter Series regattas run in November and December, and the marina says it has the largest fleet of Dragon-class boats in Spain; in November, children walk the marina with lanterns for Sankt Martin; and from December 11 to January 6 a Christmas market lights up the harbor (Puerto Portals events, 2026 calendar).
Who buys in Portals, Bendinat and Illetes
In what we see with our clients, three profiles buy on this stretch of coast:
- The American who wants the Mallorca of the magazines, with privacy. Often someone who found the area through the press or social media and wants a home with security and the sea in view, with Palma close by.
- The family that lives on the island all year because of the international schools in Portals Nous and Calvià, which here are minutes from home rather than a daily drive.
- The investor buying a home to let at the top of the market.
What they share is that they want the setting without giving up the city: dinner in Palma, the airport in 21 to 23 minutes and school a few minutes away.
Well-known faces in Puerto Portals
In July 2026, Michael Jordan’s superyacht anchored off Puerto Portals with his family on board (Majorca Daily Bulletin and Mallorca Magazin, July 2026). In June 2025, Michelle Obama had lunch in Puerto Portals with her daughters Malia and Sasha (Hola USA; Menorca Es Diari). Our guide to celebrities in Mallorca goes area by area, with every name reported by at least two news outlets and no addresses.
What nobody tells you
The three names are often used as one, and they should not be. A buyer drawn to the marina may be happier in Portals Nous; one who wants silence and a garden, in Bendinat; one who wants to swim before breakfast, in Illetes. The clearest decisions come from walking each one at night as well as by day.
The coves are small, and in August they fill early. Many homes in Illetes and Portals Nous sit on slopes, so steps, steep driveways and garage access matter more than the floor plan suggests.
What you need to know
How far are Portals Nous, Bendinat and Illetes from Palma?
About 14 to 17 minutes by road to central Palma in free-flowing traffic; Porto Pí, where the city begins, is about 8 to 11 minutes away.
How far is Puerto Portals from Palma airport?
About 33 minutes by road in free-flowing traffic; Bendinat and Illetes, about 30 to 31.
Which international schools are near Portals Nous?
Agora Portals International School and King Richard III College are in Portals Nous itself. Baleares International College has campuses in Sant Agustí and Sa Porrassa, about 6 to 13 minutes away.
What is the difference between Portals Nous, Bendinat and Illetes?
Portals Nous lives around the marina; Bendinat is quiet, with apartments and villas around a golf course; Illetes is denser, with small coves, hotels and sea-view apartments.
Is there a beach in Illetes?
Several small ones: the beach of Ses Illetes, with lifeguards and sunbeds, Cala Comtesa and Cala Xinxell. Parking near the main beach is very limited.
Where we work
We work across Mallorca from our base in the south-east, where you can browse homes in Santanyí, homes in Ses Salines and homes in Campos. If Portals Nous, Bendinat or Illetes is on your list, contact Villas y Fincas Mallorca and we will answer in English.
Updated October 2026. Driving times come from OpenStreetMap routing and vary with traffic and season; other facts come from Visit Calvià (Calvià’s municipal foundation), Puerto Portals, Real Golf de Bendinat and each school’s website, consulted in October 2026. Each celebrity reference was reported by at least two news outlets. The descriptions reflect what we see with our clients and are for general information only.
