Should You Hire an Electric Car in Mallorca? Our Experience on a 3-Day Road-Trip

Hiring a car is the best way to explore the beautiful Balearic island of Mallorca in Spain. But should you hire an electric car in Mallorca? How do you charge an electric car in Mallorca? Read on for our tips for hiring an electric car in Mallorca...

Being regular travellers and seasoned road trippers, we always look at how we can travel more sustainably. So when planning our trip to Mallorca we thought why not, let's give an electric car a try!

Our Experience of Hiring an Electric Car in Mallorca

We rented a cute little Fiat 500 Electric Cabrio from Vanrell Rent a Car. Pick up and drop off at the airport was super easy although a little different from normal... there isn't an office in the airport, the meeting point is in the public multistorey carpark.

See the end of our blog for an exclusive discount code!

It was easy to find and worked really well though, as when we arrived at 1am the queues for Hertz (the only office in the airport open at that time) were huge, whereas we were sorted very quickly.

We're soon in the car discussing names for her (everyone names their hire cars right?) as we head to the opposite side of the island, aiming for Cap de Formentor for sunrise.

It's a journey of 90km, and to a very remote spot with no chargers close by. So with the car called "Electri" (named after the Marvel character Electro) and with a couple of hours to spare before sunrise, we stop for our first charge in Port de Pollenca on the way.

And we use the time charging for a short sleep to refresh after our late night / early morning flight. The east coast around Port de Pollensa is a popular tourist spot with lots of hotels available with charging ports, and these can be filtered for on Booking.com.

• Distance travelled: 70km
• Battery Used: 27%
• Charges: 1
• Cost: €0

Sunrise at Cap de Formentor & Breakfast Pollensa

We're all re-charged after our short break and make it to one of the most stunning sunrises we've ever seen at Cap de Formentor... it's a stunning location and absolutely beautiful!

Our next stop is Pollenca for breakfast, and although Electri is still over 80%, we don't miss the chance to charge her back up as we're planning to drive into the more remote countryside later in the day.

We find a great little local bakery and café trying the traditional Pa amb oli (like an open sandwich) and cremadillo (a sweet puff pastry). And then we explore the Old Town, visiting the Calvary Chapel and shop in the Main Square.

• Distance travelled: 50km
• Battery Used: 18%
• Charges: 2
• Cost: €0

Driving to Sa Calobra

Our next stop is the first real test of Electri's driving ability... we're going to Sa Calobra, a cove accessible by a very steep and twisting road with 26 hairpin bends!

She doesn't disappoint and is very fun to drive on the mountain roads. There's an instant response from the electric battery rather than having any turbo lag like with a petrol car, and having to constantly brake also gives the battery a nice charge boost with the regenerative braking.

And with the roof down in the gorgeous sunny weather, Electri is the perfect car for the trip!

Exploring Mallorca's Prettiest Villages

We spend the rest of the afternoon driving between Mallorca's prettiest villages.

Fornalutx, Deia, and Valldemossa are 3 of the most beautiful villages we've visited anywhere, not just in Mallorca.

In Fornalutx the houses are built in the same stone, are decorated with colourful painted tiles, and all have fresh flowers and plants on their doorsteps and window beds. Has Electri transported us back in time?!

Deia's location is what makes it so special. The village sits on a hilltop so has amazing views. And there are loads of restaurants perched on the edge of the cliff too, so if you want dinner with a view then Deia is the perfect stop for that.

And this is our first and only compromise of having the electric car. We can't charge her overnight as we're staying at an off-grid guesthouse high in the mountains, and there aren't any charging points in Deia.

So we continue to Valldemossa and enjoy some delicious Mallorcan food there instead. Traditional dogfish, slow cooked rabbit, and stuffed squid, while sat outside a nice restaurant in a pretty Spanish town. Not exactly a bad compromise to make.

• Distance travelled: 110km
• Battery Used: 46%
• Charges: 3
• Cost: €0

The Historic Palma de Mallorca

The next day we make the short trip into Palma with stops at Andratx, Magaluf and Castell de Bellver on the way.

Electri gets a charge at the port as we visit the amazing Palma Cathedral, the Royal Palace of La Almudaina, Banys Arabs, and then we take her to the hotel before we party at the absolutely crazy Nit de Foc festival!

• Distance travelled: 93km
• Battery Used: 39%
• Charges: 4
• Cost: €0

Driving to Santanyi, Cala Figuera & Cala Llombards

Our last day we take a road trip to the South West of the island, visiting Santanyi, Cala Figuera, and Cala Llombards. Santanyi is a beautiful little village, and the coves, cliffs and beaches of Cala Figuera and Cala Llombards are amazing too!

There are chargers close to all of the villages, but we've got plenty to be able to get back to our hotel, so we don't use any of them.

Our final night is spent back in Palma before another early morning flight home, and we drop Electri off at the car park where we picked her up from with 50% charge left in her after our final days driving.

Would we hire an electric car in Mallorca again?

Yes, we would definitely hire an electric car in Mallorca again! We travelled almost 500km around the island during our stay, charged Electri 4 times, and the best part... we didn't have to pay for a single charge!

We calculated hiring a Fiat 500 Cabrio petrol we would have spent around €80/£70 on petrol, and the electric version was only €20 more to hire. So a saving of around €60.

The electric car was also great fun to drive on the twisting mountain roads with the instant acceleration and regenerative braking. And with her roof down in the sun, she was the perfect travel companion for us!

With us often taking road trips when we travel, we're definitely going to look at renting electric cars more often to help reduce our carbon footprint and support more sustainable travel.

• Total Distance travelled: 500km
• Total Charges: 4
• Total Cost: €0

How do you charge an electric car in Mallorca?

The best app we used to find chargers was Melib. You can search for charging ports all over the island, although we did find the information about whether the port was working or in use wasn't 100% accurate.

But we never had an issue finding a charger to use, and after plugging the car in, either scan the QR code on the charger or simply click start on the app to start the charge.

And best of all, the chargers on this app are all free! Yep, free charging!

Place to Plug is another app which shows locations of chargers including paid ones, but we found the free ones on Melib to be the best.

Where to hire an electric car in Mallorca?

We hired Electri from Vanrell Rent a Car and it couldn't have been easier! It was a very quick and easy pick-up and drop-off at the airport, and the car was great and really added character and fun to our road-trip!

We always like to hire cars from the local suppliers rather than from the global companies as we feel you get a better and more personalised experience. And supporting local businesses is one of our passions!

Use discount code MOH4G for a 5% discount which can be used with other running offers too!

Read our other blogs from our road-trip around Mallorca...

The Best Villages & Viewpoints in the Serra de Tramuntana Northern Mallorca

The Best Things to do in Palma de Mallorca in One Day

Nit de Foc Festival in Mallorca… One Crazy Night Dancing with the Devil!