The Secrets of Palma's Medieval Jewish Quarter

(161 reviews)

Palma audio tour: The Secrets of Palma's Medieval Jewish Quarter

This is a 0.9mi walking tour

It takes an average of 60 mins to complete.

Palma

Spain

$9.99

Access all 22 locations offline with the VoiceMap app

Buy for a Group

Reviews

About the Tour

Whether this is your first time in Palma’s old town or you’re familiar with its maze of medieval streets, there’s plenty to discover on this walking tour. I’ve been studying the history of Mallorca’s Converso and Chueta (Xueta) communities since I arrived here in 2014 and I have so many secrets and hidden surprises to share. What do the words Converso and Chueta mean, for a start? Join me for a guided walk through this area to find out.

Together we’ll explore the legacy of this Mediterranean island’s dark history. It’ll lead us through the twists and turns of narrow alleyways to all sorts of architectural gems. You’ll meet famous mapmakers, figure out how to decipher street names, and peer into Palma’s famously elegant courtyards, which are easily missed. If anyone ever told you that history is boring, they’ve never studied the history of the city’s Jewish Quarter!

On this 60-minute tour, you'll hear about:

Secret synagogues
The 1391 Massacre
Forced conversions
The fifteen Chueta family names
Surviving the Black Plague
The scandalous Tower of Love
Hidden Hebrew letters
The Church of Mount Zion
Crypto-Jewish traditions
Where the word “abracadabra” comes from

New discoveries with clues to the island’s traumatic past are still being made today. But the Inquisition left its mark in more than just stone – and in the medieval Jewish Quarter, you’ll find out about members of Mallorquin society who were marginalized up until the middle of the 1900s because they had specific last names.

Don’t miss your chance to learn about a unique chapter from both the history of Mallorca and Judaism.

Juan Antonio Caldes Rodriguez wrote the script for this tour. His invaluable input and dedication enabled this wonderful tour to come to fruition. Thank you Juan!

Tour Producer

Dani Rotstein

2 tours

Dani Rotstein moved from New Jersey to the Balearic island of Mallorca in Spain in 2014. He quickly learned of the taboo history of the Conversos and their descendants, the Chuetas of the island. In 2018, he founded Limud Mallorca and has run over 50 successful events promoting diversity and inclusion in the small, yet growing, Jewish community.

Preview Location

Location 10

Secret Synagogue

Now we are about to see the sight of the New Synagogue as it was established after the 1391 assault.

Stop here and look down. Can you see the SEFARAD plaque?

Just past it on your left there is something else I want to point out to you.

Look to your left on the wall ... Read More

View locations and route

How VoiceMap Works

Focus on your surroundings, not the screen

The VoiceMap app uses GPS to play audio automatically, at the right time and place, so you can focus on your surroundings, not the screen.

Follow a route with turn-by-turn-directions

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a fixed starting point. That lets us give turn-by-turn directions and use context to tell a better story.

Resume playback to go at your own pace

If you'd like to stop for a drink or go into a museum, end your tour then use the Resume feature to pick up exactly where you left off.

Listen as many times as you like

You can listen to your tours as often as you like using both the VoiceMap app and website.

Take virtual tours anywhere, like a podcast

Select Virtual mode in the VoiceMap app to listen to tours like a podcast - at home or in transit.

Buy for less on voicemap.me and sync

Once you've purchased a tour, it's added to your VoiceMap library. To access it in the app, just sign in using the same account.

Do tours without paying for data

Tours work offline, so you don't have to pay roaming fees. Just download them over WiFi before you get started.

Major Landmarks

Call Jueu (Jewish Quarter)
Carrer de Jafuda Cresques
Església de Monti-sion de Palma
Carrer de la Torre de l'Amor
Plaça de Santa Eulàlia
Carrer del Call

View all

Getting There

Route Overview

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a set starting point. It’s how we give turn-by-turn directions and tell a story greater than the sum of its parts.

Start location
Basilica de Sant Francesc, Carrer de l'Almudaina, 9, Distrito Centro, 07001 Palma, Illes Balears, Spain
Total distance

1km
Final location
Plaça de Santa Eulàlia, Centre, 07001 Palma, Illes Balears, Spain
Distance back to start location

81.94m

Directions to Starting Point

The tour starts outside of the Center Maimo ben Faraig – Palma’s Jewish Quarters Interpretation Center located at Carrer de l’Amudaina, number 9. Its entrance is located to the right of the entrance of Can Bordils and to the left of the Roman archway. It has a small golden sign to the left of the door written in the Mallorquin language.

Show Directions

Gift vouchers

Buy tours for friends and family who delight in discovery

Buy Now

Buy for a group

Get 15% to 50% off when you buy for a group

Buy Now

License this tour

Adapt this tour to use your brand and suit your guests

Find out more

Tips

Places to stop along the way

Café la Juventud
Santa Clara Bakery
Café Ca’n Salat
Abracadabra Bar
Café Moderno (at the end of the tour)

Best time of day

At anytime of the day! In summer and if is very hot, it is better to do it in the late afternoon when there are less people in the streets and the heat decreases.

Precautions

Just bring comfortable shoes to walk, a bottle of water and lots of energy to submerge yourself in the Jewish, Converso, and Chueta history of the island.

Get The App

Download tours to use them offline

Listen hands-free with GPS playback

Get turn-by-turn directions

Scan the QR Code

“This app has become my go-to app for audio tours. I pretty much use it for every trip and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend VoiceMap for travelers to truly experience cities.”

App Store Review

“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”