Ibiza

⚠️ Entry rules and local regulations change without notice. Before booking, check entry requirements and local rules — visas, access, nature reserves, visitor quotas — with the official authorities.

Ibiza (Eivissa), nicknamed the White Isle, is one of the most iconic destinations in the Mediterranean. World-famous for its electronic-music nights and its internationally renowned clubs (Pacha, Amnesia, Ushuaïa), it also reveals an authentic, unspoilt side. Dalt Vila, the fortified old town listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has commanded the bay from its 16th-century ramparts. Its beaches — Ses Salines, Cala Conta, Cala d'Hort facing the sacred Es Vedrà rock — offer some of the most beautiful sunsets in the world.

Two islands sharing one name

There is the Ibiza everyone knows — the clubs of the south, Playa d'en Bossa and Sant Antoni — and there is the north, which most visitors never see: Sant Joan, Santa Agnès with its almond trees in flower in February, the steep coves of Benirràs and Cala Xarraca. On Sunday evenings at Benirràs, drummers accompany the sunset: a local ritual, free, and one of the finest moments the island offers.

Ibiza's UNESCO listing is broader than most people realise: it covers not only Dalt Vila, the fortified upper town of the sixteenth century, but also the Phoenician site of Sa Caleta and, underwater, the posidonia meadows spreading between Ibiza and Formentera. This plant — neither algae nor coral — is the real reason the water is so clear; one of its clones is considered among the oldest living organisms on the planet.

Then there is the legacy of the 1960s and 70s, when the island drew Europe's counterculture: what remains are the hippy markets of Las Dalias and Punta Arabí, and a tolerance that is still part of what it means to be Ibizan.

Club season, or not

The season runs from May to October: the big clubs open in late April or May and close in early October, with closing parties that have a reputation of their own. If you come for the nightlife, June to September. If you come for the island, May, June and October are infinitely better — the same beaches, half the crowd, lower prices. In winter the island empties almost completely.

Budget, transport and respect for the seabed

Ibiza is expensive in high season, including for ordinary things: sunbeds, taxis scarce at night, club entry in three figures. The bus network is efficient by day, and discobuses run at night — the sensible option, since drink-driving is heavily policed.

One rule to observe if you hire a boat: anchoring on posidonia meadows is forbidden and fined. Use the mooring buoys provided. These meadows take centuries to grow back, and they are what gives the water the colour you came for.

Essentials & your questions