★★★★★ Rated 4.5 out of 5
Ibiza Town (Eivissa in Catalan) is one of the main party towns on the beautiful island of Ibiza. But if you visit early in the day, it’s quiet, as the partygoers are all asleep and the bars and clubs are closed. That gives you time to explore Ibiza Old Town, with its UNESCO heritage and shopping, and stop for lunch before anyone else wakes up.
We spent a day here during our week in Ibiza with teenagers, based in Santa Eulària, about 15 km up the coast.
Start with breakfast on the Vara de Rey, climb up to the walls of Dalt Vila, wander back down through the colourful streets of the old town and the port, and finish with a beach and the flamingos at the Ses Salines salt flats.
Park in one of the public car parks in Ibiza Town and head straight to the beautiful tree-lined avenue of Vara de Rey for breakfast. We grabbed healthy options from Passion Café and sat at the outdoor tables, watching the world go by while we planned our route around town.
There are plenty of higher-end shops along both sides of this sleepy avenue, filled with gorgeous pink and white blossom and ornate buildings with brightly coloured walls and wrought iron balconies. In the middle of the avenue stands a statue of General Joaquín Vara de Rey, the Ibizan general the avenue is named after.
The side streets off Vara de Rey are a labyrinth of boutique shops selling fans, woven shopping baskets, leather goods, crystals and souvenirs. The streets closest to the city walls have views up to Dalt Vila (‘Upper Town’).
This is a good point to leave the shopping behind for a while and head up to explore Dalt Vila, the walled heart of Ibiza Old Town and part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The main entrance is the Portal de ses Taules, which sits over the old drawbridge. It has two Roman statues, one on either side, and a coat of arms carved over the top of the arch. Other ways in include the Portal Nou, the Portella and the Es Soto Fosc tunnel.
People have lived on this hilltop since the Phoenicians founded the town, making it one of the oldest settlements in the Mediterranean. The Renaissance walls and ramparts you see today were built in the 16th century to protect the town from Turkish fleets and North African raiders.
The seven-sided fortifications are impressive and took decades to build. If you’ve tried to find Atlantis, as described in my blog In Search Of Hippy Ibiza, then you’ll have seen the old quarry where stone for the walls was cut.
The walls of Dalt Vila have sweeping views over modern Ibiza Town, its port, the salt flats and the airport. Look out for the cute windmill on the inland hill opposite the fortifications.
Within the city walls are small cobbled lanes and passageways, with welcome shade from the hot sun. As you wander, look out for the lovely door knockers on some of the doors, many of them shaped like hands.
On Carrer de la Conquista there’s a wall of tiles with the handprints of celebrities who have stayed in Ibiza. Sadly, I only recognised Penélope Cruz, but she’s a good celebrity nonetheless!
Schedule a break at S'Escalinata Café, which has bean bags laid out on the old city steps. It was a cool place to hang out for a bit, although once you sit down, you can't get up!
Once you’ve finished exploring Dalt Vila, leave through the gates to explore the cafés, galleries and boutiques of the lower old town. Weave through the narrow, cobbled streets of Sa Penya towards the tip of the headland, and make sure you find Carrer de la Mare de Déu, a pretty street of colourful houses.
On the way you’ll spot classic scenes of washing drying on balconies, beautiful wooden doorways and painted buildings. Lovely!
When you’re ready for lunch, check out the restaurants along the strip facing the port, and admire any superyachts moored in the marina. We expected to find lots of fresh fish in the restaurants but, for some reason, didn’t find what we were looking for, so I have no lunch recommendations. Perhaps we were looking in the wrong area?
Look out for the bronze statue by Catalan artist Ció Abellí (2016) of a hippy father walking with his child on a world map, near the port. It marks the hippy heritage of Ibiza.
Pop into the Pacha shop, selling merchandise for the famous super club, which opened in 1973.
When you’re in Ibiza Town, it’s easy to hop over to the smaller, quieter island of Formentera for a blast of stunning scenery. Ferries leave regularly from the port, and the crossing is short. You can easily visit for the day, but once you get there, Formentera is so beautiful that you’ll wish you’d arranged to stay over.
If you’d rather sort it before you go, the Ibiza to Formentera Ferry with open return can be booked on GetYourGuide. It’s on our list for next time, as we ran out of days. There are also full-day, half-day and sunset boat trips, so pick one that suits you, and book ahead in high season.
Just a short drive from Ibiza Town are the salt flats of Ses Salines, part of a protected natural park and home to many bird species, including flamingos.
Salt has been made in Ibiza since the time of the Phoenicians, although production has ebbed and flowed over the centuries. Salt is still harvested here today, but not in the quantities it once was.
As well as the salt flats, there are some fantastic beaches here, including Ses Salines beach, a long strip of sand backed by dunes. The beach has a couple of beachfront restaurants, including Sa Trinxa, which are a draw for beach and party lovers in summer. They can be quite noisy, but fun.
In closing
We really enjoyed our day in Ibiza Town, exploring both Dalt Vila and the colourful streets of the old town near the port and headland. The teenagers were delighted to find a Zara and a Carhartt, but also enjoyed looking for local pieces in the craft shops.
Ibiza Town isn't particularly big, so we covered a lot of ground in one day and still had time to relax over drinks and food before heading back to the villa. Our only regret from the whole holiday was not booking two weeks instead of one. See how we planned our week in Ibiza with teenagers for everything else we got up to.
It went by all too quickly.
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