Sunset in Benirras
Cook local products, ride a bike through dirt roads, practice nudism or launch yourself in search of secluded coves. Ibiza always offers you new experiences to enjoy the island to the fullest. Here we propose eight.
COOK LOCAL PRODUCTS
There is no better way to meet the local gastronomy to walk through the food market stalls.
A great option is Mercat Nou from Ibiza , with a labyrinthine route between fruits, vegetables, fish, meat and many other products of the land. Some can also be found in the old market, in the heart of the neighborhood of La Marina and in front of the main access to the walls.
In Santa Eularia des Riu , to the north, there is another small municipal market, quieter and with fresh fish stalls that have their own boat. There it is easy to find copies of San Pedro rooster, red mullet, grouper, skate and, of course, seafood . Or even a brunette, if you dare. They are perfect proposals to take home, throw away traditional recipes and start cooking like an Ibizan.
Mercat Nou
In the process you can use products such as Ibizan extra virgin olive oil as smelled , island red potato, Can Rich lemon salt and pair the result with a good red wine from this same winery.
For dessert you will thank the taste of the refreshing watermelon from Ibiza . An Ibizan herbal liqueur -which you will find home-made in some places- is the perfect icing to practice sustainable tourism and find unique flavors at a more than affordable price.
It is Mercat de Santa Eularia des Riu
**SIT AT 'THE BIGOTES' TABLE **
If you have allergies to cooking or on vacation you have decided not to touch a pan, I biza is full of beach bars serving the great classics of the pitiusa gastronomy , always with rice and fish as protagonists.
There are for all tastes, but among the most classic restaurants is Can Salvado , located next to the small cove of Pou des Lleó and with a fame earned based on traditional recipes and fresh fish that capture in their little ones llauts .
Very close is located the whiskers , a tiny place practically hidden next to the **beach oasis called Cala Mastella **. You have two shifts to eat : at 12 noon there is grilled fish and at 2:00 p.m. bullit de fish , which is the star dish.
Cala Mastella
To find a space, you must reserve in advance. (in high season, a few days in advance) and if you don't do it soon, you may have to share a table. Lunch is prepared in a large pot in an almost ceremonious manner in the open air and with the involvement of the entire El Bigotes family , which has an allotted seat near the kitchen.
After looking at the clock to control the cooking, they begin to distribute portions of potatoes along with the different fish that have been used to make the broth: sirvias, corvinas, rays, scorpion fish, sea rats, San Pedro rooster... "what has been fished in the day" , as they say.
The smell of wood, resin, rosemary and pine helps to feel in a world apart, while the soundtrack is played by the chirping of the sparrows and the sound of the spoons of the diners.
While you eat the fish, the rice cooks and you, if you are hot, can take an immediate dip because the water is so close that you can return to the table without anyone knowing that you have left. Much more if you have one of the closest to the emerald sea. Difficult to find a gastronomic experience as exciting as this one in Ibiza.
the whiskers
PRACTICE THE LOCAL GASTRONOMY
One of the best experiences of Ibiza is to drive by narrow north roads . They are far from mass tourism and in them, from time to time, gastronomic jewels are found. Oases that allow the perfect stop for calmly taste some of the best snacks on the island . One of the most hidden is Can Cires , located in an old country house with more than two centuries of history in the tiny town of Sant Mateu d'Albarca.
The rooms have been converted into dining rooms, on its walls there is usually an art exhibition and the main patio is now a beautiful outdoor terrace surrounded by nature where the bells of the nearby church resound. Outdoors taste better the dishes prepared by chef Francis Weidemann, co-owner of the restaurant with his wife Victoria Mari.
Another excellent idea is to go through Dove , in Sant Llorenç de Balafia . A beautiful place with little more than a decade of history that has been growing step by step to become one of the culinary references of Ibiza.
Its lounges with fireplaces become the perfect corner to understand that winter can be something else and, in summer, the large terraces provide a refreshing relief among the shades of large trees. On the road that connects Santa Eularia with Portinatx , hides among olive trees Ses Escoles oil library , converted into another option to enjoy local products and savor the rich extra virgin olive oil that they make right there.
Dove
And very close is located Aubergine , nice restaurant dominated by the mint green where there is a small orchard, a beautiful terrace, a shop and several charming interior rooms for the cooler days.
In high season there live music on tuesday, thursday and sunday nights , day there is also a small market. Can Berri Vell Y Sa Coca , both in Sant Agustí, are other great rural options.
Aubergine Burger
SAVOR THE MEDITERRANEAN WITHOUT CLOTHES
There is a beautiful corner of sand a few meters from the Platjes de Comte which is the perfect place to practice nudism . Its crystal clear waters and the cliffs that surround it are the ideal setting to jump into the sea without clothes. Or even to have a drink in the Cala Escondida Beach Bar , where Tess and her team allow you to continue practicing nudism to take a beer, a cocktail or enjoy its delicious proposals for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
If it is the first time, you are shy or want to get away from prying eyes, there are many other options in Ibiza. Cala Xarraca is one of them, as Cala D'en Serra , where there is an adjacent beach that hardly anyone goes to because it has rocks and is a bit more uncomfortable; In return, you will have greater freedom and privacy. Aguas Blancas, Es Canar, Es Figueral or Es Cavallet are other paradises for nudists.
And if you don't dare, rent a kayak or a paddle board paddle south f, sail along the rocks and you will find a thousand and one quiet places to take off your swimsuit or bikini and enjoy the Mediterranean one hundred percent. When you try it, you will hardly be a textile again!
Cala Xacarra
ROAST IN THE SUN IN CALA SALADETA
If paradise exists, it must look a lot like Cala Saladeta . For the color of its waters, for its natural environment, for its sand and for many other sensations that are only experienced when visiting the place.
It is not strange that it is one of the busiest beaches and with the highest concentration of bathers . Since salt cove There are three options to get to it: following the private path -public access dog- behind the houses and which leads to some stairs that end in the sand itself; by a little path that is on the cliffs, which give precious images of the environment; Y playing it for the rocks that are by the sea down a dangerous trail that, yes, is best avoided.
Although the influx of tourists can end the patience of those who plan to rest on this shore of turquoise water, at certain times it is possible to find small gaps of tranquility next to the fishermen's huts.
Until there they take you a mojito or almost any cocktail you can think of without you having to get up from the towel , and every bath you take you will want to keep it in your memory as something unique: maybe you will never see such a beautiful place again. In high season the noise takes over the beach, but in spring and autumn there are still days where the sound of the sea is the main soundtrack.
Cala Saladeta
FIND YOUR OWN COVE
There are also beaches where you will be practically alone. Like in It's Cubells , a small town that does not reach a thousand inhabitants. It is to the southwest of the island, where the cliffs are the protagonists. But the rocks also leave room for the occasional cove that, again, could perfectly be called paradisiacal.
One of the most amazing is Cala Llentrisca. Getting there is not easy, but it is well worth it. So put on your sneakers, fill your pack with plenty of food and water, and get ready for a nice Ibizan adventure away from the beach clubs and amenities.
Next to the local church there is the first (and almost only) sign indicating the direction to this beach. The road will take you to a luxury urbanization where you will have to request that they open the fence that prevents the passage of vehicles.
Between movie houses, the road (with some almost insurmountable potholes) borders the Mediterranean, forking again and again (don't hesitate, always opt for the path that turns to the right). There will come a time when the road ends and a small path begins You can only access by walking.
It goes into the pine forest between the sound of cicadas and waves crashing a few meters below. And, when you least expect it, the route will turn -again- to the right to discover you a corner that seems taken from the movie La Playa.
If you're lucky, it may be all to you, although there may be more visitors in the mood for adventure. Or, simply, those who can come to enjoy more comfortably aboard their yacht or sailboat
But Cala Llentrisca is just one of the options to feel like one more explorer: luckily, Ibiza still keeps some secrets like It is Canaret, that years ago was an almost impossible place to find. Today too, but at least it has some small indication and, again, a hiking tour. And remember: Leave the path cleaner than you found it!
Cala Llentrisca
**GO SHOPPING AT LAS DALIAS **
It is one of the great classics of Ibiza. And if it has been for many years, it will be for a reason. Among its main reasons are the variety of positions, the good atmosphere that is breathed and that, whoever searches, finds.
It is a place of contrasts where you can find unique objects... and also the same products as in the market of your town. Likewise, it gives you the opportunity to mingle with families that come down like a Kardashian clan from huge cars with tinted windows and a chauffeur, barefoot hippies who have lived on the island all their lives, or you can also go say hello to Silke and buy some of her clothing designs. own brand By Silke .
Las Dalias is the epicenter of the most Ibizan fashion, but there is also leather, jewellery, accessories, works of art, books, crafts, toys, liqueurs, natural products, mojitos, massages, concerts...
The options are almost endless thanks to its more than 200 positions . It is celebrated c Every Saturday next to the town of San Carlos in a beautiful environment where there are houses with orchards in the garden and winding roads that lead to some of the best beaches in the north of the island.
Today it has lost the original spirit with which it was born as a bar in the 1950s and as a market three decades later; but it still has a special halo, some reminiscence of that Hippy Ibiza of which there is hardly any trace left in the 21st century.
In high season it also offers numerous activities on other days of the week, especially on Sunday afternoons. Chambao, Muchachito Bombo Inferno and many other national bands do not miss your summer date with Las Dalias.
TOUR THE ISLAND BY BICYCLE
Neither the Tourmalet, nor the Angliru, nor the Mortirolo are in Ibiza. Quite the contrary: most of the island has small unevenness or is it directly flat , although there is also more than one slope that seems unthinkable for those who have never dared to pedal up.
The bicycle is a great ally to explore it without haste and visiting places that do not appear on tourist maps. Officially there are more than 20 bike routes with different difficulties so you can find the one that best suits your possibilities , but there are other infinite options depending on the desire you have and the destination you are looking for.
The dirt roads and highways that connect all the destinations in the north of the island are the safest. If you prefer something more difficult, a beautiful path is the one that, from the Portinax road , is born next to the indication of the exit towards Caló de S'illa . A walk that leads to one of the most unknown coves in all of Ibiza and, surely, one of the quietest.
A path that, if you follow it, ends near Benirrás beach. By bicycle you can also access the wonderful cove of It is Portitxol, another little adventure on dirt roads.
Views from Es Portitxol