As well as a vibrant nightlife and 50 beaches with crystalline waters, Ibiza offers visitors 27 centuries of history and nature that is both serene and multicultural inland.
Ibiza is famous for its beaches, with 50 turquoise coves dotted along 200 kilometres of coastline, and above all for its thriving range of nightlife. But the essence of this piece of land (571 km2) in the western Mediterranean which so fascinated the intellectuals of the ‘50s, the hippies of the ‘60s and the subsequent mass tourism, goes beyond the beaches and the discotheques: the island is a melting pot of civilisations that concentrates 27 centuries of history, of invasions and conquests, of cultures and co-existence.
Ibiza has been a World Heritage Site since 1999, and to discover it in-depth one has to visit the early Phoenician settlements of Sa Caleta or the Puig des Molins necropolis in the evening, stroll along the Renaissance walls of Dalt Vila or enjoy nature in the woods and trails of Es Amunts (in the north of the island). Time stops in the little villages of the interior, which maintain their traditions practically unaltered. Popular culture can be observed in the patron saints’ festivals, when the flute and the drum sound out to enhance the beauty of the ‘payés’, or traditional peasant dance, with ancestral roots, unique folklore that is totally unlike the traditional celebrations of Mallorca or the Iberian peninsula.
The nature of this creative, cosmopolitan and hedonistic island is also reflected in the rich variety of indigenous, national and international gastronomy available. ‘Bullit de peix’ (a dish made of boiled rockfish) is one of the delicacies you will be able to try in the restaurants along the coast, in any of the island’s five municipalities: Eivissa (also called Vila), Santa Eulària des Riu, Sant Antoni de Portmany, Sant Josep de sa Talaia and Sant Joan de Labritja.