Secret Ibiza. Secret villages.

Villages of Ibiza

The town of Santa Eulària is crowned by es Puig de Missa, a historical monument composed of a fortified church, a cemetery and several whitewashed houses. There is much activity in Santa Eulària, since many services and retail stores are available, as well as a beach in the centre of the town, a nice promenade and a marina.

Santa Gertrudis de Fruitera

This quiet inland village has become one the most charming rural centres in the island. Eating a cured ham roll in any of its pavement cafes is a tradition for both locals and travellers. It also has handicrafts shops, antique shops, and avant-garde cuisine restaurants.
Santa Gertrudis is located in a road junction which links it to Eivissa, Sant Miquel, Sant Llorenç and Sant Mateu. The centre of the village is dominated by a church founded in 1797. The façade has been altered several times, the same as the belfry, which dates back to the XIX century.

Sant Llorenç de Balàfia

The old village of Balàfia offers a very good sample of Eivissan traditional architecture. It is located a few metres from Sant Llorenç and it can be reached on foot in several minutes. The village is composed of five traditional houses (casas payesas), and two defensive towers that form a place of high archaeological interest. Some of the towers and houses have white crosses on their façades, an ancient ritual to protect them from assaults.
Sant Llorenç is a small town of historical relevance, surrounded by fields and bathed by a wonderful light. As in other villages, life revolves around the church, which main feature is to have a sole arch at the entrance, the same as Santa Gertrudis temple. The belfry, nowadays located in the middle of the façade, used to be at one end. However, it was placed in its current position after some alterations were made to the building in the XIX century.
There is a bar in the village, and also a park with a picnic spot next to the church.

Sant Joan de Labritja

The Municipality of Sant Joan, located on the North, is the least populated in the island, with about 4500 inhabitants. This area's main features are vast unspoilt woodlands and remarkable rural extensions, where livelihood largely depends on farming. Nature can be found at its finest in Sant Joan's coastline, cliffs and woodlands, which are often crossed by torrents and stone terraces.
The Municipality is composed of four parishes: Sant Joan, Sant Miquel, Sant Vicent and Sant Llorenç. All of them are small villages where locals live with people from all over the world who have chosen rural Ibiza as their place of residence.
The Municipality shares with Sant Antoni an "Area of Particular Interest": Es Amunts, an area of high environmental value with a unique fauna and flora. At the same time, Sant Joan offers amazing routes to be walked. They lead to Balanzat's defensive tower, d'en Marçà's caves or the archaeological site in Es Culleram's cave, which houses the most important piece of the islands' Phoenician past: the goddess Tanit.
The coast line is full of cliffs, only altered by some lovely coves, such as Es Caló des Multons, Cala Xarraca, Es Caló d'en Serra, Cala de Sant Vicent, and Benirràs, which became very popular because of its hippie atmosphere and percussionists,
The Municipality also offers some tourist areas, such as Port de Sant Miquel and Portinatx.

Sant Carles de Peralta

Sant Carles area is crammed with almond, fig and carob trees and scattered with beautiful casas payesas (traditional houses). It is small, but it has little cosy bars and restaurants (such as ca n'Aneta, where you can taste a traditional Eivissan spirit made of herbs). The town is dominated by a whitewashed church dated back to 1785, which a rectangular floor and a peculiar belfry that has been moved to the left. There are also a small garden with a traditional well and the remains of a Roman oil mill.
Sant Carles has an intense cultural activity since the 1950s, when many intellectuals chose it as their place of residence. Every Saturday during the summer and part of the low season, locals and visitors can enjoy Las Dalias little market on the outskirts of the village. This market is one of the most traditional and popular places in this area. You can find traditional clothes and white shirts in its stalls, as well as casual clothes, handicrafts, fashion jewellery and objects from all over the world or inspired in the hippie movement.
There are several lovely beaches in the surroundings, such as Cala Llenya, Cala Mastella and Cala Nova.

Sant Miquel de Balansat

Sant Miquel is a village that keeps its small size, although it has grown due to tourism. All sorts of services are offered along the main street.
Do not miss a visit to the church, also built on a hill, the same as Santa Eulària's. It offers wonderful views overlooking rural areas.
The church's central nave was built in the XVI century. At the end of the century the church was enlarged with the construction of two lateral chapels, Benirràs and Rubió. Beautiful fresco paintings inspired in religious and floral motives were recently found in the chapels. It is the cross shape what makes this church different. However, it is known that, as many other temples, it was erected for religious but also defensive purposes. The cemetery is adjacent to the building.

Sant Mateu d'Albarca

Sant Mateu is a nice small town with a very ancient love for wine. In December, Sant Mateu's locals celebrate the Fiesta del Vino, and hundreds of people gather to taste the island's wines. The centre of the town is composed of the cemetery, a church, a bar, and a few houses, all of which turn Sant Mateu into a lovely place.
In the rural Eivissa, within this same area, stands out Buscastell, where the visitor can enjoy the Pitiusan countryside flavour even more, since it is the largest area for growing vines in the island. A remarkable red wine, as well as a delicious fruity white wine, are elaborated here.

Santa Agnés de Corona

The road linking Sant Rafel and Santa Agnès runs during its last three km through es Amunts, declared a natural protected area. Santa Agnès is a small town where peace and quiet reigns, but it is also a popular place, especially during full moon nights in January and February, when many Eivissans gather in the plain to contemplate hundreds of almond trees in full blossom. Its church, erected in 1812, houses a sculpture of the Virgin Madre de Dios del Rosario, dated back to same year as the temple. The sculptor's name is unknown.

Sant Rafel de sa Creu

Sant Rafel is located 8 km far from Sant Antoni, near Eivissa. It is the only town in the island that has been declared "place of interest" because of craftsmanship. In fact, Sant Rafel is the place of work for some of Eivissa's best potters, who have created new trends with pieces inspired in the Punic culture.
Sant Rafel is a quiet town, but it has a good number of bars and restaurants in the city centre, which are visited by people from all over the island. Its whitewashed church, built on a vantage point in 1786-1793, offers excellent views overlooking Eivissa and the sea.

Ibiza or Eivissa

The city of Eivissa faces both the sea and the acropolis. Dalt Vila's fortification is integrated into the locals' everyday life. This is where they have breakfast, go shopping, and enjoy nightlife. It is also a magnificent place for important artistic social and cultural events. Its Renaissance defensive walls are composed of seven bastions. One of them, Sant Pere, located next to the Reina Sofia Park, is one of the gates to the fortification, where soldiers used to stand to fight against their enemies in the past. Nowadays it is used for outdoor concerts.

Another gate to Dalt Vila is the Portal de ses Taules, with a stunning outer bailey. Next to it, the visitor will find the Plaça da Vila, a square crammed with pretty restaurants, art galleries and handicrafts shops, all of them surrounded by a stone frame that gives the visitor a feeling of being part of History. If you keep on going through the Calle Sa Carrosa, you will be able to enter Santa Llúcia's bastion, which houses a XVIII century powder magazine. Wonderful views of the Eivissa Harbour and the Bay can also be enjoyed from here. Halfway to the bastion, there is a bronze statue seated on a bench. It is Don Isidor Macabich, a priest and Historian who was the first person who study the island's past in real depth.

There are signposts all along the route. On your way to Sant Jordi's bastion you will find the Ronda Calvi, where archaeological remains of an Islamic defensive wall can be observed. The next bastion is Sant Bernat, which offers an amazing view to Formentera and Ses Salines. It was in this bastion where the artillery was prepared in order to defend the city from sea attacks. Just below there is a tunnel called Es Soto Fosc that leads outside the enclosure. Beyond the bastion of Santa Tecla, East of the Cathedral, a short part of the fortification curtain disappears into the cliff. It served both as a natural defensive wall and a beautiful vantage point overlooking the sea. There is a tunnel just below the ravelin which leads to the Council of Eivissa.
The next bastion is Sant Joan, which was refurbished in the 1960s to create a new gate so that locals could enter Dalt Vila by car. In fact, only residents are allowed to use it as long as they have a card issued by the Council.

Eivissa's Renaissance defensive wall was erected as part of a plan to modernise the defence of the Meditarranean coast line. This strategic plan, created by Charles V (I of Spain) and Philip II of Spain, aimed at maintaining and defending Spanish Crown's territories against France and the Ottoman Empire in times of war.

When the Turkish and Berber pirates attacks decreased and the island ceased being the target of new assaults, the acropolis remained as a vestige of those times and was later declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO. In fact, it is the only fortification in Europe which is preserved as a whole, together with La Valetta's enclosure in Malta.

Jesus

Located very near the city of Eivissa, this town has one of the oldest churches in the island. It is said that Franciscan Monks established themselves in this church in the year 1498, although in 1580 it was given to the Dominicans, who abandoned it seven years later to hide in Dalt Vila's fortification because of the pirates attacks. The church has a very valuable piece: a XVI century Gothic altar ascribed to Rodrigo de Osuna. Some experts consider the face of this church's Virgin as one of the most beautiful ones in the Spanish medieval iconography.

Jesús also offers a wide range of restaurants and small shops. The visitor can find several beaches in the vicinity, such as s'Estanyol and Talamanca, although the latter belongs to the Municipality of Eivissa.

Sant Josep de sa Talaia

Located on the South, Sant Josep is the largest municipality in the island. On the East, it shares Platja d'en Bossa (beach) with the municipality of Eivissa, and Sant Antoni's Bay on the West. Apart from Sant Josep's town, the municipality includes the parishes of Sant Jordi, Sant Agustí and es Cubells, all of them quiet picturesque villages with beautiful churches.

The municipality's coastline, which is 80 Km long, offers important tourist resorts, as well as some of the most beautiful coves in the Pitiusas, such as Cavallet, Ses Salines, Cala Jondal, Cala d'Hort, Cala Carbó, Cala Vedella, Cala Tarida, and Platges de Comte, or remote fishermen coves, such as Porroig, es Xarco, sa Caleta, Cala Llentrisca, and Cala Corral, all of them keeping their traditional atmosphere.
The coastline is abundant with cliffs and islets, such as Vedrà, es Vedranell, sa Conillera, s'Espartà, s'Illa des Bosc, and ses Bledes, which dominate the view when comtemplated from the land. It is a magnificent landscape, especially the two protected areas, Ses Salines Natural Park and the nature reserve of d'es Vedrà, es Vedranell and Islotes de Poniente (islets), where nature can be found at its finest.

The municipality provides the visitor with very interesting routes going through areas of unspoilt nature, where you can also see defensive towers in magic enclosures, such as the Pirate Tower in Cala d'Hort, the tower of d'en Rovira, located in Platges de Comte, or the Carregador tower, near Ses Salines.

Sa Talaia, the highest woodland in the island, 475 m high, is located in the centre of the municipality. It offers one of the best views in the island. You can visit important archaeological sites in Sant Josep, such as Sa Caleta's Phoenician village (VII B.C.), founded by the first settlers in the island and declared World Heritage, or Ses Païses de Cala d'Hort, a Punic-Roman settlement.

Es Cubells

Es Cubells is one of the tiniest villages in the island, its centre being composed of a church and two bars. It is a charming village, since it is located on the edge of an immense cliff. The same as in most parts of the island, its inhabitants live scattered throughout different rural areas.

Es Cubell's church is small, whitewashed and has lateral buttresses. It was founded in 1864 thanks to the effort of a Carmelite Monk called Francesc Palau, who played an important role in the island's history, since he spent long periods of his life as a hermit in the islet of es Vedrà. There is a sculpture next to the temple commemorating his life.
There are fishermen coves below Es Cubell's cliffs and in the vicinity: Ses Boques, Cala Llentrisca, Es Torrent and Porroig. The village is also a good departure point to visit Cala d'Hort Natural Park.

Sant Agustí des Vedrà

Sant Agustí is one of the best preserved villages in the island. Nothing seems to alter its simple and beautiful architecture, composed of a parish house, located at the back of the church, a stone tower, and the casas payesas (traditional houses) situated around the main square. If you walk up the hill you will be able to contemplate the surrounding fields, very popular because of their grapevines, which produce a home-made fruity red wine of excellent quality. There are many unspoilt beaches in the vicinity, such as Platges de Comte and Cala Bassa.
The church, small and unadorned, was blessed in 1806 and shows a peculiarity: it is the only one facing the West instead of the South. The reason was that two different families demanded the church to be erected in their land. Finally, the problem was fairly solved and the church was built between both lands, facing both land-owners' homes

Sant Antoni de Portmany

Sant Antoni de Portmany is one of the most popular resorts among European tourists on account of its stunning Bay and the spectacular sunsets on the Ses Variades coast line. Tourism has completely transformed this town, whose inhabitants used to live on farming, fishing and ancient traditions only a century ago. Nowadays, Sant Antoni offers a wide range of hotels, hostels and apartments, among other services for tourists.
By the sea, next to the promenade, it is the Passeig de ses Fonts, Sant Antoni's centre. Here you will find the Town Hall, the Tourist Office, pavement cafes, and taxi ranks. You might also be able to enjoy outdoor concerts. If you follow the Passeig de ses Fonts it will lead you inside the town through streets crammed with retail stores, bars and restaurants.

Outside Sant Antony's centre the visitor will find the Cueva de ses Fontanelles, a cave with a collection of prehistoric paintings. Located in a sheer area between Sa Forada and Cap Nono, this cave, accessible from Cala Salada, is also known as sa Cova des Vi (the Wine Cave), since it was used as a wine cellar in the past. According to the French Archaeologist Henri "Abbé" Breuil, who discovered them in 1.917, the paintings date back to the Bronze Age (1.000 b.C.). Paintings of ships can be observed on the Eastern wall. Following the coast line to the North, the visitor will enjoy the magnificent view of the cliffs bordering the entire municipality.

Another place of interest is the Capilla de Santa Agnès. To reach this chapel, you must go through the Calle Obispo Torres (Street), then through Calle Ramón y Cajal, up to the Camino de cas Ramons, until you are 1,5 Km far from the city centre. You will then find the underground Chapel of Santa Agnès, which is built inside a hill. According to the legend, a ship was about to sink with all its passengers inside. One of them, who carried the statue of Santa Agnès, promised to build her a chapel if they survived. The miracle occurred and the chapel was discovered in 1.907. It has been used as a place of worship by different peoples, since many Punic, Roman and Islamic objects have been found inside.

Two kilometres far from Sant Antoni's centre, very near Cala Gració and next to the main road, you will find the route to es Cap Blanc Aquarium, also known as sa Cova de ses Llegostes, sa cova des Peix or sa Cova des Vell Marí. This latter name is how locals call the Mediterranean Monk Seals, which used to hide in this beautiful natural cave not long ago. Popular festivities were held in this place in the past. Nowadays it is a natural aquarium where the visitor can contemplate a wide range of the Pitiusas' Marine Fauna.

Although Sant Antoni's Bay is the most popular place among tourists, towns and villages such as Sant Rafael, Sant Mateu and Santa Agnès de Corona also belong to the this municipality.

Departing from Sant Mateu you can reach Ses Torres d'en Lluc, an archaeological site composed of two ancient towers and a defensive wall that dates back to the Middle Ages, according to some Historians. The Eastern route towards Cala d'Aubarca leads the visitor to a series of cliffs of great beauty and difficult access. These cliffs are used as a shelter by many birds, such as Eleonora's Falcon, which migrates from Madagascar, and the Ferruginous Hawk. There is not a main road to get to Cala d'Aubarca by car; all routes have to be done on foot.

There are different routes that hiking lovers can follow from Sant Antoni, going through cultivated fields, pine woods, beaches and cliffs, a wide range of landscapes where nature and beauty live together.

Sant Antoni is a reference point for hikers. Different sorts of facilities can be found here, so that they can practise several sports, from cycling to nautical sports.

There are many beaches in the municipality. Cala Salada, for example, 5 km from Sant Antoni's centre, is a series of sandy coves where you can enjoy a very friendly atmosphere while protected from the wind. Cala Gració and Cala Gracioneta, two beautiful little coves joined by a small rocky promenade, are located 2,5 km from Sant Antoni's centre. Another example is Caló des Moro, one km to the North-East from the city centre, which has become a popular place to contemplate the sunset. Bordering Sant Antoni's promenade you will find S'arenal beach, a series of long and narrow beaches, from where the whole Bay can be seen. There is another small sandy beach near the city centre called Es Pouet, which can be reached through the road that runs along the Bay towards Port des Torrent.