Looking for a quiet spot? Inland Ibiza awaits

Inland Ibiza is the perfect antidote to the stress of urban life (and to Ibiza’s summer indulgence!). Don’t stick only to the beaches on the White Island. Explore its villages and countryside too, where you’ll also find hippy flea markets, art galleries and postcard-worthy landscapes.

Drive off the main roads to venture into the timeless island that survives the changes caused by modern life. Olive groves, market gardens and orchards dotted with carob and almond trees decorate the valleys of inland Ibiza, with century-old houses scattered here and there as marvellous samples of the island’s traditional architecture. It’s only a few minutes’ drive from Hostal La Torre to the most authentic side of the island, which makes our hotel the ideal base to enjoy both sides of Ibiza: the beachy, hedonistic facet and the rural, relaxed facet.

Inland Ibiza: what to see and do

We’re proposing a few plans and visits to add to your tour of inland Ibiza, most of them suitable for any time of the year.

The Santa Agnès and Sant Mateu valleys. A beautiful side road will lead you from Hostal La Torre to these Ibizan spots, two of the best preserved areas that have barely changed over the past decades. You will get to see the well-known almond trees of Pla de Corona, excellent samples of Ibiza’s traditional country houses called “casa payesa” and the area with most vineyards on the island. Also, the quaint villages of Santa Agnès and Sant Mateu are, alongside Sant Llorenç de Balàfia and Sant Vicent de sa Cala, the only ones that remain exactly the same as country villages were a few decades ago: a very small set of buildings consisting of the church, a bar-grocer’s shop and no more than two or three houses including the rectory. The rest of the country houses were scattered across the area, where the families lived self-sufficiently off their land.

Pla de Corona. © Nuria Cortés
A winery route in Ibiza. As we explained in our previous post about Ibiza’s wines, the island has a long winemaking tradition. A good way to learn about its past and present wine production is by visiting the wineries that are part of the Protected Geographic Indication (PGI) of Ibiza (Vi d’Eivissa): Can Rich de Buscastell, Can Maymó, Ojo de Ibiza and Ibizkus. A route that also heads in the direction of the Santa Agnès and Sant Mateu valleys we mentioned above.

Santa Gertrudis. In the old days, this village only consisted of the church, the rectory and the houses lining the pedestrian street from the temple. After its first expansion, Santa Gertrudis lost its original layout to become a quaint cosmopolitan village. Here you’ll find a good range of restaurants and boutiques. Santa Gertrudis is in the geographical centre of the island, so if you do visit it, you can boast that you've reached Ibiza’s heart.

Santa Gertrudis. © Nuria Cortés
Sant Carles. On the eastern side of the island, Sant Carles has evolved in a similar way to Santa Gertrudis, but its expansion was slightly more contained. Don’t miss its church, the Hierbas Ibicencas liquor served at Ca na Anneta and the house museum of Es Trull de Ca n’Andreu, as a sample of a traditional country house (casa payesa), that’s only a few minutes’ walk from the village..

Sant Agustí. This charming village located between Sant Antoni and Sant Josep has barely evolved, so it looks practically the same as in the old days. Here you’ll find a few examples of traditional architecture and enjoy cooler summer evenings.

Es Amunts and the village of Balàfia. If you take side roads across the north-west side of Ibiza, you’ll get to see the mountains of Es Amunts. Given its natural value and heritage, it is protected by different conservation programmes like Red Natura 2000 and special birdlife protection reserves (ZEPA). At Es Amunts Visitor Centre in Sant Llorenç you’ll learn about the importance of its cliffs for many native birds of prey and sea birds and how the locals used this natural space to produce lime, among other things. Afterwards, you can visit the nearby village of Balàfia, one of the best examples of Ibiza’s architecture.

Valle de Sant Mateu. © Nuria Cortés

10 ideas to do on your tour of inland Ibiza

1. Eat the famous tortilla de patata (potato omelette) with vegetables at Can Cosmi in Santa Agnès.
2. Walk the circular trail that goes around part of the Pla de Corona valley. In the summer, do this walk on a full moon night.
3. Visit the wineries in the valley of Sant Antoni (Buscastell, Santa Agnès and Sant Mateu).
4. Visit farms and organic market gardens, like Can Musson or Can Cristófol.
5. Go for a hike. You’ll find country trails for all levels. You can check out the trails and technical sheets on the tourism websites of Sant Joan, Santa Eulària, Sant Josep and Ibiza Travel.
6. Visit art galleries inland, like Parra y Romero Ibiza in Santa Gertrudis.
7. Explore the Es Broll valley that still has traces of Arab Ibiza in the way of irrigation ditches and other types of water canalisation.
8. Climb up to the highest peak in Ibiza, the sa Talaia peak. However, we do advise you to do this late afternoon or first thing in the morning.
9. Stop for lunch, a snack or a cup of coffee at Can Tixedo, popular among visitors and locals from the area.
10. Visit the flea markets of Las Dalias, Punta Arabí and Sant Joan.

Pla de Corona. © Nuria Cortés

A country or beachfront hotel in Ibiza? What do you prefer?

After reading this post, you may want to stay away from the hustle and bustle for a few days in a boutique country hotel like Casa Maca, an exclusive hotel in a casa payesa. Or you may prefer to come back from inland Ibiza to a boutique beachfront hotel, like Hostal La Torre,where you can also admire our famous sunsets over the sea listening to Balearic Sound sets. Whether it’s with a view of the Med or the Ibizan countryside, we look forward to seeing you!

Main picture: Nuria Cortés / Isla Elefanta

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