Written by 
I can honestly say that I have never experienced such a noisy flight in my life (and I have flown a lot!) it seemed that every seat apart from ours was filled with hen or stag parties, or parents with crying children. There was no chance of us napping, which is what we generally do best whilst flying. If this atmosphere was anything to go by, it didn’t bode well for the rest of the trip and we both started to feel a sense of dread creeping in. Now it’s not because we didn’t want to enjoy ourselves but more because we knew we wouldn’t be able to keep it up 24/7.
Arriving at Ibiza Airport, we stepped off the plane into the heat as if it were a wall. We struggled to find our rental car, following the confirmation email directions we ended up in a deserted car park, being ferried away on a minibus and eventually deposited at Centauro rent-a-car, a 15 minute drive away. It actually wasn’t as bad as it sounds and it saved us money since the company didn’t have to pay for prime airport space.
Making small talk with the car rental man (who incidentally shares the same birthday as Tim), he enthused about the island and that came here for a holiday 10 years ago and never left.
“Well this IS Ibiza after all!”
Crazy cat!
Usually when abroad we adopt the “When in Rome” philosophy. However fresh off a plane and on a mission to sate our hunger we made a bee line for Ibiza Town to Cana Mexicana, a recommended restaurant serving Mexican street food.
Cana Mexicana
It was quite hard to find since it wasn’t on the main road so we parked up and wandered around the area until we suddenly found ourselves outside this unassuming restaurant. The tables were enveloped in bright flowery plastic table cloths; I remember thinking where can you even get this material from, never mind in such a variety of colours! We managed to get a table right outside at the front, perfect for people watching and during our stay several taxis pulled up with people who had made the journey especially. Cana Mexicana ended up having to turn people away it was so popular.
Filled with the usual nachos/chicken enchiladas/beef fajitas and several margaritas/desperados later the bill arrived, with complementary tequila shots at only €25! (Perfect for small budgets).The service was always friendly but as the seats filled up the efficiency sadly slowed.
Although the food was tasty, it didn’t knock our socks off but you can’t argue that Cana Mexicana serves value for money.
We had a quick peek at the beach, which was predictably busy and touristy but inviting, before heading back to our car. That’s when we realised we had a parking ticket! Brilliant. Unfortunately no one had told us about the “Blue Zones.” The pay meter was not clearly visible (at the end of the road) and there were no street signs.
So learn from our mistake; check for blue painted lines on the floor and if present, go hunt for a pay machine!
Hard Rock Hotel
After that fiasco we headed back to Playa d´en Bossa to the Hard Rock Hotel to meet our friends and take some time out to catch up, relax on the cabanas and swim in the pool. Entry and sun beds/cabanas were free and the waiters very attentive. It’s a great location to watch the planes taking off and landing at the airport.
Watching the Planes from the Hard Rock Hotel
As the sun started to dip, we checked into the Elbano Select Apartments which was in a great location, just a 5 minute walk from the main strip in Playa d´en Bossa. The room was spacious, clean and surprisingly quiet with a safe, kitchen area and large balcony (that overlooked a side road). We found out the hard way; make sure you don’t leave anything on the bathroom floor when showering as there is no door/screen on the shower so everything gets wet.
Rooftop Terrace at Aperture
Showered and changed we drove to San Antonio to the roof top restaurant at Aperture.
We walked up a red carpet, to the super relaxed terrace above and were seated on comfy white sofas overlooking the sea, providing the perfect view of the sunset.
Sunset at Aperture
The waiter was very friendly and our food came out in HUGE portions, luckily we were in no hurry and were content to soak in the in the view and atmosphere as the DJ and live band alternated playing. I ordered the Carpaccio to start and the mushroom risotto for main (be warned this is enough for 2 people!) both of which were rich with flavours.
Several cocktails later with the moon in the night sky, we settled our bill and headed back to our apartment to nap (of course) and get ready for the night ahead. I am so glad that we found this gem and would highly recommend a visit.
At 01:30am the taxi to dropped us off at the top of a road, as if he couldn’t be bothered to take us all the way to Privilege nightclub.
My lesson here would be to stay in the taxi until you can see the entrance!
As the world’s biggest club, it was a long walk around to the doors! Make sure you bring physical tickets with you; we had trouble with some that were purchased online and shown on a phone. Eventually we were all let in, but to avoid the confusion, print them and bring them with you.
Stage Reveal at Supermartxe
The opening night of Supermartxe did disappoint with theatrics! There was a “Big Stage Reveal” with futuristic dancers, a motorcyclist in a hamster wheel suspended above the crowd spinning fireworks like a Kathryn wheel, a moving carousel and much more! It was crazy with so many areas to explore including what we dubbed the “Epcot Dome” (the outside smoking area) and the “Big Green Forest” which was actually had no point except for being green? However it was hard work getting into the rhythm and atmosphere as the venue was so big and the DJs in the main arena were so far away. Once we found our place to dance it was far more fun. Drinks weren’t too expensive at under €10 per drink.
Thanks to one of our DJ friends we all ended up in the VIP area of the DJ booth. Win. We danced through the sunrise and were some of the very last to leave. You couldn’t tell there was a pool in the middle of the dance floor until the crowd thinned out.
Supermartxe Swimming Pool
The queue for taxis disappeared fas, was well marshalled by the event staff and cost under €10 to get home.
The sun was well and truly in the morning sky by the time we climbed into bed. A thoroughly enjoyable day.
“The Edge of Glory”
Last modified: 1st February 2016
I’ve always wanted to visit Ibiza! I hear it’s especially popular to us 20-sum year olds 😉 haha!