Tell us how it was - Ibiza 2023

tclubber said:
Great review, thanks! I noticed you had a rental car. How bad was parking near the hotel?

I stayed at Vibra Riviera back in May and parking was a nightmare - the hotel parking lot was always full when arriving late at night, also almost no free parking spots in the streets nearby. And September must be worse than May...
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Parking was sometimes very challenging. Sometimes I had to leave the car near a traffic circle and at the last night even near a bus station. But mostly I got the car in the hotel parking lot. There were usually a few parking spaces available in the afternoons.
 
jimmiz said:
26th September - 17th October

Our place in Portinatx
View attachment 16815

Sven twice, Akasha and Playa Soleil, Pyramid Closing at Amnesia, No Art at El Cielo, Namaste last party at Akasha

Sven twice and Pyramid were perfect, for some different reasons, the music, the place, or the people I was with. Also very happy to meet @Browny ,@james, @Tucker ,@W_I_C, Spotlight is a treasure if you're open-minded 🙏.
Do I have to thank @stivi? Yes, of course,again...
Namaste was also very nice, because I crossed some of the coolest Spotlighters, @The Sun God, @diver and his better half, lovely people, lovely moments. But I was soooo tired.... 🙃

El Cielo, not my crowd this day.

Well... I can't talk about a pirate place, officially closed since two years, but...
View attachment 16816

Rebrots

This year, Benirras

Too much, as always

Only stayed 22 days. 😬
At my age, I was celebrating 50 this year, and believe me, between May and October, I spent 40 days in ibiza(and I will be back in December), the only important thing in life, is free time,not money.
The moments I spent this year in ibiza weren't expensive at all, but it was priceless, the people, the places, the food...

24th december, ho ho ho 🤶

Always the same :don't make plan, follow the wave 🌊

Another very, very, very special summer in my life.
When I see the world we live in, I feel so privileged.
Ibiza is a gift for anyone who can spend time here.
A gift of great value, think of it when you're complaining about late taxis or that kind of bullshit.
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Great review of a great sounding summer!
 
DATES YOU WERE THERE: 2 October – 11 October


Was due to leave on 8th October but a few hours before flying home, our flight was cancelled. There was no alternative flights back to London until the 11th which I couldn’t believe it but just goes to show that there isn’t as many options towards the end of the season and it would appear that those flights are all fully booked. We looked at all routes, e.g. flying via Barcelona or Palma, flying to somewhere else in the UK and getting a train but they were completely sold out. Whilst it sounds ideal being stuck in Ibiza (in fact, I’m pretty sure I manifested this happening!), the reality is a bit of pain when it’s just a few hours before and you have checked out of your hotel and have mentally ‘checked out’ and are just looking forward to get home. Also, obviously a pain just in terms of sorting out my work. Had I brought my laptop with me I would have been able to work from Ibiza and would have been happy to have been stuck there for a long while. It would obviously be really bad if I did shift work and would lose three days of pay and thankfully we have no kids or responsibilities like that to urgently come back to. Still waiting for BA to respond to my claim for compensation and hotel and food expenses for the additional three nights.

WHERE YOU STAYED: Hotel Cenit, Ibiza Town for our initial 6 nights. Then The Standard for the last three nights as a bit of a treat

I’ve stayed in the Cenit a few times before and will probably continue to - it’s in a brilliant location and gorgeous views fromthe pool area. The restaurant is also really good for some perfect pool side grub. Our room was massive. At the Standard, our room was in a townhouse opposite the main hotel. Our room here was quite small but beautiful in terms of furnishings and design. You get access to all the facilities of the hotel like the gym which was decent and the rooftop pool which has stunning views of Dalt Villa.

CLUB NIGHTS VISITED:

Circo Loco at DC10

Historically my favourite party on the island! We got to DC10 at around 7:45 which I was very happy with. Sossa was playing a great set in the Garden and then Âme followed with a live set which amazing to experience – have never saw them before. It’s crazy though how DC10 goes from fairly empty feeling to absolutely rammed. Overall I had a good night but my partner (first time in Ibiza) really found it quite uncomfortably busy by around midnight. I think if you haven’t been to Circoloco before, it does get irritating having people constantly shoving past but maybe I’m more used to it. Honey Dijon played a really fun set in the Terrace (although I think she was about an hour late from schedule start time) – played things like Show me Love and Work (Masters at Work). I was really excited to see Job Jobse in the club room but, and I’ve never found this before, the club was really packed whereas the terrace, was definitely more bearable – previously it was the other way around in my experience. Didn’t get to see much of Job Jobse and nothing of TSHA who I was looking forward to as my partner had had enough by 2am and so we left. It’s been said a million times before but the security really are quite unnerving/aggressive at times but overall, no major complaints. Overall, whilst I think it will always be one of my favourite parties on the island and the line-ups are always great, I do get a sense that I will explore other options on Mondays next year onwards.

Paradise closing party at Amnesia

I had actually planned to go to Saga at Pacha after the amazing reviews on here but in the end we managed to get guestlist for Paradise which swung it for us! On initially getting to the club, I thought I wasn’t going to enjoy due to lots of younger Brits (I can be judgemental about my own people!) but actually as the night went on, the party felt very Italian and Spanish and there really was a very fiesta style atmosphere. Joseph Capriati’s set did nothing for me but we were having so much fun chatting to lovely people from all over including lots of Ibiza locals. Amnesia really is a great club and it’s amazing how it feels massive at some points and really intimate at the same time (hard to explain!) Jamie Jones played some old Hot Creations stuff and some songs I hadn’t heard in years like Forget by Patrick Topping. I think it was him as well at one point who played Wearing my Rolex by Skepta! Some of the English contingent loved that. Towards the end of the night, we moved from the bar areas to the side and got into the mixer in front of the DJ booth - there really is nothing like Amnesia at that time of the morning. Unexpected highlight: Jamie Jones playing I’m Outta Love by Anastasia! All in all, music wise, it was very different to what I thought Paradise would be like but it was definitely fun! Surprised myself by staying til the very end. We dipped in to the club room a few times (I think it was Ilario Alicante playing). No matter how many times I’ve been to Amnesia, the club room never really interests/clicks for me. Getting out once the music stopped took ages and the queue for taxis was so long (and we had loads of energy) so we actually walked back to the Cenit! Was a lovely sunrise walk. There are definitely points where there isn’t actual footpath so be careful of course. Also, pranged out a bit when we saw kids get of a school bus and into their school! Got back to the hotel around 8am and went straight for the breakfast buffet. Got a few funny looks from the staff!

Flash at Pikes, followed by Rhadoo & Friends at Underground


This night was truly incredible! Literally the type of night you can only have in Ibiza. Firstly, as everyone knows, Pikes is just so much fun. Always seem to be meet the funniest and most interesting characters in Pikes. Guy Williams and Gerd Janson absolutely rocked Freddies. I love how you can have either a proper rager in Freddies or a chilled one in the terrace beside or by the pool so easily – I straddled both vibes expertly! Bumped into an old friend who I hadn’t seen in years which was lovely. At the end of the party, around 4, we decided to check out Underground as I love A.pira.r. Was such a good decision. Underground is such a cool club with big windows and good sound system. You get a welcome drink too which is a nice touch. The music was amazing and a really clued up crowd. Inside, it almost feels like a club you would find in Berlin. But outside, where there is some seats to chill and a bar, its unmistakeably Ibiza. Think it shut close to 7am (although my memory is a bit fuzzy around this point). Sadly the sun hadn’t risen yet (although I know some people hate when the sun rises and they are partying, I think it would have been a lovely experience at Underground.) There’s not much else I can write except that I would love to do the night over again!

La Troya closing party at Club Chinois

Had I known our flight was going to be cancelled on the Sunday we would have maybe went to the Hi closing party on the sat. I was determined to come back to London and not be in the depths of pain for ONCE and so we had very chilled Friday and Saturday! After realising we wouldn’t be getting back to London until Wednesday, I did think about going to the Pyramid closing party. Still haven’t been to Pyramid and I love Vilalobos so it should have been a no-brainer but as I said above, it was a weird feeling of being mentally checked out. In hindsight, maybe we should have went but no point in regretting! Anyway, the next day, we could have obviously tried the Circoloco closing but if my partner couldn’t handle the week before then there wasn’t a hope he’d enjoy the closing! We knew some other people on the island going to La Troya. After some drinks in Calle de la Virgen where there was a La Troya street parade (love that in Ibiza!), we got to Club Chinois at around 3. It was a very fun party. Very international crowd which you would expect. I had previously been to Heart before and it felt like not much had changed although the smoking area/terrace is about ¼ of the size of Heart’s which was a shame as it used to be very chilled but now if there’s a busy party it’s obviously very packed in up there. Club Chinois feels like a perfect fit for La Troya and it was a busy party so I hope it’s been a successful season for them and that they return next year. Stayed til the end and enjoyed the short walk back to the Standard by the port.

BEST NIGHT: Flash

WORST NIGHT: They were all great in their own ways but if I HAD to choose, Circoloco (never thought I would say that!)
 
- I go on a bit don't I!? Part 2 below since my original post went over the maximum character limit lol -

BEST BAR: We love all the bars on Calle de la Virgen. There is some construction work going on near Mona Lisa which slightly ruins the ambience at that end. Paradise Lost is always great and there was a new bar called Room Service which is quite smart.

BEST PLACE TO EAT: On this trip, I can honestly say that EVERY meal that we had was incredible.

  • El Chiringuito - incredible food quality wise although service was a bit brusque/unfriendly. I think they are all probably tired from a long season but they were rushing us to order, eat up, pay up and get out! No complimentary shots of hierbas with the bill either which feels almost standard everywhere else and considering the money you spend, I wouldn’t rush back although it really is a beautiful venue and I could not fault the food.
  • La Paloma - breath taking location wise and great food.
  • Sa Vida (which I have since seen has been mentioned a few times on this forum). We just stumbled upon it but the food was unbelievable and very keenly priced.
  • Can Costa. We stumbled upon it and it is so cute and authentic inside. I wouldn’t say the food was out of this world but a steak, paella, two glasses of wine and a water for under 40 euro is pretty amazing! I hope Ibiza doesn’t lose these type of places (like Flotante too on Talamanca which I was pleasantly surprised to see was still open)!
  • Skinny Kitchen which seems to be new by the beach in Figuertas. I had heard of their one in San An but I’m rarely over that side of the island. I had a chicken burger there and it was absolutely delicious and nice view of the beach/people watch on the boardwalk.
There really are some brilliant restaurants on the island and something to suit anyone’s budget really.

BEST BEACH AND/OR BEACH CLUB: We managed to go to Salinas, Cala Comte, Cala Bassa and Talamanca for decent stints on different days of the holiday. Was a bit sad to see that CBBC has literally overtaken the whole of Cala Bassa. For lots of reasons, Salinas and Sa Trinxa will always be my favourite.

MONEY SPENT: I’m going to take off what we spent in the additional three days as that wasn’t planned for but for flights, accommodation and spends for 2-8th October, for two people, I would say £2,500 - £2,800.

BIGGEST REGRET: Maybe we could have done more with those additional three days (i.e. a Formentera trip) but just wasn’t in the right frame of mind to book things like that, especially when we were checking each day if there was a possibility we could get home sooner than Wednesday. Also, knowing my luck, there would have been a storm when we got there stopping all boats from getting back to Ibiza and we’d miss our rescheduled flight!

GOING BACK?: Of course. There is always something new and interesting about the island that pulls me back each time. So grateful to have this forum and all the amazing contributors to make me feel closer to the island, hearing what’s going on!

TOP TIP: Smile and chat to randoms. Calle de la Virgen is brilliant for this. Have made loads of connections, including with people who live on the island or who have places there which makes me want to go back over and over again.

Oh a big one which I have already mentioned on the mosquitoe bites thread (I love the Spotlight forum community!) – if like me, you usually get absolutely feasted on by mosquitoes, get the THEYE bands from amazon before going. I was so dubious but they really do work.

OBSERVATION AND/OR CONCLUSION: The island seems to be busier than ever – obviously I knew the parties would be as it was some of the closings but just generally, roads, restaurants and shops all busier than how I remember it was when I went this time of year in 2015. Maybe lots of people have moved to the island since Covid and there is more flexibility in terms of working remotely? This isn’t a complaint by the way and it’s great to see the island thriving and vibrant!

Also, I don’t want to jinx it but the weather around these dates always seems to be absolutely ideal. Some beautiful sunrises and sunsets with pink skies. Dreamy!

To 2024!
 
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Dates you were there: 19th - 26th October.

Where you stayed: Aparthotel Nerida, Cala de Bou. Wife booked it, thought it would be too far out and dead, but was fine.

Club nights visited: Rhadoo Closing was my only night out. Arrived at the hotel at 10pm, dropped bags off, straight into the bar, left the wife and girls and got a taxi to Underground just before midnight on my own. Made friends within about ten minutes of being there, great atmosphere, friendly vibe.

Best night: see above.

Worst night: n/a

Best bar: Mostly went to restaurants.

Best place to eat: Can Pilot incredible restaurant. Ate there twice. Great noisy atmosphere, full of locals, great service, incredible steak. First visit I drove, second we got a taxi and got on the rosado.
Tried to get in Anita’s but was a 25 min wait for a table, and the girls were hungry and tired, so went to Casa Bella for a pizza which was incredible 10/10.

Best beach and/or beach club: Visited 4 beaches.
Went to Santa Eulalia for the day, was walking along the promenade, girls see the beach run straight on, spent a few hours there, lovely little beach.
Spent Sunday at Benirras, was covered in seaweed after the storm. Had a lovely lunch in Elements. Then stayed for the drums, which was superb. Great when they got all the kids at the front involved.
Next day we went to Cala Gració for the beach clean. Got there early to make a day of it, but was swarming with jelly fish. So we left and went to the aquarium, was high tide so had to take shoes off, they was in their element feeding all the fish. Kept on sending me out to go and buy more fish food. Had a few drinks looking over the sea at the bar there. By the time we left the beach clean was about to start, went back and picked up a disgusting amount of fag butts and plastic. The girls then spent a few hours collecting jellyfish with their buckets and spades with other children on the beach.
Last beach visited was Cala Llonga, which is perfect for kids shallow water, sandy and a play park on the beach.

Money spent: changed up £1650, spent that in the first 4 days. Then onto card. Not tallied up, probably around £2500 including hire car.

Biggest regret: None

Going back?: Either May or October half term.

Top tip: take the kids. Play areas for kids on every corner, very family friendly

Observations and/or conclusion: Ibiza is the greatest place in the world. Nowhere else comes close.
 
paddy91 said:
- I go on a bit don't I!? Part 2 below since my original post went over the maximum character limit lol -

BEST BAR: We love all the bars on Calle de la Virgen. There is some construction work going on near Mona Lisa which slightly ruins the ambience at that end. Paradise Lost is always great and there was a new bar called Room Service which is quite smart.

BEST PLACE TO EAT: On this trip, I can honestly say that EVERY meal that we had was incredible.

  • El Chiringuito - incredible food quality wise although service was a bit brusque/unfriendly. I think they are all probably tired from a long season but they were rushing us to order, eat up, pay up and get out! No complimentary shots of hierbas with the bill either which feels almost standard everywhere else and considering the money you spend, I wouldn’t rush back although it really is a beautiful venue and I could not fault the food.
  • La Paloma - breath taking location wise and great food.
  • Sa Vida (which I have since seen has been mentioned a few times on this forum). We just stumbled upon it but the food was unbelievable and very keenly priced.
  • Can Costa. We stumbled upon it and it is so cute and authentic inside. I wouldn’t say the food was out of this world but a steak, paella, two glasses of wine and a water for under 40 euro is pretty amazing! I hope Ibiza doesn’t lose these type of places (like Flotante too on Talamanca which I was pleasantly surprised to see was still open)!
  • Skinny Kitchen which seems to be new by the beach in Figuertas. I had heard of their one in San An but I’m rarely over that side of the island. I had a chicken burger there and it was absolutely delicious and nice view of the beach/people watch on the boardwalk.
There really are some brilliant restaurants on the island and something to suit anyone’s budget really.

BEST BEACH AND/OR BEACH CLUB: We managed to go to Salinas, Cala Comte, Cala Bassa and Talamanca for decent stints on different days of the holiday. Was a bit sad to see that CBBC has literally overtaken the whole of Cala Bassa. For lots of reasons, Salinas and Sa Trinxa will always be my favourite.

MONEY SPENT: I’m going to take off what we spent in the additional three days as that wasn’t planned for but for flights, accommodation and spends for 2-8th October, for two people, I would say £2,500 - £2,800.

BIGGEST REGRET: Maybe we could have done more with those additional three days (i.e. a Formentera trip) but just wasn’t in the right frame of mind to book things like that, especially when we were checking each day if there was a possibility we could get home sooner than Wednesday. Also, knowing my luck, there would have been a storm when we got there stopping all boats from getting back to Ibiza and we’d miss our rescheduled flight!

GOING BACK?: Of course. There is always something new and interesting about the island that pulls me back each time. So grateful to have this forum and all the amazing contributors to make me feel closer to the island, hearing what’s going on!

TOP TIP: Smile and chat to randoms. Calle de la Virgen is brilliant for this. Have made loads of connections, including with people who live on the island or who have places there which makes me want to go back over and over again.

Oh a big one which I have already mentioned on the mosquitoe bites thread (I love the Spotlight forum community!) – if like me, you usually get absolutely feasted on by mosquitoes, get the THEYE bands from amazon before going. I was so dubious but they really do work.

OBSERVATION AND/OR CONCLUSION: The island seems to be busier than ever – obviously I knew the parties would be as it was some of the closings but just generally, roads, restaurants and shops all busier than how I remember it was when I went this time of year in 2015. Maybe lots of people have moved to the island since Covid and there is more flexibility in terms of working remotely? This isn’t a complaint by the way and it’s great to see the island thriving and vibrant!

Also, I don’t want to jinx it but the weather around these dates always seems to be absolutely ideal. Some beautiful sunrises and sunsets with pink skies. Dreamy!

To 2024!
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Good luck with your compensation claim with BA. Mine has been with them since 26th July!!! They cancelled my flight just a few hours before I was due to fly. I've called them 4 times, they will not speak to you at all within the claims dept, just keep being told its in the queue and that you have to wait. Absolutely disgusting service, they must be sitting on £0000000's of outstanding claims.
 
walks said:
Good luck with your compensation claim with BA. Mine has been with them since 26th July!!! They cancelled my flight just a few hours before I was due to fly. I've called them 4 times, they will not speak to you at all within the claims dept, just keep being told its in the queue and that you have to wait. Absolutely disgusting service, they must be sitting on £0000000's of outstanding claims.
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Yes, I have a feeling I will be waiting a long time. Their phonelines are a joke - after selecting the various options about what my call is about, I don't even get through to an actual person and the call is abruptly ended due to their lines being too busy. I do have travel insurance but I think they would just tell me the claim needs to go through the airline? As you say, truly awful service. I'm sure you are already aware but have a look at the CEDR complaints process if you continue to wait much longer and good luck with it!
 
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