This year's winter is set to be the busiest Ibiza winter ever, with multiple weekly flights from London and big plans coming along for New Year's Eve, so we thought it's best to put together a guide for those playing with the thought to pay the island their first winter visit...
What to expect?
If you only know Ibiza in full summer swing, you might be shocked at first. The island is in hibernation, everywhere is very quiet, but beautiful and much greener than you've ever seen it before. The tourist resorts such as Playa d'en Bossa and the San Antonio bay are almost completely shut, but Ibiza town, the center of San Antonio and Santa Eulalia are the places to go, with shops, restaurants and bars open. My advice as to where to stay would be in or around Ibiza town (including Figueretas and Talamanca) for the winter months. Try our accommodation guide where you can easily check available hotels and apartments. One thing you'll also notice is that, in comparison to summer, no one is stressed. All the locals have got plenty of time for a chat and going for a coffee often turns into having lunch together.
The Ibiza winter nightlife starts gently on Thursday night, but the main nights to go out are Fridays and Saturdays, plus nights before public holidays. Don't even try to compare Ibiza winter clubbing with the summer - the winter nightlife circuit resembles more the one of a small town that wakes up for two nights a week than the world's most famous clubbing island. If you plan a winter trip to Ibiza, make sure you check out our club news and also follow the clubs' and promoters' social media channels to get an idea about what's going on. On some weekends, a lot of stuff happens while other weekends might be pretty quiet.
Winter clubbing pro's and possible con's
PRO: It's cheap! Entry to most venues is either free or very cheap compared to summer.
PRO: Cheap drinks too! 10€ for a mixer in Pacha in winter doesn't sound too bad does it? Most places are even cheaper.
PRO: Very intimate atmosphere - no masses.
PRO: Some very cool private afterhours happening every now and then, you just have to get wind of them.
CON: No, you don't get to see David Guetta, Richie Hawtin, Carl Cox, Loco Dice and Avicii over the course of a week.
CON: Not the same 'beautiful people everywhere' ratio as in summer - it's a bit more 'normal' here in winter.
CON: Shorts and a top or t-shirt won't do! It also gets pretty cool here, so bring a jumper and a jacket!
CON: Not as international a crowd as in summer... in winter you feel Ibiza is still a Spanish place!
Ibiza Winter Clubs and Bars
Pacha - The cherry club keeps being the only one of the big discos staying open all year around. Again, it's a different story in the off-season as mostly only the Global Room is open, so it's an intimate affair. Entry is often free (check the net for free guest lists before 2am and such) or reasonably cheap. So far, Pacha have had a really good and busy winter season, presenting the more 'underground' acts such as Reboot, Coyu and M.A.N.D.Y. on Friday nights and more upfront house artists on Saturdays.
Booom - The newest club on the island also stays open this winter. Haven't seen it this summer? Here's your chance to go and have a look! It's actually got the perfect size for a winter venue, so let's hope they stay open all winter.
Grial - The cool bar a few steps away from Pacha is a firm winter favourite for locals. The fact that Grial, Pacha and Booom are located so close to one another is very handy - in case the first venue isn't busy, just walk over to the next one and check it out.
NINE - Oriol Calvo's new and modern bar, tucked away in the area behind Burger King in Ibiza town has gained itself a reputation of being the perfect pre-party place for the off-season months. Hit NINE after dinner on Thursday, Friday or Saturday, have a few Gin Tonics and then continue your night out at Pacha once the bar shuts at 3am.
Sirocco - The Playa d'en Bossa beach club and restaurant was the big winner last winter. On Saturday nights, promoters Sexynchic and Blue Tide alternatingly present national and international artists. The parties start off early with free finger food buffets (head there at around 10pm) and often, when Sirocco shuts after 3am, the party then continues until sunrise at MOMA, the club situated in Hotel Garbi's basement. Sexynchic sometimes also throws some pretty good villa parties.
Underground - Also the cool venue outside of San Rafael opens on a few occasions over the winter. Maybe you finally pay 'U' a visit, after always having missed it high season?
What to do daytime?
As the nightlife isn't as crazy as in summer, you'll have lots of time to finally go and see those corners of the island you never made it to when you came last time and partied 168 hours nonstop. Renting a car for your entire stay is absolutely essential as some of the bus routes don't operate in winter. Taxis are operating, but we still and definitely recommend getting a rental car.
Basically, enjoy the calmness of an island that's normally so busy during summer. Go for a long walk along deserted Salinas or Playa d'en Bossa beach. Enjoy the views from top of Sa Talaia. Wander around Dalt Vila. Do all the stuff that never fits into your Ibiza summer plans. Seeing winter sunsets is an absolute must as the colours are often much more dramatic than in summer. Be aware though, the best sunset location during the winter months is NOT the sunset strip in San Antonio. Try Cap d'es Falco (in the Salinas area), Cala d'Hort, Cala Tarida or Cala Conta instead, and don't forget your jacket - as soon as the sun's down, it'll get chilly quickly!
What else? Try Toby's walks - every Friday this winter. If that's not your thing, there's the San Jordi flea market on Saturday morning, the hippie market at Las Dalias near San Carlos on Saturday as well and the Cala Llenya flea market on Sunday. Also follow our news magazine with various other ideas for winter activities.
Where to eat?
Here are a few personal favourites as to where to eat in winter. If the sun's out, head to the beach for lunch. Talamanca, just north of Ibiza town, is a beach that gets relatively lively even in winter. The Hostal Talamanca (which is open all year round) has a sunny terrace, as does Bar Flotante next door. Other than that, Restaurante Yemanja in Cala Jondal (next to Blue Marlin, which is although closed in winter) and Restaurante Sa Caleta above Sa Caleta beach are long time winter favourites. Mind though that winter days are short here too, so people have lunch earlier than in summer - around 2pm.
If you catch a few rainy days, check out the very rustic and typical Ibicenco countryside restaurants Cas Pages on the road to San Carlos, Es Pins on the road to San Juan or Can Caus on the road to San Miguel, just before Santa Gertrudis. If you fancy a lot of deliciously grilled meat, don't miss C'an Pilot in San Rafael. In Ibiza Town, you'll find lots of open places. Comidas San Juan is cheap and cheerful (but their food is tasty!) while Pastis is absolutely delicious, but rather pricey. In between, there are lots of other options, such as La Cava for instance, which does great tapas and menus.
New Years Eve / New Years Day
This year's NYE and NYD are set to be the biggest Ibiza has seen in a good few years. Let's start with Pacha. Pacha always has a big NYE celebration (with the Main Room being open on this occasion) and this year will be no different. The night starts with a big dinner show à la Lío from 9pm until 1am and then, the real party starts. Headlining the line-up is Riva Starr with the Pacha resident DJs on support. Tickets for the party are on sale here, but they don't include the dinner show. If you want to attend the dinner, please book a table directly at Pacha Restaurant (+34 971 310 959, call in the evening).
The big news this year is Amnesia opening its doors on New Year's Eve. It's not the first time, in fact, years ago both Amnesia and Space used to open on NYE, but that's a while ago. Now the San Rafael super club opens again and presents one of their strongest nights of their 2013 season - Marco Carola's Music On. Both floors will be open; the Main Room will see German techno duo Pan-Pot, Amnesia export Mar-T and island residents Neverdogs taking to the decks. Meanwhile, on the infamous Terrace, Music On residents Leon and Marc Antona will be warming up things first, before Jamie Jones and then of course Marco Carola himself take over proceedings, surely until well after sunrise...get your tickets now!
Also most of the other venues such as Sirocco, Grial and Underground normally host parties on NYE - check our club news as well as our forums for more info as soon as we get them.
On New Year's Day, there's really only one place to go in Ibiza - DC10. Starting from 12 noon and going all through until sunrise on 2nd January, Circoloco is the ultimate New Year's afterparty (where most people already toss their New Year's resolutions out of the window), with a great mix of locals and tourists flying in especially for this. Headlining the Circoloco Ibiza NYD 2014 edition is Cocoon mastermind and afterhour specialist Sven Vath, who hasn't played DC10 for ages. Joining him are a lot of familiar Circoloco faces: Tania Vulcano, Jamie Jones, the full Apollonia trio Dan Ghenacia, Dyed Soundorom and Shonky, Matthias Tanzmann, Cassy and more. Tickets can be bought directly at the door - see you on the dancefloor!
If you have any questions about your Ibiza winter visit, sign up on our forums and directly ask the locals!
