The last couple of years have been a bit quiet travel wise thanks to both covid and two kids! Due to a very last minute booking (4 days before leaving!) we decided to attempt our first flight with two kids (4.5 and 1.5). We got good flights with Ryanair for Sunday – Thursday, so decided why not!!. I hadn’t looked at Ibiza before as I always thought it wasn’t for me and I was very much mistaken. Once you avoid the centre of Sant Antoni, its a stunning place to visit along with being very family friendly. I’m glad we went in April, as I think going in May onwards would have been a very different experience with the clubs being opened. We rented a car which made the island much more accessible and we didn’t go to any overly touristy type places as we could avoid Sant Antoni and the beaches around it.

Flights

We got reasonable flights with Ryanair, which wouldn’t have been my first choice but for the four of us it was good value compared to flying to most other destinations. The timings were also quite good (9am outbound and 11am inbound), which is something I’ve realised I now need to take into consideration when flying with two kids, if for no other reason than not making life harder on myself. A Ryanair flight to Ibiza I thought would be a horrific experience but it was actually very pleasant (there were no hen or stag parties!), again I’m sure had we gone when the clubs were open it would have been a different experience.

Accommodation

I spent some time on the Thursday before going looking at hotels and Airbnb’s . We were quite fussy with what we wanted (own private pool, three+ bedrooms, nice house) so it took a little bit to find something suitable. On the Friday morning, Villa Almond freed up so we decided to book it (the next availability was November!) because the photos looked fab and the reviews were even better. It was located about 5 mins from the centre of Sant Antoni but you were in the hills and very private so it was quite peaceful. It was also only a 20 min drive from the airport. The views of the sunset were incredible and I can imagine during the summer it would be stunning to be in the pool watching the sunset. The main house had three bedrooms (two were ensuite), a double room, kitchen, dining and two living spaces. There was also a downstairs area which had a kitchen, living room, bathroom and bedroom. The house had an open courtyard in the middle, along with an outdoor living area which led down to the pool and hot tub. The lower part of the grounds had a walk way around it, with other areas to relax. The house would be incredible with a group of friends or a couple of families together.

Restaurants

La Paloma: Honestly, one of the nicest places I’ve ever been to! This stunning little restaurant is surrounded by orange and lemon groves, and has a little playground for the kids nestled amongst the groves – they can play away while you chill out with a glass of wine and enjoy the food. There were about 15 kids playing together, with a couple of cats running through the tables and it helped to add a very peaceful vibe, it has a very family centred vibe without being overly kid friendly!. I got a chicken shawarma which was unbelievable, and Sean got a lamb stuffed focaccia and even though I hate lamb, it was good! The food was really fresh and the flavours were incredible – before we got dessert, I wanted to rebook for the following day.

Sunset Ashram: This is a highly recommended restaurant at Cala Comte which has unbelievable views of the sunset (Google Image it). We wanted to check it out but with the kids bedtime and our own incredible views of the sunset it was unlikely we would be here late into the evening. The service was good but I wasn’t a fan of the food, it was exceptionally overpriced for what it was. I would easily have spent that amount of money or more on La Paloma instead. We also had a seagull swipe a cheeseburger from our table. It’s got a very hippy vibe and apparently the cocktails are lovely, I can see it being a great place for a date night in the evening to see the sunset but I wouldn’t recommend it with kids or to eat during the day or early evening.

Hostel La Torre: We started our first morning off here for breakfast and it didn’t disappoint. This beautiful hotel is about 10 mins drive outside of Sant Antoni, up in the hills. We sat out on the terrace and it has a stunning view out across the water which we couldn’t get tired of. The food here was lovely, I got the Mushroom and Truffle Toast, Sean got the greek yoghurt and the boys got avocado and toast. Although the food was reasonably priced, the drinks are extortionate (two smoothies cost €20!). The bill was expensive for a breakfast but eating out in Ibiza seems to just be expensive!

Things To Do

Aquarium: We visited the aquarium one afternoon which was a very cute experience. I hadn’t looked it up before arriving so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Once you park on the street you have about a 400m walk across the edge of a cliff which has stunning views of the water and some little coves underneath. The walk is very bumpy and not great with a buggy, but it leads you to a small bar, where you can pay for the aquarium. To access the aquarium, you can go down the steps to the side of the bar and walk along a long wooden walkway underground. On either side of you is water coming in from the sea, and you can view the various fish, stingrays and shark swimming around. Its a very small place but is cute for the kids. After the visit, we sat at the bar to take in the views across the sea.

Cala Bassa: This beach came highly recommended and was only a 10ish minute drive from our villa. One of the days was quite windy so we decided to drive out and see it. It was one of the nicest beaches I’ve ever been to (it helped that no one else was on it!) We parked at the car park for the Beach Club and because its off season and windy, we had no issues parking and walking along the beach. We stayed for an hour or so with our feet in the water watching the waves crash. The following morning was much calmer so we decided to go back – we got there at 10am and again were the first ones on the beach. We stayed for a couple of hours and it slowly got much busier, but thankfully nothing like it would be during the summer. This beach was great for kids with crystal clear waters and loads of areas to play. I noticed it was also used quite a lot by influencers, with one person recording his morning yoga routine and another group setting up for a photo shoot.

Old Town: After lunch at La Paloma, we drove to the Old Town for a walk around. The winding streets are great to meander through, with lots of opportunities to sit down for a sangria and people watch. I hadn’t looked up much about the Old Town (or Ibiza in general!) so I didn’t know what to expect as we approached the walls of the Old Town but I was not disappointed! The streets inside the walls are incredible and it was great to walk around a little bit , however its obviously not very buggy friendly and the 1.5 year old wasn’t a fan of walking those streets.

Cala Gracio: After breakfast in Hostal La Torre we drove here, initially in search of Cala Gracioneta, but as the car park was at Cala Gracia we just stayed here. It was a lovely beach, however full of jellyfish and I can imagine its rammed in summer due to being so close to Sant Antoni and a lot of hotels. It was a lovely place to pass a couple of hours!

Cala Comte: This was another stunning beach with crystal clear water. We visited in the evening and it was quite busy (there was a tour bus in the car park, so I think its a location for a lot of tours to visit). The Sunset Ashram overlooks this beach, and its famous for its view across the water of the sunset, so its quite a popular beach in the area.