Excellent trip to Ibiza

[Anne]

By Jennifer Hart

 

Ibiza Report (sorry for any spelling mistakes and HOW LONG this is)!
OK so I’ve received many MANY private messages asking me about Ibiza! Sorry I haven’t gotten back to everyone but there were A LOT.
So, first things first, I think it is important for me to state that I believe people fall in love with particular resorts and when they do this they can have a hard time going to a different location within the same brand family. I’m not saying this is good or bad, but those that really struggle with this should keep booking the place that stole their heart. If you know you love it, go back to it.
With that in mind, we first joined the GP family in 2011 when we visited RM for 2 weeks. It was breathtakingly beautiful and we had a great trip. I don’t have complaints other than by week two I was beyond bored with being stuck on a compound. No, we didn’t do the excursions but that was because we had young children and none of them particularly appealed. I wanted to leave the resort feel and not go with people I’d run into. I look for vacations to be an escape from it all, which is why I fell in love with Ibiza and have been back 4 times. Ibiza island has such a weird reputation but I want to tell you that the resorts are completely safe, away from the techno rave life and hooligans. Most of that garbage is on the other side of the island in San Antonio.
The resort:
It doesn’t look like the RM tropical rainforest style because that doesn’t make sense here. Think more Mediterranean-the classic starch white buildings with beautiful flowers and a stunning (seaweed-free) beach! The two resorts, Palace and White Island, are connected by a foot bridge that is both stroller and wheelchair accessible. There are 3 main pools plus a large kids pool with slides, climbing equipment, the big bucket of water that tips over, etc. The hotel is 5 minutes from the airport which means on day one, you will notice the planes overhead (not in the rooms, though) and by day 2 almost forget they are there.
Restaurants:
For the a la cartes, please note people dress quite fancy in Ibiza. Sundress and shorts are both ok but they need to be smart and no flip flops. I didn’t even see anyone try to wear flip flops. It’s Ibiza, people enjoy the summery, smart dressed vibe here.
I hate buffets but they do for the morning. The quality is absolutely great and I love the omelette and fresh juice/smoothies areas. Other than that, I don’t go to the buffets for meals outside of breakfast.
La Doña: Mexican a la carte. We enjoy this restaurant. If you can take the heat, sitting outside is nicer than inside. They make their own hot sauces from mild to hot which is a nice touch. Also, don’t be afraid to ask for extra guacamole (as my family did lol).
Il Palazzo: Italian a la carte. Excellent food. My kids loved the calzones and pizzas. The chef is from Italy so the food is authentic. Think more Naples and less Dominoes. Again, sit outside if you can.
The Sports Bar: American-style a la carte with pizza and salad bar buffet. This restaurant/bar is open 24/7. They serve coffee and pastries early if you have a really early flight to catch but most of the day it is wings, pizza, burgers, etc. We went here a few days for lunch as the service and food are great, it was air conditioned and out of the sun and there wasn’t a dress code (ie beach/poolwear is fine)
Portofino: Mediterranean-inspired. I saved the best for last. I love this restaurant so much I don’t even know what to say. The lunch is sort of ‘buffet’ but you can get a grilled chicken breast, burgers, etc, to order. The quality is great, the salad bar is extensive and it is ON THE BEACH. You can’t beat the vibe and location. Wearing your beach clothes, bikini, etc, to lunch is perfectly fine. At night, this restaurant becomes a gorgeous, zen-like, high-end a la carte. It is my favourite restaurant in the GP family. The food and service under manager Marco is soooooo gooooood we went back 3 times.
The beach: The good. It is incredibly clean and seaweed-free. The sand is beautiful and soft and the water is warm and non-tidal. It can be calm some days and rougher others but the Mediterranean is rarely dangerous!!!!
The annoying (I wont’ say bad because it isn’t). Platja d’en Bossa (where the beach is) is a public space so the beach has locals, hotel guests, some guys selling cheap fake Gucci glasses and so forth. You get used to it and ignore it. As for the hotel having chairs and umbrellas, unfortunately the governing body for the beach stopped this from happening so what you do now IF you are a travel club member is rent chairs and an umbrella from the guy right outside Portofino restaurant, get a receipt and the TC will give you 100% reimbursement of the cost. There are also these pretty comfy cushions available for free for hotel guests but they can be a bit big to lug around with you. Anyway, there are options that cost you nothing in the end.
A note on beaches in Spain: topless women are pretty common and this isn’t something anyone feels should be an issue. Mothers, 20somethings, grandmas, you name it, they all take it off. This is NOT mandatory so do what works for you. But, if you can’t handle bare breasts, then go elsewhere. Spain isn’t for you 😉
The pools: I am not a huge lounge at the pool all day person but we did go a few times. There are roped off areas for TC members and in the height of August when it was PACKED this was a godsend. No getting up at 5am to beat the Germans and Brits to the chairs!! Lol The pool bars were great and the activities (ie aqua aerobics, volleyball, etc) are all generally the same.
Fitness: the fitness centre is fantastic even if it is small. I never found it too small, if that makes sense. There are classes poolside including yoga, meditation, step aerobics, etc.
Tipping: It isn’t normal for Europeans to do it so it isn’t expected. You can leave some (Euros, please, not dollars) if you feel your service deserved it but don’t feel badly to not do it here.
Ibiza itself: Ohhhh this island. It truly is a Mediterranean gem. One of the BEST parts of Ibiza is how safe it is. Unlike other resorts, I am happy to leave and explore for entire days. You can walk, take a taxi or hire a car in the hotel lobby. Our favourite spots: The Hippy Market, Cala Benirras (an unspoilt beach with an amazing Italian/Spanish beach bar called Elements nearby), Formentera island (day trip) and shopping in Old Town Ibiza. You can walk for ages on the beach and hit up different shops, restaurants and bars if you like. You can take the beer out of the mini fridge and walk up the beach with it. Open drinking is 100% OK. This is Europe, afterall 😉
Service: There had to be a minor down point, right???? OK so this is Europe. For all the amazing things that means, it also means this isn’t a staff trained to deal with Americans and their standards. Also, and this is a BIG POINT for me as a multilingual person myself, the staff speak several languages (most a minimum of 4). If you can remind yourself of that point then please do. Why do I say this is important? Well, being a server in Mexico that has learned one other language (English) is NOT the same as someone who has learned 4,5, 6 languages. It is hard to learn the ‘finesse’ of every language and this can sometimes wrongly come across as rude. When a server knows enough to get the basics but doesn’t know the flowery, chit-chatty part of a language, sometimes this can come off as awkward, offensive, etc. This isn’t always the case and needs to just stay in your mind somewhere. As a multilingual, I promise you it isn’t easy to switch between several languages within seconds of each other. Having a bit of Ibiza chill vibe and being cool with the complexities of multilingual service will REALLY impact how good of a time you have. Trust me.
Entertainment: Top notch! The big stage is located on the Palace side and is a refurbished stage from the Hard Rock hotel. It is AMAZING. The sound and light shows alone are worth a visit. While we were there they did a disco night, Michael Jackson tribute and full length Lion King. We missed a few nights but those are the ones I recall and we enjoyed all of it.
The rooms: They used to be ugly but now, ahhhhh. They have refurbished all the rooms and they are lovely. The categories are different from RM but we are Presidential level and stay in a Master Suite (located Palace side) here. We had 2 bedrooms, a living room, 2 bathrooms and entrance hall. It was perfect and the view right on the beach can’t be beat. Anything in the 5000 block is a perfect. They are ALL beachfront views.

That should do it for now so if you made it this far, congrats LOL! Happy Trip Planning!
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