Port de Sant Miquel Beach Review

Port de Sant Miquel lies in a large cove cut out of the surrounding hills. It’s an area full of dramatic scenery and beautiful views. The cliffs to the left of the town feature an eighteenth-century defence tower, Torre des Molar, visitors can climb to the top of it for unparalleled views of the town, interior of the island and coastline including neighbouring hippy beach Benirras. Climb the hills to the right and you’ll find Cova de Can Marca, a large network of caves once used by smugglers and now open to the public for guided tours.

Once a small fishing village Port de Sant Miquel has been developed with tourism in mind and now consists of everything a package holiday-goer might need. Restaurants, souvenir shops, grocery stores, medical centre, hotel complexes, boat, car and bike hire, watersports centres and tour guide kiosks cluster the one main street and you’ll be hard pressed to find anything that looks like a real town.

That being said, as resort towns go this one is a world away from the large manic ones down in the south of the island: no nightclubs, VIP beach bars, booze cruises or pumping DJ sets will disturb your peace here, where people come for a different sort of holiday than the Ibiza stereotype. Nightlife here is reserved to variety shows in the hotels and evening drinks in the many beachfront restaurants.

The town’s other saving grace is its beach and stunning coastline. The cliffs to either side shelter the little bay making the azure waters calm. This, plus the sandy shallow seabed, make it a perfect spot for beginner swimmers and children. The white sand beach is wide and deep allowing for the many rows of sun loungers available for rental and plenty of free space for those who’d rather lie on the sand.

It is also filled with huts offering kayak, paddle board and pedal boat rental as well as watersport schools offering waterskiing, wakeboarding and all manner of high-speed inflatable fun. In short, there is plenty to keep you and the family entertained all day long on this beach. If you do tire of the place, though, never fear because there are ferries, water taxis, buses and even a miniature train waiting to whisk you away to neighbouring beaches, villages and sightseeing spots for a change of scenery.

If there is one criticism of the beach it’s that the water quality, although a stunning blue colour, is not the clearest on the island. In fact, can be a little murky and unfortunately spotted with resort rubbish. It’s nothing that will keep you out of the sea but it doesn’t make this the best spot for snorkelers. If you do wish to watch the fish, take a walk either around the right of the beach past the ferry and boat huts where the water is less churned up, or take a hike to the two mini beaches tucked around the coast to the left.

A short walk along a dirt track left of the beach will bring you to tiny Cala des Molton with its pretty beach restaurant and clear snorkeler friendly waters. A longer wander along the same dirt track will bring you to the sandy strip of land that connects the tiny Isla des Bosc to the mainland. You can't visit the ‘island’ because it’s privately owned and home to a seriously enviable private villa, but the small beach is fair game and you can swim and snorkel in the still waters here whilst looking back on the busy main beach or explore the boulders on the other side of the spit with nothing before you but the open sea.

If you’re looking for an authentic Ibizan town or a spot of banging nightlife for your holidays then give this place a miss, but if all you want is to relax on a beautiful beach with plenty to occupy you and all your amenities in easy reach then Port de Sant Miquel is a great spot for a family holiday.

Buses run to Port de Sant Miquel from Ibiza Town, but the best way to get here and to be able to explore the remote north of the island is to hire a car for the length of your stay.