Whilst Ibiza sizzles during high season and the whole world flees to the altogether breezier coast, it's not surprising to find most of the island's beaches packed out with bronzing bodies. Popular beaches such as Cala Conta for example, are almost certainly to be found with barely a space to lay your towel unless you get there pretty early. There's always the option of hiring a sunbed and parasol, but with some beaches charging up to €15 per item, this can make quite a hole in the holiday budget (think how many cocktails you could buy with that!)
It's also true that the bars on the most popular Ibiza beaches tend to come with a premium. It's quite normal, for example, to pay upwards of €5 for a ‘caña' (small 33cl beer) or a soft drink for the privilege of sipping them on the sand.
So for this week's beach-surfing adventure, we had a plan. The mission was simple but by no means easy. Find a beautiful, peaceful Ibiza beach with space to lay down your towel, with a humble, economical beachbar during high season. Oh and a sunset view, please.
“Impossible”, I hear you scoff.
Well the constantly quivering ears of your intrepid Spotlight reporters had heard rumours that Cala Codolar, just a couple of km from Cala Conta, offered just that. We went to check it out.
Gorgeous drive
Heading from San Antonio towards San José, after 2 or 3 kilometres we took the right turn towards Cala Conta (often referred to by the Catalan name ‘Platjes de Compte' on the road signs). What a gorgeous drive! 20 minutes of emerald green mountains, a perfectly blue sky and panoramic views of the sea sparkling in the distance.
As the road bent sharply to the left on the final stretch towards Cala Conta, we took the left turn to Terrazas de Cala Codolar and Club Delfín.
Following the road for a minute or so, we took a left at the end and headed uphill until we spotted restaurant ‘Elixir.' We parked the Spotlight-mobile right there and marvelled at the view of the beach from the clifftop. To the right of Elixir, we found a flight of stone steps leading through the forest and down to the beach. Feeling a little like Hansel and Gretel, we headed down, a little dazzled by the vibrancy of the beautiful blue of the Balearic Sea below.
Unpretentious
Cala Codolar is a small cove around 70 metres long and 40 metres wide. It's mainly sandy on the shore, with some mixed pebbles on the seabed as you enter. The water is beautifully transparent and there's a small beach bar serving a very simple menu of hamburgers, hotdogs, sandwiches and ice-creams. Utterly unpretentious, this family run bar also serves a range of drinks from beers to cocktails, which of course, we selflessly sampled for you, dear reader. Mine was rather delicious Caipariña and it cost a perfectly acceptable €8.
It was around 5pm and there were no more than 60 people on the entire beach, and about 30 of these were sat relaxing beneath the shade of the umbrellas in the beach bar.
Affordable
We sat and ordered hot-dogs, admiring the gorgeously natural surroundings, with just the odd little white Ibicenco house dotted around the surrounding pine-studded mountains. The ‘perritos' (that's Spanish for hot-dogs) hit the spot perfectly and they cost a refreshingly realistic €3.50 each. My friend's caña? €2.
This beach seemed to be populated with locals, couples and small groups of friends, chatting, chilling, snorkeling around the rocks and playing cards and such. Aside from a few sunbeds, there was plenty of space for our towels without having our faces poised inches away from somebody else's feet. Always a bonus!
Sunset spot
Classic, laid-back tunes from the 60's and 70's from artists such as Bob Dylan and the Velvet Underground drifted gently around the vicinity. This was definitely a beach we could drape ourselves happily upon all day, dear reader. We ordered more drinks and settled in for that most iconic of Ibiza shows, the sunset.
The lack of dedicated children's facilities probably explained why there were only a couple of families with older children enjoying this great little Ibiza beach. Although the more active can have a go at wind-surfing here, this beach is really a mecca for relaxing.
The conclusion? Mission accomplished! Cala Codolar is a great option for those seeking peace, tranquillity, a laid-back vibe and a great little beach bar with sensible prices. There is no public transport to this Ibiza beach ladies and gents, so as always, hire a car or moped and discover those gorgeous hidden corners of the island. Happy beach-surfing, ladies and gents!
WORDS | Jane Charilaou PHOTOS | Jane Charilaou
