Can Palau

About Can Palau

Can Palau suits travellers who want a quiet base in the west of Ibiza rather than a resort strip. The hotel sits outside Sant Josep de sa Talaia, one of the island's five municipalities, with the highest ground behind it and the coves of the west coast within a short drive. Couples touring by car, walkers heading for Sa Talaia and families who prefer space to crowds all fit the pattern. Cala d'Hort is 7.1 km away and Sant Antoni de Portmany 6.9 km, so coast and town stay within reach.

This is a three-star hotel with a garden and two swimming pools, one indoor and one outdoor, both listed among its facilities. The indoor pool gives an option for cooler days or a spell of bad weather, and the garden is somewhere to sit out of the sun. Free wifi, internet access and free car parking are listed too, the last useful on an island where a hire car makes the coves simple. Expect a straightforward, unpretentious stay, well placed for the west and south of Ibiza.

Location: Sant Josep de sa Talaia

Can Palau stands on Calle De La Villa in Sant Josep de sa Talaia, one of the five municipalities of Ibiza, outside the main resort areas. The village keeps a year-round life that the coastal strips lose in winter. Inland, the road climbs towards Sa Talaia, about 475 m at the top and the highest point on the island, while the west coast and its coves lie a short drive away, with the sunset side of Ibiza beyond Sant Antoni.

The nearest outing is on foot: the climb up Sa Talaia is 0.4 km from Can Palau in a straight line. Everything else needs wheels. Sant Antoni de Portmany is 6.9 km away in a straight line, Cala d'Hort 7.1 km and Cala Comte 7.9 km, and rural buses in this part of Sant Josep are thin outside summer, so a hire car or a taxi is the practical answer. High summer brings traffic and full coves; May, June, September and October keep the sea warm with far less pressure.

Rooms and facilities

What Can Palau lists is practical rather than showy: free wifi, internet access, free car parking, a garden, and both an indoor and an outdoor pool. Couples get a choice between the open-air pool and a covered swim when the weather turns. Families gain space to spread out and parking that removes the search for a space in the village. Late arrivals should confirm reception hours before travelling, as a small hotel outside a village may not staff a desk overnight.

Ask Can Palau which of the two pools is open during your dates, whether the indoor pool is heated, and whether cots or extra beds are available for children. Check-in and check-out times are worth confirming in advance, along with anything needed for a late arrival. Because the hotel sits outside the resorts, it is also worth asking about the walk into Sant Josep de sa Talaia for an evening meal and whether the road is lit.

Getting there

Ibiza Airport (IBZ) is 8.4 km from Can Palau in a straight line, the nearest arrival point. A taxi finishes the journey directly, while a hire car collected at the airport gives independence for the whole stay and can be parked free at the hotel. Routes from the airport serve Ibiza Town, Sant Antoni, Santa Eulària and the south beaches, with more lines in summer; the final approach to Calle De La Villa is simplest by taxi or car.

Ibiza Town port, 12.4 km away in a straight line, handles ferries to Formentera (La Savina), Palma, Barcelona, Valencia and Dénia, so arrivals by sea reach the hotel in a short drive west across the island. Sant Antoni de Portmany, 6.9 km off, is the nearest big town for supplies and its bay faces west. Flights and sailings are fewer in winter and seasonal buses thin out, so confirm times with the operator before travelling between November and April.

Beaches, sights and food nearby

Cala d'Hort, 7.1 km away in a straight line, faces Es Vedrà, the limestone islet about 380 m high that sits in a nature reserve where nobody lands. The cove lies inside the Cala d'Hort, Cap Llentrisca and Sa Talaia natural park. Cala Comte, 7.9 km off, has shallow clear water and islets offshore and is the usual sunset choice on this coast. The Phoenician settlement of Sa Caleta, part of the UNESCO listing of 1999, is 6.6 km away.

Fish cookery shapes the menu across the west of Ibiza: bullit de peix and arròs a banda, the island fish stew served in two courses, plus fresh fish and rice dishes. Sant Josep de sa Talaia and Sant Antoni de Portmany, 6.9 km from Can Palau, both have places to eat, and the village is the quieter of the two. A longer day out reaches Dalt Vila in Eivissa, the walled upper town with 16th-century walls and a cathedral at the top, and the salt pans of Ses Salines natural park.

A day from Can Palau

Begin with the climb up Sa Talaia, 0.4 km from Can Palau in a straight line, before the heat builds; the top is about 475 m and shows the whole island. Back at the hotel, the outdoor pool and garden carry the middle of the day. In the afternoon drive 6.6 km to the Phoenician settlement of Sa Caleta, then on to Cala d'Hort, 7.1 km away, for a swim with Es Vedrà offshore.

Finish at Cala Comte, 7.9 km from the hotel, for the sunset over the islets, or drive into Sant Antoni de Portmany, 6.9 km off, for dinner. A car makes the loop simple; a taxi works for one destination and a return. A separate day belongs to Eivissa and its port, 12.4 km away, with Dalt Vila above the harbour and the boats to Formentera leaving from below.

Practical tips

Can Palau is busiest in July and August, when the west coast roads fill and the coves near the hotel take the strain. Outside the main towns, Ibiza's tourism business winds down roughly from November to April, so check the hotel's opening dates and pool availability before booking a winter stay. The ecotasa, the Balearic sustainable tourism tax, is charged per person per night by the accommodation, at a rate set by the hotel's category and the season; children under 16 are exempt. Rates change, so check with the Govern de les Illes Balears.

Questions about Can Palau