Es Cubells - San Jose

Tucked away in the south western corner of the island, this little village is relatively new. 150 years ago there were only two houses and a few outbuildings for storage, but this was all to change with the arrival of Father Palau, a Carmelite friar who was exiled to Ibiza from Barcelona in 1854. Palau remained on the island for six industrious years and having initially chosen this isolated spot for its solitude, inadvertently caused the establishment of a village at Es Cubells.

View from Es Cubells

This came to pass because as an ordained priest one of Palau's duties was to give Mass every Sunday to the handful of peasants who lived in the vicinity. It also saved them the six kilometer uphill journey over rough tracks to San José. Eventually, with their help, he built a little hermitage on the cliffs overlooking the sea - which he dedicated to his beloved Virgin of Carmen, the patron saint of the Carmelite order.

At great risk he arranged for his old icon of the Virgin to be smuggled out to Ibiza where she had pride of place on the shrine in the hermitage.

Palau traveled all over Ibiza and Formentera during the six years of his exile preaching the virtues of the Virgin of Carmen, and by the end of the 19 th century waves of worshippers began to make the pilgrimage to far flung Es Cubells in order to better adore their Lady of Mount Carmel.

Although by then the other island churches all had an icon of the Virgin (by popular demand!), people felt that Palau's version was the most powerful and effective, and therefore worthy of the arduous journey all the way to Es Cubells.

The other alternative, of course, was to go and live there - and thus a village was born.

Beaches	Bars	Restaurants
There are nearly 60 beaches on Ibiza - most of which are only accessible by cross country vehicles or motocross bikes - ish... here are a selection of over 30 with more to come... such is the hard life of researching beaches..	For some reason there are more bars here than anywhere else in the world put together - or so it seems - a bar stool divers paradise... (The Bars section could be Restaurants since they often do food - and vice versa..)	The Mediterranean is renowned for its good, fresh food. Here you have everything from traditional Ibicencan, Spanish, Thai, Italian, French, West Indian, Curries, Chinese - if you can eat you can find anything you want really....
Villas	Clubbing	Comprehensive Photo Gallery
Luxury Villas on this island have grown and grown there are never ending places choose from around the island..	For 4 months in the summer Ibiza becomes a mecca for the world's dance music lovers - if you want dance music we have the day by day listings, reviews, details, a map of where the clubs are and an archive from last year.	We love taking photos so if you want to see the complete spectrum from club nights to sunsets, beaches to stunning countryside this is the place, a photo diary of what we get up & a growing towns & villages gallery & archives of the clubs
Towns & Villages	Art & Decor	What Do To Here ?
There are only really 3 places on Ibiza that could call themselves towns, the rest are small villages and one's a big rock - here they all are....	Ibiza is synonymous with alternative culture given its beautiful countryside, inspiring views and sunny climate so we've included some local artists, poets etc.. dip your bread in as someone once said...	If you fancy go-karting, windsurfing maybe a trip with the kids to a waterpark. We've got bunjee rockets, sailing schools, watersports, golf, gyms, horse riding, tennis etc etc.
About Ibiza	Getting Around	Accommodation
It's not all about the clubs, there are the fiestas which seem to happen every other day, the markets etc. Also included is a little potted history, maps, tourist offices, tips, churches etc	For those of you who like delayed trains, cramped tube trains and traffic jams - Ibiza doesn't have them (though the hippy market in Es Canar can get a tad busy) - here's how to get around when you are here.	Accommodation is a nightmare in the summer, but we've got hotel & hostel numbers, and a growing villa, hotel & rental section for those who don't want the usual package holiday.