Spain Guide
The Balearic Islands
Formentera
Just eleven nautical miles south of Ibiza Town, FORMENTERA (population 8212) is the smallest of the four main Balearic islands, measuring just 20km from east to west. Like Ibiza, it was a key part of the 1960s hippie trail (Pink Floyd made an album here), and it retains a distinctly bohemian character.
Formentera is very arid, covered in rosemary, and crawling with brilliant-green lizards. The economy is tourism-based, taking advantage of some of Spain's longest, whitest and least-crowded beaches. Development has been limited, and visitors come here seeking escape rather than sophistication. Nude sunbathing is the norm just about everywhere, except in Es Pujols.
There's nothing much to LA SAVINA, Formentera's only port. The island capital, SANT FRANCESC XAVIER, is 4km inland. The only real sight here is the mighty fortified church that sits in the large central square.
Heading east, it's a short hop to the village of SANT FERRAN, home to Pepe, a laidback bohemian bar-cum-restaurant.A side road leads to ES PUJOLS, Formentera's main resort development – tiny and tame by mainland standards. Here you'll find two fine sandy beaches and clear, shallow waters, plenty of good seafood restaurants, some late-night bars and the only club on the island.
Northwest of Es Pujols lie the spectacular sands of Platja de Ses Illetes, and, across a narrow channel, the uninhabited island of Espalmador, where there's another great beach.
Taking up most of Formentera's southern coastline, Platja de Migjorn is a sweeping bay with 5km of pale sands and crystalline waters. The central part of the beach, which is virtually untouched, is home to the legendary Blue Bar, a fine chiringuitos in the Balearics.