Sant Antoni de Portmany

Sant Antoni de Portmany (aka San Antonio Abad or simply San Antonio) is the second largest town in Ibiza, and is considered by British clubbers to be the clubbing capital of the world. It is on San Antonio Bay, on the west of Ibiza.

For two thousand years, Sant Antoni was a small fishing village, but it began to grow in the late 1950s when many hotels and tourist resorts were built as part of a mass tourism initiative which took place across Spain.

By the 1980s, Sant Antoni had acquired the stigma of being the holiday location of choice for British football hooligans, which lead to a decline in tourism in the area. However, it regained its popularity in the mid 1990s when it gained a reputation in Britain as being the best place to stay whilst having access to all the island's night clubs, often quoted as the best in the world who also host the best DJs in the world. Young British clubbers make up the vast majority of visitors to the area.

In late 2020, the government indicated its intent to close permanently the streets where excess alcohol and anti-social behaviour "put people’s health and safety at large in danger".

Understand
Most locals speak English quite well. Or to put it another way, most of the British tourists here don't bother trying to speak any Spanish.



By plane
See Ibiza Airport for details.

A taxi from the airport costs approx. &euro;27-30. You can also take the airport bus to Ibiza town and change there or in peak summer season there is a direct bus to Sant Antoni every 30 min. Will cost around €3.

By boat
In season there are some boats to/from Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca.

On foot
Walk. Town is small enough.

See
People go to Sant Antoni for clubbing, drinking, beaching, etc., rather than enjoying the beauty of this town. That's not least because of that it is not a particularly attractive place: someone on the Internet has written that the most lovely building there is the building of the Lidl supermarket at the town's outskirts (which is quite an ugly one). Still a curious traveller may find a few places are worth visiting:



Do



 * Clubbing (although the most of the larger famous Ibiza clubs are actually located out of town)
 * Drink in a West End bar and sit and watch as the crazy world go by
 * Beaches
 * Cruises, speedboats
 * Parasailing
 * Sunsets
 * Workers Parties
 * Party boats
 * Bungee jumping
 * Water Sports

Buy
"Genuine Imitation" Sunglasses from the "Looky Looky" men

Eat
The Town is full of pizzerias, Chinese restaurants and bars. It's difficult to find decent restaurant with local food.


 * Davids Pizzeria. Set menu priced at €12.50 available until 21:00 offers unbeatable value for a 3-course meal and drink. In peak season it becomes very very busy with a waiting list and large queue.
 * The Curry Club. Over priced and under flavoured Indian food, but still remains popular with a beautiful garden eating area.
 * Zebra Art&Grill. Soletat 43, 07820 Sant Antoni (near Kanya). This restaurant serves delicious meals prepared with fresh ingredients and an artisan's pride in preparation and presentation - a fact largely wasted on the hordes of Brits looking for a fry-up or microwave pizza, which is probably why the prices are very reasonable.
 * The Curry Club, Tucked behind the sunset strip in San Antonio, its beautiful inside, the staff are great and the food - amazing!

Drink



 * Café del Mar - This is the must spot to catch an amazing sunset set to chillout music. A perfect start to any night.
 * Viva Ibiza The local bar for all the workers and is busy til 06:00. Ask to buy a Viva wristband (€5) and then all summer (if you are a worker) or all week (if you are a tourist) your drinks will be over 50% cheaper there than in any other bar in town.
 * Bar Amsterdam - Cheap drinks offers but they don't always use the best quality drinks in your deal.
 * Viva Ibiza The local bar for all the workers and is busy til 06:00. Ask to buy a Viva wristband (€5) and then all summer (if you are a worker) or all week (if you are a tourist) your drinks will be over 50% cheaper there than in any other bar in town.
 * Bar Amsterdam - Cheap drinks offers but they don't always use the best quality drinks in your deal.

Sleep


When the sun comes up, it is the best time to sleep. The locals have the town in the day, and singing crowds are likely to keep you awake at night. It's hot all day and night, so you have to be either very tired or have an air-conditioned room.



Go next
Look for local clubs and bars that have pre-parties and buses to big clubs outside town. You may need to buy tickets in advance (prices range from &euro;12 to &euro;50)