Cala Comte Beaches

The water is what you see first from the headland: shallow, clear and banded blue and turquoise, kept that way by the constant sea currents off this stretch of coast. Small fish move through the shallows around swimmers' legs.

Offshore lie the islets of S'Espartar, Illa des Bosc and Sa Conillera. The west-facing beach looks straight out over them, so late afternoon turns into a sunset crowd. Families settle on the western side of the rocky headland, while the eastern side is an unofficial nudist spot. Several small coves sit close by, and a restaurant and a shop stand on the crown of the headland.

• The car park on the cliff tops behind the headland gets extremely busy in summer; arrive early or come by bus or boat.
• Lifeguards patrol the beach during the summer months.
• Sunbeds can be rented, and there is a restaurant and a shop on the headland.
• The east side of the headland is an unofficial nudist beach; the west side is where families gather.

By car, the route is well signposted with brown tourist signs from the EI-700 at Sant Agustí des Vedrà, 8 km to the east. The main car park sits on the cliff tops behind the headland. Parking lies about 200 m from the beach, with a second, unpaved area about 250 m away.

In summer, frequent buses run from Sant Antoni and Ibiza Town to the Cala Comte stop, about 80 m from the sand. Boats also leave Sant Antoni harbour and hotels along the bay regularly through the summer months.

Best: a calm day, from late afternoon through sunset. The west-facing beach watches the sun go down over the sea and the islets, and with little wind the water stays clear and still.

Avoid: windy days and the middle of the day in high summer. Wind raises big waves, and in summer the cliff-top car park fills to bursting.