Pou des Lleo Beach

The slipways rarely stand idle. Locals and visitors back boats down into the water through the day, beside the rustic boathouses that fishermen built around the edge of the cove.

The real draw is under the surface. Rock formations and meadows of Neptune grass make the cove a popular snorkelling spot, and the water runs turquoise over the sand. Cliff paths lead off on both sides to smaller, secluded coves, and to the right of the beach a gorge cuts into the rock.

The cove carries history too. On 8 August 1936 about a thousand Republican troops landed here from a naval task force escorted by the battleship Jaime Primero, and retook Ibiza from the Nationalists who had seized it at the start of the war.

• The way down to the sand involves plenty of steps.
• Boats launch from the slipways all day: swim away from the port area.
• There are no public toilets or drinking-water points nearby; the two seafood restaurants and the beach bar are where to eat and drink.
• Neptune grass washes up on the shore, and the sand can carry banks of it.
• Bring a mask and snorkel: the rock formations and seagrass are what the water here is about.

Pou des Lleó sits on the north-east coast of Ibiza, 6.3 km east of Sant Carles and 11.8 km north-east of Santa Eulària des Riu. A car is the practical way in. The nearest car park, unpaved, lies about 90 m away in a straight line, with a second one about 535 m away.

The nearest public transport stops are about 2.3 km away in a straight line, so arriving by bus means at least that distance on foot. Whichever way you come, the last stretch is a descent of plenty of steps down to the sand.

Best: a calm morning, with the sun coming up over the sea and the water clear for snorkelling.

Avoid: days of strong wind from the north or east, and the middle of the day in July and August.

This coast faces the open sea to the north-east, so onshore wind stirs up the water and spoils the visibility that brings snorkellers here, while high summer fills a small beach fast.