BIG FIVE REASONS WHY YOU WOULD WANT TO BE IN IBIZA WHEN FALL BEGINS
The rowdy crowd has gone home, you don’t have to jostle and jockey for the precious
spots on the beaches, the weather is pleasantly warm, there are still fiestas
to go to, and don’t forget the discounts and great package deals
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by Rose Maramba
It doesn’t seem possible but Ibiza, even when there’s now not the faintest echo of summer’s party frenzy, could still be the best place to vacation. Rather, because of it, it’s the best place. It certainly is for folks who love an island on the enticing Mediterranean whose spectacular beauty you could count on any time of the year but is best enjoyed when the rowdy crowds have packed their bags and gone home. Imagine having all that beauty to yourself, without having to jostle and jockey for the precious spots on the beaches, the calas, bars, discos and restaurants, the autumn breeze not yet a raging storm, blowing gently instead, cooling the island.
Why would you want to be in Ibiza in October?
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Peace and quiet
Peace and quiet on the soft sandy beaches, here and there rocky and grainy, shared among people who need the quiet to enjoy those.
– - The weather: Still pleasantly warm. Ideal for soaking up all the amazing things that fun-bountiful Ibiza has to offer minus the nasty sunburn. Temperatures top at 25ºC, later dropping to 15ºC – 16ºC. Sea water temperature is 22ºC.
With an average of scanty five days of rain in the month, October is sunny and bright so that the White Island’s luminosity lingers.
Daytime, summer clothes and sunglasses are in order. Swimsuits too! And gear for outdoor coastal and inland activities. Light jackets or the like after sundown for al fresco dining or a leisurely drink on rooftop bars.
Ibiza’s sunsets are invariably spectacular, summer or fall
Speaking of rooftop bars, these and the beaches are neck-and-neck in the run for the contested distinction of being the right place to watch Ibiza’s spectacular sunsets.
Try to be at a rooftop bar when the Ibiza Light Festival is celebrated. For then you’ll be treated to the spectacle of Dalt Vila all aglow in the dark night. From the sky, the magical sight can imprint itself indelibly on your mind. A visual memento of your vacation.
Ibiza Light Festival
Check out “Ibiza’s Best Rooftop Bars” on Ibiza Spotlight (https://www.ibiza-spotlight.com/magazine/2021/06/ibizas-best-rooftop-bars) and similar websites.
- Food and goods: You can be sure that the haul from Ibiza’s waters is truly local and therefore so deliciously fresh, from the fisherman’s net and fishing boat to your table. And you won’t have to elbow out shoppers or diners to ensure that you have the pick of the harvest. With much fewer visitors in the island, there’s about enough seafood to go around.
In October, buy denton fish from the market or order at the restaurants. The fish which will have grown up to as much as 20 kilos is a wow when prepared by a deft chef. So are the amberjacks, the sea basses, the red mullets, and calamari which are line-caught beginning in September.
You don’t have to push and shove to take your pick of the fishermen’s catch
You can buy local seafood from the Es Mercat in Santa Eulalia del Rio, Pescadería Sant Joan de Labritja etc. if you feel like preparing your own dishes rather than dine on them in a restaurant.
At the weekly Mercat Sant Josep de Sa Talaia, the ibicencos sell their handcrafts, organic and locally elaborated produce.
Hippy at a hippy Ibiza market
Not to deprive you of the incredible vibe of the island that is a titillating mix of sun and sea lovers and a great deal of nonconformism, the Punta Arabi in Es Canar, Ibiza’s oldest and biggest hippy market, will also still be open.
- Fiestas and festivals: There are still fiestas and festivals to go to. It’s just that they are no longer frenzy-driven, thank goodness. For October concerts, check out Songkick.
(https://www.songkick.com/metro-areas/34669-spain-ibiza/october-2022) and like websites.
Folks gather at the Renaissance town of Dalt Vila, UNESCO’s World Heritage site, for the Ibiza Light Festival
If you’re not watching it from a rooftop bar, why then, join the Ibiza Light Festival in the fortified Renaissance town of Dalt Vila, a UNESCO World Heritage site!
And don’t forget: Because it’s the season of the calamar (squid), there’s appropriately a Feria Gastronomica del Calamar in the charming village of San Carlos Peralta. There are concerts and lots of other activities for all ages. But what defines the feria is that all dishes on the fairground are made with calamari, what else.
Calamari
At this late date – meaning October – there’s still room for something new, the Amorevore Food & Arts Festival, 26-28 October. Somewhat poetic, the Amorevore is described on its own website as bringing “community together. It sustains life. It connects humanity across borders. It is at the heart of our relationship with our planet, our family and ourselves. It is a window to the world. It is true love.”
Amorevore, a newly coined word, means “someone who only eats food made with love.”
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Great discounts on yacht rentals and accommodation
Discounts and great package deals on accommodation and yacht rentals. For example, an 8.50 meter-long “Key Largo27” boat with a capacity for seven people goes for €800/day in July and August but only €600 in October. A 12-meter “Pardo 38” with a capacity for 11 people goes from €1745/day in July and August to €1345 in October. Rental prices are ex-VAT.Check out Royal Yacht Ibiza https://royalyachtsibiza.com/all-the-yachts/pardo-38 and like websites.
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Images from Pixabay unless stated otherwise
Featured image/Phan Huy Hoàng
Shared peace and quiet on Ibiza’s shores/photosforyou
Ibiza sunset/Biancaritter
Ibiza Light Festival courtesy Ibiza Light Festival
Fisherman’s catch/nir_design
Hippy at Ibiza hippy market/Tim Hill. Rotated.
Ibiza Light Festival at Dalt Vila courtesy Ibiza Light Festival
Calamar1/Bart
Yacht/Paul Brennan
