When you’re planning a party filled trip, one of the first places that comes to people’s minds is Ibiza. On a normal day around the island or at the Ibiza clubs, you’ll see tons of friend groups on vacation, and even more bachelor and bachelorette groups (stag or hen party if you’re from the UK). While Ibiza is a great destination, not every month is created equally!
Ibiza can be fun year round – with picturesque beaches (check out some great hidden gem beaches here), breathtaking water views hikes, and tons of land or water sports, it’s hard to get bored.
Though if your goal is to party, certain times of year are better than others.
The main club season is from June to August, with most clubs being open and fun in May and September as well. Traveling to Ibiza from October to April constitutes the “off-season.” Thankfully, there are a handful of Ibiza clubs and bars stay open all year
During this off season, it’s a totally different island. For instance ¾ of all shops and restaurants are closed! You’ll hear less languages, more of Spanish or Eivissenc (the local Catalan dialect). Life is much slower and quieter, and some may argue – more enjoyable!
Where To Stay
During the off season, there truly is one place where you should stay – Ibiza Town.
People argue which city is best for partying in the summer, San Antonio or Ibiza Town, but it’s an easy off season choice.
Ibiza Town is the largest city on the island, has the highest population no matter the season, and stays the most open of any part of the island. For the best winter Ibiza experience, you should stay in Ibiza Town!
Ibiza winter is very mild, but is super windy. The coldest month is January, which reaches lows of 12° C or 54° F. The island is in a drought, so there isn’t much rain to worry about.
Transportation
Getting around the island is not difficult. From the airport, you have three main options: the bus, a taxi, or an uber. If you want to learn more about the small yet mighty Ibiza airport, check out my guide to it here.
The bus comes every 30 minutes to the bus stop, which when you exit the airport you can find on the right side of the sidewalk after the taxi line. This bus has a card reader (not all buses do) where you can pay about 3 euros to ride. This bus goes through San Jordi, Figueretas, and finally to Ibiza Town.
If you want to take a taxi, you will see the taxi line directly to your right when you exit the airport. You can expect to pay around 16-20 euros depending on how far your hotel is from the airport.
Uber is a new addition to the island, and the pick up spot is in a parking lot after the bus stop. I personally would check the Uber app to compare whether the price was more or less than a taxi. I lived in Figueretas and knew it cost 16 euros in a taxi to get to my apartment, so if an Uber was less, I would take it.
I’ve found that on average, taking an Uber was less expensive than calling a taxi. Though when it’s super busy during the main season, there are many more taxi drivers than Uber drivers, which would make an Uber more expensive.
So if you have a choice, I would use Uber to get around the island!
Winter Clubbing
Going out in the Winter is nowhere near the same experience as it is in the summer, but that doesn’t mean it’s not fun! Here are some places you can visit to have fun that are open all year round – remember, clubbing doesn’t start until about 1:30-2am in Spain!
La Kokotxa
Kokotxa is a small nightclub that plays mainly Spanish and Reggaeton music. Oftentimes you’ll pay to get in and the ticket will include a free drink or two. Drinks are notoriously expensive at the super clubs (and you pay a ton just to enter), so to be essentially paying for a drink or two to enter is a treat to me! If you like Spanish music, you will have fun here! This is a place where you probably won’t find too many other tourists and you can get an immersive experience.
Malanga
Malanga is a small bar by the Marina in Ibiza town. It has a bar, DJ booth, and dance floor. With it’s small size it gets packed quickly, so you can easily forget that there aren’t many people on the island. This is a spot locals like to come visit in the winter, so if you are looking to make a local friend this is the place to be.
Teatro Ibiza
One things about Teatro is that there is almost always live music! This bar is a long room with a stage on the right hand side. People come here to listen and dance to the music with their friends. It’s not so much as a club, but has a more dance-y vibe than a regular bar would have.
Madagascar
Madagascar was one of me and my friend’s favorite spots in all of Ibiza when we lived together there. This is a bar on Plaza del Parque, so nearby are many similar bars where you can grab a table and sit and chat with friends. Madagascar has super cheap drinks and food – the food isn’t amazing but the price definitely is! The wait staff are super friendly when you can find them (typical Spanish service) and you can listen to house music on leopard print chairs if you sit inside. On any night, Madagascar is filled with people and you can have tons of fun talking to strangers. For more of a bar, sit and chat vibe, come here!
New Year’s Eve Ibiza Clubs
On New Year’s Eve, a few clubs open for one night only to celebrate. These places are where you should look at going if you’re coming to celebrate the new year on the island!
Lio
If you are looking for dinner and a show, or just clubbing, you can do either or both at Lio. The show attracts an fun and interesting crowd if this type of thing is up your alley (maybe look up some videos before deciding to go or not)! The clubbing is like no other, with lots of areas to dance all at differing heights, lots of trippy and different rooms to explore, and picturesque bathrooms, Lio is an experience no matter when you visit.
Club Chinois
Club Chinois is another great stop for NYE and like Lio is also open for Halloween as well. Here has a large dance floor area and decorates to the nines for special events. They also have a staircase in the back that leads to a rooftop bar where you can smoke and chat if you need a break from dancing. Club Chinois like many larger clubs has drinks on the more expensive side, but also provides a much better experience than many places earlier on the list.
Pacha
Pacha is one of the most well know clubs in Ibiza and is the only super club open on NYC! They symbol of Pacha are a pair of cherries, which has also become the symbol of Ibiza as well. Pacha is one of the places you HAVE to visit when you come party in Ibiza. The decorations are next level, the sets are most of the time performances to experience instead of music to simply listen to, and the crowd is always crazy and ready to party hard. If this sounds fun to you, it might be where you need to be next New Year’s!
While Ibiza in the winter can be a bit quieter than usual, that doesn’t mean it has to be any less fun! No matter when you come, there will be parties galore – the Ibiza clubs are waiting for you!
