Sant Joan de Labritja is the administrative centre of the island’s northernmost municipality, but you would hardly guess it: a white church, a square, a few bars and low stone houses, surrounded by hills covered in pines.
What it’s like
It is quiet for most of the week and wakes up on Sundays, when the square fills for its market. The area around it is the most rural part of Ibiza, with the coves of the north coast, including Benirràs, Cala de Sant Vicent and Portinatx, within half an hour’s drive.
What to see and do
The Sunday market is held all year in Plaça d’Espanya, in front of the church, from about 10am to 4pm. Stalls sell handmade jewellery, clothes, ceramics and local produce, and there is often live music from one of the bars. It is smaller and more relaxed than the big hippy markets, and more local.
The village celebrates its patron saint, Saint John, on 24 June, after the bonfires and celebrations of the night before, the eve of Sant Joan.
Getting there
Sant Joan is about 25 minutes north of Ibiza Town. There is free parking near the village. The T6 bus links the village with Ibiza Town, Sant Llorenç and Portinatx, but a car is the easiest way to explore the area.
Good to know
Combine the Sunday market with lunch in the village and an afternoon on one of the northern beaches, but remember that Benirràs is closed to cars on summer Sunday afternoons.
