About the Balearic islands
The Balearic archipelago is made up of 4 big islands: Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera (in size order). Of course, other numerous small islands are part of it. Mallorca is one of the most well-known summer destinations in the Mediterranean with so many beaches and other touristic attractions. Menorca is the little “sister” of Mallorca, also famous but is less visited, also because of the status of a national park of about half the island. Ibiza, which is just a bit smaller than Menorca, is the most famous when it comes to enjoying the nightlife. It has one of the most visited international party scenes in the world like Ushuaia. Last but not least the island of Formentera, just south of Ibiza. Formentera is the smallest of the 4 big ones but has lots to offer.
We visited this summer 3 of the 4 big islands: Ibiza, Formentera and Mallorca (chronological order). Transport is an important part of enjoying tourist experiences. As such, we are going to show the ways to get around as smoothly as possible.
How to get around in Ibiza?
As we mentioned, we visited Ibiza at first. The list below gives an overview of all the possibilities regarding this island:
- By Plane to Ibiza international airport or by ship from Mallorca (Port of Palma).
- Airport-Ibiza City: Buses as part of public transport services (Lines 10 and 10E). For more information take a look here. You can take taxis right in front of the Airport’s building. Car rental is another solution.
- Airport-everywhere on the island: Buses (there are many lines), taxis, car rental as well. In our case, we took a taxi to Cala Tarida.
- Moving between the beaches and the cities: Buses are not a comfortable solution between the cities along the coast, because it will take at least two lines. Again taxis and car rentals are a solution almost anywhere on the island. Hiking (when distances are small) is a sportive and interesting way to get around. We did that to go from Cala Tarida to Cala Comte and vice versa. Rental boats are recommended when distances are small and also if you want to do something different. Getting around with a bicycle is possible, but the roads are a little steep and there aren’t so many dedicated lanes along the roads, only dedicated trails for bikes. But for the bike-aholics, it will be a great way to get around.
- To move from one island to another, there are the following itineraries: Port of Ibiza – Palma de Mallorca: big Ships with 1 journey every day (always check the respective lines information before reservation and hopping on board)
- Ibiza – Formentera: Boats every 30 minutes from the Port of Ibiza to La Savina Port.
How to get around Formentera?
We then visited Formentera, second on our time plan. Keep in mind, we can arrive here only from Ibiza (this is the situation from our search) since the island doesn’t have an airport. The list below gives an overview of all the possibilities regarding this island:
- By plane to Ibiza international airport and then directly to the Port of Ibiza.
- Ibiza – Formentera: Boats every 30 minutes from the Port of Ibiza to La Savina Port.
- Port – everywhere on the island: Buses (there are many lines), taxis and car rentals. In our case, we took the bus Line L1 to Es Pujols.
- Moving between the beaches and the cities: Buses are a good solution between the little cities along the coast and inside the island because of the short distances and also this year the Buses are free even for the tourists. Only the Line that takes to Ses Illetes is not free. Again taxis and car rentals are a solution but Formentera is famous for being travelled with rented motorbikes and bicycles. Walking (when distances are small) is also a good way to move around and stay in shape. Interesting would be to move through the beach strolling along the seashore for example from Es Pujols to Ses Illetes. Rental boats would be another fun way to get around but we didn’t go after that, being there only for two days. But most of the tourists there were using rented motorbikes and bicycles.
- To move from one island to another, there are the following itineraries: Port of La Savina – Port of Ibiza: Boats every 30 minutes, in both directions. As we can see, the only official connection of the island to the world is through Ibiza.
How to get around Mallorca?
Transport in Mallorca is much easier and better organized than in any of the other islands. The list below gives an overview of all the possibilities:
- By Plane to Mallorca international airport or ship from the Port of Ibiza City. We got to Mallorca by taking a ship.
- Airport-Palma: Buses as part of public transport services (there are a lot of lines). For more information take a look here. You can take taxis right in front of the Airport’s building. Car rental is another solution.
- Airport-everywhere on the island: Buses (there are many lines), taxis, car rental as well.
- Port of Palma-everywhere on the island: Buses and taxis are also here available. In our case, we took a taxi to Cala d’Or, one of our destinations on the island.
- Moving between the beaches and the cities: Buses are a good solution between the towns because they are operative in almost the entire island. Again taxis and car rentals are a solution almost anywhere on the island. Hiking can be also in Mallorca a good opportunity, but better plan it beforehand. Rental private boats are also here a possibility but we didn’t plan such a trip. Taking a bicycle is possible, especially in big cities, where there are dedicated lanes along the roads. For long trips outside the cities is recommended to plan it before, the island is pretty huge. For the bike-aholics, more chances for adventures.
- A special trip for us was with a big boat that transported us to the amazing beaches of Serra Tramontana, like Sa Calobra.
- To move from one island to another, there are the following itineraries: Port of Ibiza – Palma de Mallorca: big Ships with 1 journey every day (always check the respective lines information before reservation and hopping on board)
- Ibiza – Formentera: Boats every 30 minutes from the Port of Ibiza to La Savina Port.
Conclusions
We hope we gave in this post as much information as needed to have a smooth travelling experience inside the islands. For ideas on what & where to visit in the Balearic just click on the following ideas:
If you have any questions, drop them in the comments below and we are more than happy to answer! Happy Travelling!
