Es Vedra

Es Vedra is an uninhabited limestone islet about two kilometres off the southwestern coast of Ibiza, rising roughly four hundred metres straight out of the water in a rough pyramid, part of a marine reserve along with the smaller Es Vedranell beside it. It holds a subspecies of wall lizard found nowhere else and a population of Eleonora's falcons, and landing is prohibited to protect them. The rock is Mesozoic limestone, and in 1855 the Carmelite friar Francesc Palau lived on it for a time. A great deal of legend attaches to it, claims about magnetic anomalies, unidentified objects and connections to Atlantis and to the sirens of the Odyssey, none of it supported, and it has become a fixture of Ibiza's alternative scene. The standard views are from Cala d'Hort beach below and the Torre des Savinar watchtower on the cliff above.

What's there

• The pyramid islet - four hundred metres of limestone rising from the sea.
• The Torre des Savinar - a clifftop watchtower giving the high view.
• Cala d'Hort - the beach directly facing the rock.
• The falcons - Eleonora's falcons breeding on the islet in summer.

When to go

April to June and September to October; sunset behind the rock is the reason most people come and the cliff viewpoint fills in the hour before. Summer brings heavy traffic on the narrow approach roads.

Before you go

Landing on the islet is prohibited, so it is seen only from shore or boat. Parking at the viewpoints is very limited and the roads are narrow. The mystical claims are folklore with no evidence behind them.

Nearby

Cala d'Hort and Cala Carbo are below; Sant Josep and Ibiza Town lie east.

Key facts