in the beautiful Balearic Islands There are many charming towns hidden and today, on the island of Ibiza, let's discover the beautiful town of Saint Charles of Peralta. Do you know him? It is a very traditional town, surrounded by almond, fig and carob trees that has developed around a church.
San Carlos de Peralta, in Ibiza. Let's find out what it is like and what you can see and do here.
Saint Charles
The full name is San Carlos de Peralta. It is a parish that is six kilometers from Santa Eularia and is made up of the Atzaró, Peralta, Morna and Figueral bands that developed around an XNUMXth century church. It is a very small urban center, few traditionally built houses and shops, so when you walk through here it is like delve into Ibiza's past.
The little town He rose to fame in the '60s and '70s when hippies discovered him and they began to populate the area, regardless of whether or not they had water and electricity. In fact, some of them are still around but there are not many left and modern comforts have given way to a relaxed lifestyle, yes, but modern.
What to do in Sant Carlos
The town is small and charming, it is as if time has stopped here. If you like summer, sun and sea, then you can stop by Sant Carlos on your way to enjoy some of the best beaches of Ibiza, Such as Aguas Blancas (a nudist beach), that of Cala de San Vicente, Cada Mastella or Cala Llenya.
The beaches of this part of the island, beaches and coves, are beautiful and Sant Carlos is on the way so it is a very popular destination for tourists. Of course, as it is more of a transit place tourist turnover is permanent since there are few who stay long.
Cala Llenya is 2.7 kilometers away, Cala Nova a little further away, 3.2 kilometers, Aguas Blancas a little further away and Cala Boix is 3.6 kilometers away. Es Canar Beach is the furthest, about 3.8 kilometers away from Sant Carlos.
Those hippies who arrived more than 50 years ago have left their mark on the town, giving it culture charm. Today there is two hippie markets, the Punta Arabí Market and the Las Dalias Markets. The latter is the most famous and traditional and is where you can buy typical souvenirs between crafts and jewelry.
El Las Dalias Market It is not as old as the hippie movement but it still has its years. HE opened in 1985, Juan Fernando Marí did it, Juanito from Las Dalias, with a Belgian gallerist named Helga Watson-Todd. This little market is in the gardens and inside the restaurant opened by Marí's father in 1954. The appointment is every summer Saturday.
This man was a carpenter and farmer and when he opened the doors of the restaurant it was quite an event because at that time Sant Carlos de Peralta was a distant and little-known destination. There were still a few years left before the tourists arrived and with them the money, lifting the island out of a very precarious economy. A decade later, Sant Carlos and Ibiza were already well-known and popular, a meeting place for hippies, journalists, tourists and people wanting to escape the world for a bit in the middle of the Cold War.
La Church of Sant Carles It is the one that gives its name to the town and is in the urban center of the town. The church underwent several modifications and additions over time, mostly new chapels and a beautiful bell tower. It is accessed through the door that faces the square and in the bell tower there is an old hourglass. You can see the chapels and if you walk around the bell tower you will see the windows that allow the sun to enter the altar. If you want to enter it is best to go on a Sunday.
If you decide to move a little you can go to know the Torre d'en Valls, located in the territorial division of Sant Carles de Peralta. It is next to Canal d'enMartí and although you can get there by car, the last section is done on foot along the beach and along a dirt road that ends near the old tower.
This tower It is one of the old defense towers from the XNUMXth century which were built to defend the city of Dalt Vila. It was completed in 1763 and had to be rebuilt after the explosion of a powder magazine, an event in the area attributed to a lightning strike during a storm. Or was it because of a couple of pyromaniacal womanizing boys?
Another place that we can visit is the museum estate from the XNUMXth century, a country house that is the same as it was a century ago and is called Trull of Ca n'Andreu. It is very close to the town of Sant Carles and it is very interesting to visit it. Is called trull to an oil mill and in this case was built in 1775, being one of the few that are still preserved on the island of Ibiza. Inside the museum you will see antique objects (shoemaker's tools, farming tools, wine-making tools, musical instruments, weapons).
Today the farm It is in the hands of Miquel Torres, having inherited it from his father. The house has been in the hands of his family for generations and the objects on display mostly belong to him, but the neighbors have given him many others. Since 2022, the estate-museum is managed by the Santa Eulària City Council, so it is open throughout the year, from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 13 p.m. and from 17 p.m. to 20 p.m., closing in the month of January and on Mondays and Sundays.
As we said at the beginning, Sant Carlos is a small town, on the way to the coves, but with enough to spend an afternoon, stop, take a break. You can walk through its small streets, explore its surroundings and spend time in some of its bars or restaurants, savoring some tapas with a glass of cold beer or a glass of good wine.
A typical bar is Bar Anita or Ca n'Anneta, the meeting place around here. The bar is quaint, with a wall full of wooden mailboxes, used by locals as a mail system since the postal service does not deliver everywhere. Another popular bar is Las Dalias, inside the market of the same name. He Night market, on its own, only opens during the summer and is something like the relaxed, summer version of the Las Dalias market.
This Night Market is open on Monday and Tuesday nights, from June to September, and on Sundays in the busiest months of tourism, July and August. Well, what are you waiting for to go and discover the beauties and charms of Sant Carles de Peralta, in Ibiza?