Getting Around Ibiza and Formentera by Boat

I first came to Ibiza expecting endless traffic on the dusty road down to Salinas. I quickly learned the locals just take the boat. The Mediterranean served as the main highway long before the big rental car agencies paved over the island and you can still use it exactly that way today if you know where to look. You skip the August traffic jams entirely. And the trip itself beats sitting in a hot Fiat anyway, especially when you catch a ride on an old wooden llaut that smells of diesel and whatever the captain had for breakfast.

Traditional Wooden Boats to the Beaches

Walk down to the Estación Marítima in Ibiza Town’s harbour. Look for the small ticket kiosks near the water. Local families run most of the wooden boats shuttling down the coast. The old white and blue ferries operated by Las Dos Marías handle the southern route. You hop on at the port and watch the massive stone walls of Dalt Vila fade behind you. Then they drop you right on the sand at Figueretas or Platja d’en Bossa. It costs about €8 one way. Hand them a €10 bill. They usually hand back change in coins practically fused together from the sea air.

Up north around Port de Sant Miquel you will find similar setups with simple hand-painted signs nailed to wooden posts. The schedules are complete fiction. If the guy driving the boat decides the wind is too strong he just goes home. But taking the water route absolutely beats hunting for a parking spot in the dirt lots near the popular coves.

The Formentera Ferry and Mainland Routes

You will probably go to Formentera at least once because everyone does. Balearia and Trasmapi run fast catamarans out of the main harbour in Ibiza Town. The trip to La Savina takes 30 minutes on paper. In July and August count on it taking 45. The boarding process on a Tuesday morning turns into absolute chaos.

A standard return ticket costs roughly €35. Buy this online before you go. The ticket machines at the port sit at an angle with a notorious glare that makes the screen impossible to read at 10 AM while the physical queues move so painfully slow that you will genuinely wonder if anyone is actually working inside the booth.

You can also catch larger ferries to Dénia and Barcelona. Or Palma de Mallorca if you want to hop between the bigger islands. The Dénia route takes about three hours. You don’t have to deal with the airport security lines at IBZ.

What You Actually Need to Know

The small beach ferries only take cash. There is an ATM near the dock in Santa Eulària but it charges a ridiculous €3.95 withdrawal fee. Bring euros from town.

When you get off the boat in Formentera do not walk to the very first bike rental shop you see. Walk two streets back from the port. The prices drop by 20 percent there. The bikes usually have better brakes anyway.

And remember that ferry tickets belong strictly to the company you bought them from. Buy a Balearia ticket and you cannot jump on a Trasmapi boat just because it sits right there ready to leave. They will force you to buy a new ticket right on the ramp. Always check the time of the last boat back. The guy at the dock tells everyone 6 PM but that usually means they start pulling the heavy ropes at 5:45. Miss it and you’re walking up the highway in the dark.