"The elegant Ibiza Town oasis It’s over 20 years since the Ibiza Gran Hotel opened in Ibiza Town’s marina glossy district, predating the area’s multi-million-euro revival by a decade. The waterside zone is now the island’s smartest hang-out and Ibiza’s original five-star hotel is still very much at its heart. Inside, the Ibiza Gran Hotel is a paradigm of serene luxury, with restrained, cream-on-cream interiors (money talks, but wealth whispers), a sweeping, art-filled lobby, and vast, airy suites, some with private plunge pools and extraordinary views across the harbor to UNESCO -protected Dalt Vila. Outdoors, two lagoon-like pools (one is adults-only) are fringed with plush daybeds, manicured lawns, and towering, tottering palm trees. So far, so laidback, but it’s not all about relaxation here. The hotel is part of an upscale demi-resort that includes a casino, an open-air rooftop Zuma restaurant, and Club Chinois, Ibiza’s slickest new nightspot. The latter two opened last year beneath the watchful eye of Island Hospitality (Mikasa, Beachouse, Finca La Plaza) and have become Ibiza’s see-and-be-seen hotspots, with the island’s ritzy international set tumbling from alfresco sushi suppers at Zuma directly to Club Chinois’s red velvet privé area. If the late nights take their toll (Lío, Pacha, and Roto are also on the doorstep), then lazy breakfasts fuelled by an omelet bar and pancake station will help, as will cryotherapy and oxygen treatments in the high-tech Open Spa." - Issy von Simson, Lauren Burvill
