There are signs that point to the island having been inhabited in the Prehistoric times, but the first documented evidence refers to the year 654 B.C., when the Carthaginians convert it into a commercial enclave and found the town of Ibiza. After centuries of Roman, Vandal, Byzantine and Arab control, the troops of King Jaume I conquered the town in 1235. The continuous pirate attacks –C. XVI and XVII– and other raids necessitated the building of many defence towers that are still standing as also the Dalt Vila Renaissance city wall, declared Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 1999.
Ibiza’s beaches –and the ones of nearby Formentera–, their contrasting landscapes, their tolerant atmosphere, the leisure offer and the hospitality of their people, have made this island into one of the World’s first tourist destinations.
Dalt Vila: Historical town centre, next to the port, calls for a walk through its streets to discover the infinity of institutional buildings, palaces and spectacular views –the Cathedral, the area of Es Soto and the Town Hall vantage point– on the one hand, on the other the immense variety of handicrafts, clothes or shoes and the internationally renowned restaurant and bar offers.
Contemporary Art Museum: Situated in Dalt Vila, the old town of Ibiza, it occupies one of the most emblematic houses in the interior of the city walls.
Archaeological Museum: Also located in Dalt Vila, in the Cathedral square, it shows the historical remains of Ibiza and Formentera since the first inhabitants until the Catalonian conquest in the XIII century.