Visit Can Marça cave
A cave more than 100,000 years old…. Enjoy the beautiful stalagmites and stalactites (dripstones), a light show and like a cherry on the cake: a beautiful view. This is one of the caves in Ibiza. Are you already curious?
Cova de Can Marca belongs to one of the oldest caves in Ibiza. They estimate that the cave is over 100,000 years old. Because of this, nature has created beautiful stalagmites (hanging stalactites) and stalactites (standing stalactites) over the years and the waterfalls and waterbeds have turned to stone, which makes the overall picture beautiful.
Around 1970 the Belgian Jean-Pierre van der Abeelle discovered the cave Cova de Can Marca. He wanted to make the cave accessible to the public. Before this Belgian man discovered the cave, the cave was used for very different things! Smugglers who used this cave around 1950 to hide their illegal stuff, after all, it was an ideal hiding place. Even today you can still clearly see the red and black markings they had painted to get out of the cave in different ways, in case of an emergency.
Vamos!
Do you want to visit this cave? The entrance is 12/14 meters above sea level and in the cave it is about 20 degrees. During your visit to the cave you will be guided by a guide (in several languages this is possible), this will take about 40 minutes.
By car
There is a free parking space at the cave. If you want to go by car you have to remember that the road to the cave is mountainous, so the road has several curves, can be narrow and there are not always fences at the edges of the roads. So, pay attention!
By Bus
You can reach the cave by bus taking bus route ‘Lucas Costa Co’. This bus route operates from May to October and stops about 100 meters away from the cave.
The mini train
It is also possible to go by mini train. This goes along the village of Sant Miguel where you pass one of the oldest churches in Ibiza, namely a church from the 13th century. You will also pass several beautiful white churches in Sant Lloren, Sant Joan and San Vicent. In addition, the train goes along the beaches of Cala Sant Vicent, the port of San Miguel and then to the cave Can Marca. The train departs from Portinatx, Port de Sant Miguel and Cala San Vicente.
Opening hours
During summertime (1 May to 31 October)
10:30 – 13:30 & 14:30 – 20:00
Approximately every 30 minutes a new tour is started.
During wintertime (1 November to 30 October)
11:00 – 17:30
Approximately every 45 minutes a new tour is started.
Price
Adults: € 10,00
Children (4 to 12 years): € 6,00
TIPS
– A visit to the cave is also great fun with children!
– Unfortunately, Cova de Can Marca is difficult to reach for the disabled. We also advise not to visit the cave with a pram.
– If you stand at the entrance, you have a beautiful view over the bay and on the opposite side you can see a tower from the year 1750, called Torre d’es Molar. You can also visit the tower, from which you can enjoy a beautiful view of mainland Ibiza and the cave Cova de Can Marca.
– You also have a view on the island of Murada, where there is an almost extinct species of lizard from antiquity!
– Remember that the ground is rocky, so comfortable shoes are a must!
Visit Cueva de Ses Fontanelles
Ibiza has some beautiful caves, where you can even see paintings of people in the distant past. The cave Cueva de Ses Fontanelles also has these beautiful rock paintings. Read more about this cave below.
The wine cave
Cueva de Ses Fontanelles is also called the Cova des Vi, which literally means wine cave. The name comes from the fact that this cave used to be a storage place for wine. It was a good place for the wine to be stored, because the walls kept the wine at the right temperature which meant the wine did not acidify because of the heat. The cave is located just outside the center of Sant Antonio and can be reached from Cala Salada. The cave was discovered in 1917 by the French archaeologist Henri Breuil. He claims that the petroglyphs found in this cave come from the Bronze Age, around 1,000 years before Christ. On the walls in the western part of the cave drawings of ships were found.
Visiting the cave
Unfortunately, the cave is not easily accessible. The board of Ibiza has decided to close the cave with iron bars, so you can only admire the petroglyphs from a distance. When you go to the cave you can not only look inside the cave, but you also enjoy a beautiful view over the sea and the beautiful rocky and idyllic coastline of Ibiza.
Accessibility
The cave can be reached via Cala Salada. So, you follow the road to Cala Salada, when you almost reach the beach you take the last turn to the right, this is a dirt road. You can go up by car, but not entirely. Then you pass 2 houses on your right, one on the road and the other in the forest. When the road comes to a dead end you go to the right, then when the road comes to a dead end again you go to the left and you end up at a cliff, where you park the car. The rest is only accessible on foot. From this point you take the footpath to the right and then the cave is located about 500 meters down. Also note that the road is very rough, so make sure you have the right car for the job. You can also walk everything from Cala Salada, but this will take a lot of time.
From Punta Galeria the path is very rough and filled with rocks and passing along the coast. This provides beautiful views, provided of course you don’t suffer from a fear of heights!
TIP
– For people with a physical disability it is not recommended to visit this cave.