SPECIAL FEATURED BEACH REPORT by Ross and Sally
We went to Formentera in late September 2005. We booked a self catering package to Es Calo via Astbury Travel (www.formentera.co.uk) which seems to be the major package company serving the island. I'd recommend the island and the travel company to anyone who is looking for a relaxed holiday in a place which is truly clothing optional.
Either Formentera or Astbury seem to generate a very high degree of repeat business - so much so that many people seem to book the same accommodation in the same weeks each year. On the way out there we met up with two other couples who were returning to the island for the umpteenth time and all raved about the place. It must say something about the place to generate this commitment!
We stayed at Campanitx villas on the edge of Es Calo. There are five villas dotted around a small wooded area each sleeping two to four people. The accommodation was basic but quite adequate for our needs. The village of Es Calo is on the main road through the middle of the island and although not noisy most of the time we could hear traffic occasionally. There are shops nearby and a few local restaurants - all very convenient for self catering or eating out. Apparently Es Calo had a reputation as a hippy centre at one stage, although there is little sign of it now.
The local beach (called Ses Platgetes) is very near to the villa and the village - easy walking distance or even easier on the bicycles that we hired and everyone else seems to use. Nearly as easy to get to is Migjorn beach on the other (south) side of the island, accessible via one of the very nice "green routes" for bicycles or walkers or cars. In each case we could easily hire sunbeds (I recall at 3 Euros each per day but I may have misremembered). The beaches are not spectacular to look at - there is some sand but lots of rocky outcrops also.
We found that every beach we went to was clothing optional. About a third or a half of the people there were naked and the rest covered up. At no stage did either I (naked) or my wife (bikinied) feel out of place. People tended to don something to go to the beach bars, but no-one bothered about this when paying the chap collecting cash for the sunbeds or when swimming or when walking on the beach. We dressed to get to and from the beach and this seems to be the norm (although I gather that folk staying at some places on the beach - Talaya and Ses Platgetes villas for example - do not bother to do so). We were also hidden away enough to be naked in and about the villa as the mood took us.
Don't go there if you are looking for nightlife (we didn't find any). Note also that there is no direct flight from the UK - flights are to Ibiza and then a ferry is needed to get to the island. All of this is very well organised organised but late or early flights can mean that an overnight stay is needed.
I'd recommend the Island for a truly clothing optional holiday - for example if you would like to go naturist but your spouse or family does not wish to.
Submitted by Ross and Sally, (June 2006)
