C/ de La Virgen 76, Sa Penya, Ibiza 07800, Spain
+34 971 19 02 40
Open: Until end of September
Official rating: HOSTAL
Number of rooms: 13
Having run Hostal La Peña for 36 years now, Maria shows no signs of slowing down or wanting to stop, and still goes out of her way to make every one of her guests feel like an old family friend... Jo-Francisco, on the other hand, is quite happy to sit out in the sun, and quite frankly, who could possibly blame him?
As central to the gay scene as any of the bars, La Peña is an oasis of calm in the midst of the nightly hustle and bustle that is Calle de La Virgen.
Unbelievably, it is also very cheap. By this, we don't just mean cheap for Ibiza. It's probably the best value accommodation to be found in Ibiza Town.
Rather than pushing unsuitable accommodation on a potential guest, Maria will let you look at the room on offer, before expecting you to part with any money. And wake guests before noon in order to clean? Maria makes it very clear from the start of your stay that the cleaner doesn't get started any earlier than 3pm, and since that's with the lobby-cum-reception, you're unlikely to be disturbed from your slumbers much before 4 o'clock! The only thing they'll ask is that you don't take too many people up to your room with you at any one time (never mind how I know this). Their concern is for the security of the other guests rooms, so if you do want to show your friends where you're staying, take them up one at a time, or just take let Maria know who you're taking up with you.
Not only is La Peña convenient for the Virgen's gay bars, it's location at the top end of the street makes it equally useful for slipping back and forth to your room unnoticed. Perfect for those last-minute costume changes, and touch-ups.
As you'd expect in a hostal, you'll have to share the two shower rooms, and two toilet cubicles, with the other guests, but with only 13 rooms, this is hardly an inconvenience. The rooms are cleaned, and a clean towel left, every day. The best rooms have a balcony overlooking the harbour, and some have a ceiling fan, but none of the rooms have safety deposit facilities. Ask Maria to look after any valuables, if you're concerned at all, but these apartments are generally very safe.
One of the hardest things to cope with at La Peña is the smell of cooking from Thai'd Up! (the Thai restaurant) next door. Not that the smell's bad in any way, the trouble is it smells too good if you're trying to skip meals in your effort to get back into that size 14 miniskirt...
La Peña is also the perfect location from which to start the Gay Ibiza bar crawl, starting at Bar Teatro opposite, and having a drink at every bar listed on the GayIbiza.net drink pages, finishing at La Muralla...
JUST BACK FROM MY FIRST STAY OF 2004 AT LA PEÑA.THE ROOMS ARE STILL CLEAN, MARIA AND DAUGHTER LUISA ARE AS FRIENDLY AS EVER, AND FOR THE THIRD YEAR RUNNING, PRICES HAVE STAYED THE SAME! A double room will only set you back €30 per night (about £20), and a single room €21 (about £15). AND, the flow of hot water in the shower cubicle is now constant... This is probably the only place to stay in Ibiza with any heart.
Marti
x
27 June 2004
