Edinburgh & Ibiza. July 2021

Not a classic combo I admit. We caught an early train to Edinburgh and met up with my parents for what should have been a trip last year to celebrate my Dad’s 60th. We were staying at The Scotsman which is literally opposite the train station, so after ditching bags and a detour to drop off my pre Ibiza PCR test we wandered to St Andrew’s Square and stopped for some lunch, a couple of drinks and a good catch up.

Keen to make the most of the glorious weather we pottered around and ended up at a gin pop up bar above the station. Dan and I then walked up Calton Hill for our first view back over the city before getting ready for the evening. We were booked into Hawksmoor which as ever delivered on the delicious steak and wine but we then had to dash back to the hotel in time for last orders and a few rounds of cards before the 10.30 curfew, in all honestly we were pissed and ready for bed!

Saturday, and my birthday! After breakfast Dan and I set off down the Royal Mile and up Arthur’s Seat, its a fairly steep climb and was very windy at the top but it provides a panoramic view of the city and the coast and it’s only a 2 hour round trip so defo worth the stomp.

That afternoon we were booked into The Kitchin which is a Michelin star restaurant in Leith. I’m a beans on toast kinda gal so a lot of the menu was pretty fancy but it was actually quite relaxed and the food, wine and service were awesome! After lunch we had a brief potter around Leith including a wild goose chase to see the Royal Yacht Britannia, which you need tickets for, and then headed back to the hotel.

That evening mum and dad were at the casino so we went on a huge lap of the city, starting in the old town and along Grassmarket which is lined with pubs, up round the castle and through Prince Street Gardens before heading back via the new town back to the hotel for a dinner and glass of fizz, lovely.

Our final day was spent at the castle taking in some history before a look around the shops and a truly delicious lunch with a few pina coladas at Dishoom before the train home and a very swift turn around for our flight to Ibiza in the morning!

We arrived at our hotel, Amare Beach in San Antonio Bay just after lunch and wasted no time in getting a spot by the pool. The weather was perfect and we spent a very relaxing afternoon snoozing and boozing. Dinner that evening was the Mexican rooftop restaurant and a glorious Ibiza sunset.

The next day went spent the morning by the pool then got a taxi to Cala Gracioneta for lunch. This is a really lovely restaurant built into its own cove, super pretty and the food and service were amazing! A few hours later we made the most of the cute little beach before a rather sweaty walk up to Hostel La Torre for a few more drinks and nibbles while we watched another beautiful sunset as DJ Pippi supplied the soundtrack, highly recommend both these places.

Wednesday and we woke up giddy as we were finally off to Pikes! We arrived and settled on a bed but spent most of the day in the pool drinking cocktails, including pina coladas of course, and chatting to people while the DJ warmed things up. After a quick freshen up we had dinner at Pamelas, it’s a super cool setting but Dan’s meal wasn’t great which was a bit of a shame so after a espresso martini we headed round to the sunset terrace. We weren’t totally sure what to expect and things took a while to get going but we made some more friends and soon people were dancing despite the bouncers best efforts, it’s been so long since we have done anything like that and it was a lot of fun!

Thursday we felt pretty rough so didn’t venture much further than the rooftop pool for a very chilled day and tea was a cute little pizza place just down the road.

Friday afternoon we headed over to Nobu for a late lunch at the beach restaurant Chambao, we went for a huge sea bass to share which was delicious! We then wandered down Talamanca Beach and round the harbour to Ibiza town. This was another sweaty walk so we stopped in one of the squares for some sangria before the final push up to the castle for a gorgeous view. As the light faded we pottered back down through the main square which was buzzing with people and live music, such a lovely setting. We even had room for a quick pizza at Gino Sorbello’s which is a superb Naples born pizzeria.

And that was another trip to Ibiza done, we really do love this island and there’s still so much to explore. Before we left Covid restrictions did make me question if it was worth it, but once we were there that soon melted away. I really hope this is the start of things returning to normal because boy are holidays good for the soul.