Sunset Ashram sits on the rocks at the northern tip of Cala Comte, facing west across the two islets that sit off that stretch of the coast. It is a restaurant and a bar with sunbeds below it, and the whole place is arranged around the hour before the sun goes down.
That is the thing to understand before you go. It works as a lunch and it works as a swim, but the evening is what it is for. In August, arriving at six and arriving at half past seven is the difference between a table and a queue.
What it is
An open wooden building on the rock above the water, with tables inside and out, a terrace facing the islets, and steps down to the sunbeds and the sea. The kitchen runs Mediterranean and Asian food through the day, and a DJ plays from the late afternoon.
The music is the background rather than the point, which is what separates it from the places on the Playa d'en Bossa strip. People come here to watch something rather than to dance.
The beach below
Cala Comte is one of the best beaches on the island: shallow turquoise water over pale sand, with the islets a few hundred metres offshore. It is a series of small coves rather than one strip, and the Ashram sits above the last of them.
You can swim from the rocks below the restaurant, and there is a sandy cove a couple of minutes' walk in either direction.
When to arrive
Sunset moves through the season. In June and July it is around half past nine, in September closer to eight, and in the shoulder months earlier still. The useful rule is to be there ninety minutes before, which gives you a swim, a drink and a table facing the right way.
Dinner in July and August wants a booking. For a drink on the terrace, arriving early is the booking.
Getting there
It is about twenty-five minutes from San Antonio and forty from Ibiza Town, at the end of the road through Cala Comte. The car parks behind the beach fill from the middle of the afternoon in summer, and the last stretch of road backs up before sunset, which is the other argument for coming early.
Quick answers
What is Sunset Ashram? A restaurant and bar on the rocks at the end of Cala Comte, built around the sunset.
Do you need to book? For dinner in high summer, yes. For a drink, arrive early instead.
What time is sunset? Around 21:30 in midsummer, about 20:00 in September, earlier in the shoulder months.
Can you swim there? Yes, from the rocks below and from the coves either side.
Is it a club? No. There is a DJ, and the volume stays where you can talk.
Is it open in winter? No. It runs through the season.
Worth knowing
This is the west coast's best-known sunset spot, which means it is also the busiest. If it is full, the rocks along the coast either side give you the same view for nothing, and people bring a bottle and sit on them.
For the rest of the island's beach clubs, and which bay each one sits on, there is our guide to the beach clubs.