Ibiza: it's not just for ravers

If you've just done a double-take on that opening line and thought 'relaxing? Ibiza? Shouldn't that be trashy, loud and full of 'ave it large youths' Ibiza?' you can be forgiven. For this is the image that television programmes like Ibiza Uncovered have left in our minds.

And it's because of this image that I was surprised by what was sat a few rows in front of me on a flight to this Balearic island - a family of four.

Yes, Ibiza is home to the world's biggest clubs but what's really special about this island is, despite the fact that you can drive from one side of the island to the other in half an hour, the clubbing scene is as detached from your holiday as you want it to be.

I won't lie, drink and drug-fuelled ravers parading the streets and flashing everything from boobs to glow sticks do exist in some parts of the island - Playa d'en Bossa and San Antonio - but if this isn't your scene, book up at one of the more lesser known, yet family friendly resorts. They DO exist.

The only contact with the club scene that you cannot avoid experiencing will begin the minute you enter the arrivals lounge at the airport. You will be met by some of the island's most beautiful women who will thrust a leaflet into your hands before you can say 'hola.' That leaflet will be the first of the many vibrantly sexy, and slightly in-your-face club advertisements that you can expect to see plastered over hotels, bars, restaurants and billboards across the island.

In particular, the red cherries logo that symbolise the super-club, Pacha, can be seen wherever you go.

So you will know the club scene is there, but whether the cherry's are sweet enough to tempt you is entirely for you to decide.

I should admit that I have a very sweet tooth and can't resist joining 1,300 like-minded people to experience the world's hottest DJs in one of the world's hottest clubs. And like many Ibiza virgins looking for the same thing, I went to notorious San Antonio with a "It really can't be as tacky as it seems on the telly" attitude.

Sadly, in many respects it is. And it turns out that most of the more exciting clubs that Ibiza is famed for - Amnesia, Privilege, Pacha, etc - are situated elsewhere on the island anyway.

The non-party animal may be tempted to go and see what San Antonio has to offer while the ravers are sleeping off their hangovers during the day. But don't, because all you will find is little more than Brits-abroad burger bars and a harbour. Fine if you like boats, but the harbours at Santa Eulalia or Eivissa are far more impressive.

If it's seclusion you're looking for, head to Puerto de San Miguel in the north.

I'm not sure San Miguel qualifies as a holiday resort as, while it boasts some good bars and restaurants, including a particularly good seafood restaurant situated right on the beach, there are only a few hotels, no supermarkets or cashpoint machines. Although I'm sure, given time, they will come.

In the meantime, the hotels that are set into pine-clad hills which frame a fabulous family-friendly beach are mostly all-inclusive, offering the holiday maker all they need anyway.

As a non-driver, I was left with no choice but to brave the public buses to get out and about and was pleased to discover they were nothing like the buses I'm used to at home - they're reliable, cheap and rarely over-crowded. And the drivers welcome tourists, including non-Spanish speakers.

To me, Ibiza Town really is the most fascinating part of the island to visit, day or night. And the great thing is there are plenty of buses to the town from all over the island, but if you do prefer to hire a car, remember to follow signs for Eivissa - why the Brits don't just call the place by its true Spanish name I don't know.

Not many tour operators offer package deals to the town but don't let that put you off going there at some point during your holiday.

In Ibiza Town you will see, in glorious living colour, a concentration of all the attractions and eccentricities which have made Ibiza world famous - and I don't mean the type of eccentricities as seen on Ibiza Uncovered.

Yes Ibiza Town does host a lively nightlife, but it requires a, how can I put it?... more mature attitude than that accepted in the west end of San Antonio.

That's not saying that the people in Ibiza Town don't know how to paaarttt-ay, they just do it at a more gentle pace.

Of all the places I experienced in Ibiza, I think the place most suited to families, yet seemingly undiscovered by Brit families is on the east coast, Santa Eulalia.

I spent a lot of my time in Santa Eulalia and not just because it's a town that boasts 63 shoe shops.

On the face of it, this town has a lot in common with those resorts more well-known to the Brits, like San Antonio or Playa d'en Bossa.

It's got all your basic family holiday resort necessities - plenty of shops, bars, restaurants, two beaches and a harbour - but none of that tacky Brits-abroad vibe.

The beach, albeit man-made, is as all good beaches should be: beautiful, clean and free of those awful multi-coloured parasols and plastic sun loungers which, in my opinion, only make a beach look ugly anyway (what's wrong with laying a towel on the sand)?

Talking of towels, one thing this place isn't short of is Germans. In fact, families and couples from all over the globe - sadly, apart from the Brits - seem to be enjoying this resort and to keep them all happy there are restaurants with everything from Thai to Italian to choose from.

Admittedly you would expect a Spanish island to serve up some tasty tapas or paella but if there's one thing Ibiza doesn't really do well it's Spanish cuisine.

But they do say that if a restaurant attracts locals, it must be good. So I followed them to Thai restaurant, Es Rickshaw in Santa Eulalia and proved the theory right. Who needs Spanish food anyway?

Overall, I think it's about time the Brits caught up with the rest of the world and started to enjoy all that Ibiza has to offer because there are more party-free zones on this island than late-night reality TV would ever have you believe.