By John O’Ceallaigh
The White Isle has no shortage of small-scale design-led hotels to choose from, but still the Experimental Group’s Montesol Experimental, Ibiza is likely to be the prettiest new property to open its doors this year.
That said, it’s actually a reopening: the long-standing hotel’s restaurant Sabbaba was renovated in 2021 which seems to have precipitated plans for a more radical full-body overhaul. With Sabbaba sorted, the Experimental team then renovated the hotel’s 30 bedrooms and three suites. The rooftop bar and boutique shop have had little touch-ups too, and now everything is back in business.
That rooftop bar features views of Dalt Vila, Ibiza’s fortified old town; the boutique sells trinkets, jewellery, accessories and clothes from Spanish designers and a few choice internationally based artisans. The hotel also includes dining venue Café Montesol, a cheery, unpretentious spot serving tapas-style dishes.
For the renovation, the 90-year-old building was spruced up with lots of colourful design elements that take their inspiration from Ibiza’s bohemian character. There was plenty of history to draw from too: the building was Ibiza’s first hotel and over the years it’s welcomed everyone from Pink Floyd to Orson Welles to Carolina de Monaco.
If you walk through the doors this summer, expect “signature” pompoms, textured walls embedded with shell patterns; and celestial embellishments including brass suns and moons which the Experimental team describe as “over-sized” (although, as you’d expect, they’re significantly smaller than the real thing). Elsewhere you’ll find wardrobes that slot together like jigsaw pieces, tiled minibars in bursts of orange, and chairs that look like they’ve been rendered from playdough.
The refurbished hotel opens in April 2023, and is complemented by other Experimental Group hotels, restaurants, beach clubs and bars in destinations including Paris, London, Menorca, Venice and Verbier.
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