The ZEST resort will open on Ibiza in April 2027, with Tomorrowland in residence

A complete rebuild in place of the Stella Maris

ZEST is rising on a hill overlooking the bay of Sant Antoni, at a spot called Cap Negret. The site was not empty: it held the Stella Maris, a family complex of roughly three hundred rooms that marked decades of tourism on Ibiza. Planned for 2026, the project was pushed back to April 2027 after structural weaknesses were found in the concrete of the original foundations.

Rather than reinforce, Dutch investor Bas Rasker chose to demolish the existing buildings entirely and start again from new, absorbing the cost of the twelve-month delay. A Quote 500 member and founder of Axivate, he has set up a standalone management team of about fifteen people to run the site while keeping strategic decisions in his own hands.

Three hundred and thirty keys on two levels, and six villas

The architectural choice is surprising for a property of this size: the 330 keys sit across just two levels, with ground-floor rooms opening onto a garden and penthouses above. The palette is organic, neutral tones and natural materials, in line with what Ibiza’s west coast has been producing for several seasons.

The range runs from a double room with a private garden to a deluxe suite with garden and pool, taking in junior suites with a private sea-view rooftop. Six standalone villas complete it, named Agate, Coral, Cyprium, Lazuli, Sapphire and Totum, with three to five bedrooms, sleeping six to ten.

Tomorrowland on the decks, five restaurants on the card

This is the project’s most unexpected signature. The resort has struck a daily collaboration with Tomorrowland, the Belgian electronic music brand, which will run musical programming and dedicated experiences inside the property. On an island where the night structures the hotel economy, tying a family-facing five-star to that name is a readable bet.

Five dining venues are announced: Tala Nur for breakfast, Bacuda all day, Ocio for elevated Mediterranean cooking, a Lobby Bar, and Madunia at dinner. The last has not waited for the resort to open: set into the rock of Cap Negret, this open-air table built around island produce and open-flame cooking has been running for two years already, and serves as a shop window for the estate’s positioning.

A 6,000 sq m pool club, a spa and a dog club

The list of facilities states the ambition. The pool club covers 6,000 square metres, alongside a spa, a gym, a kids club and meeting spaces. A rooftop restaurant will offer a panoramic view over the island.

One offering stands out and deserves a mention, rare as it remains in Mediterranean luxury hotels: the property plans a dog club, a dedicated space for guests’ dogs. In a market where pets are usually settled with a supplement and a list of constraints, the proposal is a departure.

What this project says about Ibiza’s west coast

Sant Antoni has carried a mass-tourism reputation for twenty years that the municipality is trying to shed. Replacing a three-hundred-room family complex with a five-star backed by more than two hundred million euros illustrates that shift better than any council plan.

The west coast, long seen as the underside of the chic island, is becoming the epicentre of the Balearic move upmarket, helped by its sunsets and by land that is still available. The timetable remains to be confirmed, however: the project has already slipped once, and an April 2027 opening will have to work around island seasonality.