Fifty Years of Pacha Ibiza

Though the official symbol of Ibiza is in fact the ubiquitous wall lizard, the two cherries that serve as the Pacha logo are far more synonymous with the Balearic Islands throughout the world. The first incarnation was opened in Sitges, yet the Pacha brand will forever be intrinsically linked to the island of Ibiza and its genesis into a globally renowned nightlife mecca.

Pacha’s founder Ricardo Urgell, ​​a descendant of renowned Spanish painters Modest Urgell and Ricard Urgell, took his first steps into the world of hospitality in Sitges, teaming up with Tito Clarasó in 1965 to open Tito’s bar on what was known locally as Calle del Pecado (Sin Street). A few years later, inspired by his experiences at the local disco Tiffany’s, he converted an old farmhouse into a nightclub with the help of his brother Piti and the first incarnation of Pacha was born. The name stemmed from a conversation with Ricardo’s first wife Marisa, who quipped that they would be able to ‘live like pachas’ – a kind of sultan – with the wealth they would earn. Little did they know.

Across the water, Ibiza was attracting an eclectic group of draft dodgers, artists, musicians and bronzed bohemians from across the globe, congregating at the tail end of Franco’s repressive regime to enjoy the island’s isolation and its subsequent liberal atmosphere. As a regular visitor, Urgell saw the opportunity to open somewhere for this group to gather. He decided upon the then less-than salubrious location of Ses Feixes and in 1973 built a nightclub venue in the style of the island’s traditional white-walled fincas, opening the doors with a few staff, two fridges and a record player. In a nod to the famed Bianca Jagger moment at Studio 54 across the Atlantic, Urgell once entered the club astride a horse, steered by a barely dressed beauty; an image that would become as iconic as the one that inspired it.

Unbeknown to all at the time was that this inauspicious start would pave the way for the Pacha brand to develop into a global reference for clubbing nightlife. In doing so, it would transform Ibiza into the world’s premier destination for the hedonistically inclined. Pacha’s inauguration saw guests from the hippie trails of Morocco, Goa and India intersect with the great and the glamorous from across Europe. Egos and income were an irrelevance on the dancefloor, which would bear witness to European aristocracy boogying alongside impoverished artists and actors and everyone in between. It was a golden era of unbridled love, fun and innocence. As Pacha PR superstar Carlos Martorell notes, ‘Nobody knew anyone’s surname. Nobody aspired to be rich, powerful or popular. Nobody dressed conventionally. We were a cosmopolitan mass that, like Peter Pan, refused to grow up.’ In the 1970s came the Pacha full moon parties on the uninhabited islet of Espalmador, to which the Urgell brothers ferried revellers in wooden boats packed with food and alcohol. Freedom reigned for Ibiza’s hippie set, and there was a collective innocence, a sense of the world unfurling their feet. The 1980s saw every icon of the most decadent of decades pass through the doors of the ever-expanding nightclub, from Julio Iglesias to Grace Jones and Jean Paul Gaultier. There was a sense that Pacha had come to define what it meant to be young and free in an era untouched by social media, mobile phones and the commercialisation of the dance music scene.  

The 2000s ushered in a new era of decadence under the stewardship of legendary musical director Danny Whittle, as big names and bigger budgets paved the way for a new breed of superstar DJ, with the likes of Swedish House Mafia, Luciano and a then little-known Frenchman named David Guetta attracting a new generation of devotees.

Five decades since it all began, Pacha remains the world’s most iconic nightclub. So how has it maintained relevance in a world awash with clubbing copycats? According to the club’s artistic director Jessica Capaz McCarthy, the club’s perennial popularity can be put down to remaining true to its original roots. ‘Pacha as a brand is the manifestation of the real Ibiza – an island founded on revival and renewal,’ she says. ‘It oozes the glamour, creativity and bohemian essence of Ibiza and has a rich, storied heritage based in music, community and artistry. Ibiza is Pacha and Pacha is Ibiza – a company built on inclusivity, openness and freedom – and that remains essential for all of our venues, wherever they are in the world. Pacha’s success largely comes down to its Ibizan heritage, inclusivity and music, along with the unique Pacha experience being at the heart of everything it does. Last year saw a record number of visitors to Pacha venues, and this is because we are dedicated to deep-rooted understanding of our customer base, which crosses all generations. We keep them at the forefront of every decision we make and in doing that Pacha has remained one of the top hospitality and lifestyle brands across the world.’

Pacha remains the place where authenticity and spontaneity combine; a place that still embodies the values that in the 1970s and ’80s made Ibiza the island that welcomed those with open minds and alternative souls. These are the reasons why since 1973 Pacha has been the inherent pioneer of Ibiza’s dance and cultural movement, where the cherries and the island of freedom go hand in hand. Despite the changes of the past five decades, fittingly, it is Piti Urgell’s own Flower Power – a freewheeling, nostalgic celebration of love, music and bohemia – that remains the club’s longest-running night. A nod to the past perhaps, but a party that still succeeds in attracting a new generation of first-timers, keen to experience what remains the world’s most enduring nightlife brand.