PACHA‘S iconic cherries are the unofficial symbol of Ibiza. My first sighting of them came not on the Spanish island, but at London Heathrow, on a British woman’s chest, as I queued to board my flight. A few hours later, I would be checking into the hotel they belong to, and preparing to spend the next 48 hours immersed in the world of Pacha.
Pacha Hotel exterior
It was my first time in Ibiza, which feels slightly surprising given my appetite for festivals, DJs and late nights. Rather than ease myself into island life, I decided to do the opposite: throw myself in at the deep end, with two nights at Pacha and GORDO’s TARAKA residency as my introduction to the island.
GORDO’s six-week residency had launched just days earlier, bringing the Grammy-nominated producer and his TARAKA label to Pacha every Tuesday until the end of September, alongside an international roster of house and tech-house talent.
My initiation began almost immediately.
I was collected from the airport by Pacha’s taxi service and driven straight to Pacha Hotel, where a giant cherry sculpture sits outside the entrance. It was a supersized reminder that this is a hotel designed for people who came to Ibiza to have fun.
Pacha Restaurant
After checking in at around 3pm, I had a few hours to get to know the island before the night began. I wandered through Ibiza’s Old Town, browsing boutiques and stopping at bars, before returning to the hotel to get ready. The schedule takes some getting used to: in Ibiza, the night starts late. Dinner at 11pm is perfectly normal, and arriving at a club before midnight is practically early.
My first stop was the Pacha restaurant, just across the road from the hotel. Dinner came in the form of a spread of Spanish-inspired dishes and cocktails, with a live DJ providing the soundtrack as tables slowly filled with immaculately dressed diners. Ibiza has its own fashion sense. Netted tops, cowboy boots, tiny dresses and statement accessories are the club uniform, and it’s very festival adjacent. The restaurant felt like a preview of the club, and this made sense after I learned that booking a table here guarantees you an entry ticket.
Dishes at Pacha Restaurant
It takes the ease of queuing away from you. My first drink of the night naturally was the Pacha Lover – a cherry-soda-based vodka cocktail. By the time I finished dinner, the restaurant was beginning to resemble a party in its own right. But there was still time to kill before the club reached full capacity, so I headed upstairs to Paradiso, Pacha’s cocktail bar for a drinks stop.
One spicy margarita later, I was ready.
At around 1.30am, I crossed the road into the club. The smoking area was already heaving, and waiting inside was one of the stranger sights of the night – a life-sized plastic statue of GORDO standing behind a set of decks. Pacha installs a version of this installation for each residency, and I wondered where they all went afterwards.
I followed the sound of the bass through a series of illuminated corridors. Walls flickered with moving graphics, turning the walk into something resembling a sensory maze, until the passage eventually opened into Pacha’s main room.
It is an impressive reveal. The dancefloor sits at the centre like a modern day colosseum, surrounded by raised levels packed with people watching the action below. By the time GORDO took to the decks at 3am, the room had reached full velocity.
GORDO is known for big-room energy, and there was little evidence of anyone holding back. The crowd moved almost as one as the drops landed, while dancers moved on platforms either side of the DJ booth, switching every 15 minutes and vogueing through the biggest moments of the set in full club glamour.
I had VIP All Access for the night, with a position behind the DJ booth offering a bird’s-eye view of the dancefloor. Table service meant drinks appeared without interrupting the night, and the sound system was reaching us from every angle.
By 5am, the dance floor was still going strong. I, however, knew that I had another night ahead of me. The journey home was about as painless as an Ibiza night out can be. I crossed the road, walked into the hotel and was back in bed within three minutes.
Pacha Hotel Master Suite Bedroom
The following morning started at island pace. I slept through the breakfast buffet, ordered room service and went back to sleep. By 5pm, I was sufficiently recovered for round two.
I headed back towards the Old Town for an evening stroll before returning to the hotel to get ready again. Dinner was at the hotel restaurant, which is famous for its pizzas. There was a DJ playing and people were dancing between tables. If you can’t get tickets to Pacha this is the next closest party.
Pacha Hotel Master Suite Jacuzzi
I tore myself away and crossed into the club for night two: Mau P Presents Baddest Behaviour.
The energy was noticeably different from GORDO’s night. The music had shifted and the production was different. Ibiza’s particular magic is partly in this constant turnover. Different DJs, different rooms, different tribes arriving under the same famous cherries.
Two nights, two very different parties and barely 48 hours on the island had given me only the smallest glimpse of Ibiza. There is, of course, considerably more to discover beyond the walls of Pacha. Beaches, restaurants, sunsets, beach clubs and the slower wellness side of island life that I barely had time to meet.
Pacha has been part of Ibiza’s nightlife fabric since 1973, and there is something reassuring about knowing it remains consistently good.
For a first taste of Ibiza, there’s no better entry point.
by Katrina Mirpuri