IBIZA TRIBES
Ibiza tribes
It is very possible that 5 different people may go on Ibiza summer holidays in 2010 and have completely different experiences. Unbeknownst to many of the 2 million holiday-goers that visit Ibiza each year, the type of experience that holiday-goers have on the island varies a lot on what social tribe they happen to find themselves in on the island. We’re calling these tribes the Ibiza tribes…
Ibiza tribes grow naturally over the course of the season and then shrink again in September. Once people join their tribe it is hard for them to escape - especially when they only stay on the island for one or two weeks!
Which tribe you get recruited into (or rather enlisted in) affects what your holiday experience is like. It affects where you go, what you do, who you meet etc. Ibiza tribes create holiday experiences that years of island-tradition and other holiday goers have sculpted for them.
If you want to find out more, here is a definitive guide to the Ibiza tribes…
(Before you read, please note that Ibiza wouldn’t be the same without all of its different tribes... they have all played a key role in shaping the island into what it is today).
The San Antonio Massive
This tribe often stays in the large ibiza hotels or in studio apartments near San Antonio. They arrive in groups of approximately 6, often with matching t-shirts and/or fancy dress… Hen and Stag parties populate some of this tribe, as do ‘end-of-university’ and ‘end-of-college’ escapees. This tribe is rarely found sober and is often burnt (after getting wasted and falling asleep in the sun).
This San An tribe does not often rent cars in Ibiza and therefore doesn’t manage to explore the island to the full. Members rarely visit more than one or two beaches or deviate to much from the strip in the West End. This means that they often meet each other throughout their trip which means that their groups merge, fuse together and make a western front that consumes ALL alcohol in its path.
However, with all that said, there should be nothing negative said about Ibiza’s dedicated infantry. They go out every day they are on the island, they meet a lot of people and if we’re honest they probably get the most action on the island!
Without the San Antonio Massive, the clubs on the island would not be nearly as busy, the ‘pre-lash’ drink offers not nearly as good and there would be far fewer ‘what happens in Ibiza stays in Ibiza’ stories...
The San An Massive are the building blocks of the island.
OFTEN SEEN IN: The West-End Strip, San Antonio Bay, Es Paradis, Water Parties, The Zoo Project
The Villas (This tribe rents villas…)
The first difference between this social tribe and the San An Massive is that they often have cars. This is because it doesn’t make sense for them to pay for a 25 euro taxi to the nearest town and then another 25 euros to get back to their villas again... With their own cars, this independently-mobile and thus more fragmented social group will often learn a little more about where they are in relation to everything else. This naturally gives them a better sense of perspective and therefore a stronger affinity with the island.
The villas in Ibiza are often quite large (between 4 and 8 bedrooms) and are situated down small dirt roads. Even if this social tribe arrives with the intention of staying in their villa, they often don’t because when they arrive on the island they realise that no one in their party actually wants to cook for the other 7 people! Once or twice in their stay they may try to cook a barbecue however, for the most part they eat out.
In the daytime, after the previous night’s escapades, this social tribe either stays by their pool in their villa or alternatively they split up and go to one of Ibiza’s 80-odd beaches.
Obviously, the this Villa-based tribe is more isolated than the San An Massive as they arrive with a group of friends who they already know and with whom they stay with for the majority of their holiday. To address this situation, large groups of guys staying in villas will often go out with the intention of inviting female company back to ‘their villa’. However, what they don’t plan for is that every member of their crew needs to be on top form to persuade a whole other villa-worth of the opposite sex to come back with them to a random villa - to which they probably couldn’t even give directions!
Even though this social group may spend a little more money bar-hopping (rather than staying in hotel corridors), and they are a little more isolated from the masses, their lifestyle on the island is certainly something to be envied. With fantastically luxurious villas costing a surprisingly reasonable amount (approx 4000 euros per week for a group of 10 people), raising your Ibiza experience up a notch is not as costly as people might imagine!
Our advice - Pick a great bunch of people to hire a villa with, save up a bit of money and hit Ibiza has hard as you can. You won’t be living on top of other people’s dirty towels and if you do happen to find yourself a summer romance... everyone has to admit – it really is pretty cool to have your own villa!
OFTEN SEEN IN: Pacha, Space, DC10, Ibiza Town (in bars)
The Workers (The guys who work in Ibiza….)
Compared to the ‘San Antonio Massive’ or the ‘The Villas’, The Workers are like a group of locals. Knowledgeable (or rather ‘informed’), they learn the lay of the land and become accustomed to its terrain and tribes. They also enjoy certain benefits, paying less for drinks, getting in free into certain clubs, not to mention knowing key information like ‘how much taxis should cost’ or ‘which is the best beach to go to’. It is because of these benefits and their familiarity with the island that they often assume an attractive confidence. After doing ‘the season’ many of The Workers fall so in love with the island (and the confidence that the magic of the island bestows upon them) that they come back year after year.
It must be remembered however that that the workers are NOT locals. Some would say that they are friendlier than locals yet it is easy to forget The Workers meet a lot of people over the course of the season and it is pretty fair to say that by the end of their stint on the island, people who they met at the beginning of the season seem like distant memories. If you make friends with a local it is a good chance that they’ll remember your name next time you’re on the island; the same may not be said about a Worker...
Like seasonal birds the workers flock together to mate, they go to specific after-hours clubs where they continue their on-going relationships with other workers. They provide each other with a consistency that they do not find when they meet the masses tourists over the course of the season.
If you want to find something out or get an honest opinion about something about Ibiza (and you don’t want someone to put a downer on your holiday!) then ask a worker. If you asked a local, “What do you think about Privilege on Mondays?” then they may say, “Don’t bother going, it’s not very good”. However, a local’s opinion is based on years of experience and desensitisation. However, if you ask a worker, then they’ll probably say “Priviledge on Monday is pretty good, make sure you get wasted before you go because the drinks in there are expensive. However, I’d recommend going to.... because...” You get the drift...
OFTEN SEEN IN: Café Mambo, Hush, Pacha, The Underground Club
The Locals
The locals are a very tight bunch that often does not pay to get in anywhere… They often don’t like going out in San Antonio and they are pretty family-orientated.
The locals fall into two main categories, 1) Europeans who have either previously been successful and have moved to the island for a change of lifestyle or Europeans who work in the music industry OR 2) ‘Local-locals’ who descended from the island’s original farmers or families who emigrated from mainland Spain a while ago.
Holiday goers will not meet this crowd. If they do, they already know who about these social tribes…
OFTEN SEEN IN: Underground, Priviledge (on certain days), The Underground Club, opening parties, Pacha (The Terrace), Blue Marlin
The Island Elite
Different to the Villa rental tribe and The Locals, the Island Elite do pretty much what they want... Members of this social group often own property on the island however they do not spend too long on the island over the course of the summer. They often split their time between Cannes and Monaco and come to Ibiza for just a couple of weeks (when they feel the need).
You will not see this collective in San Antonio. To be honest, you won’t really even see them in the clubs, unless you catch a fleeting glimpse of them on a table on a club balcony somewhere. If you’re looking out for them then you can spot them instantly from The Locals (who may also have tables) because the Elite will be the ones with far too much alcohol for the number of people on their table.
OFTEN SEEN IN: Aura, Blue Marlin, Pacha VIP, Privilege VIP, pretty much anywhere where other people cant get in…
The Hippies
For many, Ibiza is a spiritual destination. There is a small tribe that keeps itself to itself, The Hippies. Adorned with sarongs and elasticised headscarves they are very easy to spot. They do not go to the large clubs but instead prefer gatherings at dusk on beaches or rocky cliff tops.
Not many people will meet this tribe unless you perhaps buy a massage off them on the beach.
OFTEN SEEN IN: Caravans by the beach…
There are a few more tribes that we’ll add as time goes on. We’re also looking for typical pictures of each tribe!
