About Ibiza

ABOUT IBIZA

Ibiza is a very special place with an appeal that is hard to define. The largest of the Pitiüsas, the small group of islands in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Denia, has always attracted attention due to its wild beauty, and the feeling of freedom that the island transmits.

Ibiza covers an area of 572 km² (355 mi²) and has 210 km (130 mi.) of coastline. It is a mountainous island with a mostly rugged coastline, interrupted frequently by sandy coves and some plains, such as Las Salinas in the south. The highest point of the island is the 476 meters of Sa Talaia. The climate is mild, with temperatures ranging between 25ºC and 14ºC (77ºF and 57ºF).

The cultural richness and biodiversity of Ibiza was declared a World Heritage Site in 1999. Due to its geographical location, Ibiza and Formentera have always been a key strategic point on transport routes from east to west Mediterranean, becoming an important reference since the arrival of the Phoenicians and the successive civilizations that have conquered the islands and have left their mark over the centuries. Also, Ibiza and Formentera have been declared "Special Protection Area for Birds by the EU, being home to many species of native and migratory birds. The natural wealth of the land is comparable to the natural beauty of the underwater world surrounding the islands, which also makes it an ideal destination for divers.

Ibiza was and still is a meeting place for the creative and intellectual elite.

The famous sixties were not the first cultural boom the island experienced. In the thirties, people from all over Europe found refuge in Ibiza, a place which could provide the peace of an island anchored in the past. They were people with connections to the avant-garde movements such as surrealism and Bauhaus. The list included philosophers, novelists, poets and architects such as Erwin Broner, Raoul Hausmann and Josep Lluís Sert. They were attracted by the tolerant island and put the seeds of what was to be a cosmopolitan society.

The second wave of cultural enrichment began at the end of the fifties with the presence of many artists and intellectuals on an island which had hardly noticed the changes that tourism was to bring with it. Due to the very diverse origin of these people, a multicultural society was formed with an enormous creative potential.

This potential found its expression mainly in the music of the 60s and 70s hippie movement. And it is the evolving style of music which to this day is the expression of creativity and that made Ibiza and its night and beach clubs famous worldwide.

But what really makes Ibiza so fascinating to so many people who are attracted to the island, is the fact that contrasts can co-exist so harmoniously here. The calm and authenticity of an ancient tradition and the electronic beats of a dynamic generation.