Vara del Rey, Ibiza.

Without a doubt the epicentre of Ibiza, the place to meet up and hang out on the island. Vara Del rey owes its name to Joaquín Vara de Rey y Rubio, born in Ibiza in 1840. He was a Spanish soldier and politician and a hero in the Cuban War thanks to his defence of the fort at El Viso.

Interesting examples of colonial architecture can be found on this street that constitutes the epicentre of the city and borders the neighbourhood of La Marina. It was, at the end of the XIX century, the starting point for the expansion of the city. Its wide dimensions turn it into a place that has been used again and again to host cultural activities, handcraft fairs and popular events.

In 1912, the urbanisation of the street’s surroundings began after approval was granted by Ibiza Town Hall concerning the technical conditions that the buildings that were going up in the area had to meet. This was followed by a series of notable acts such as the creation of the first public library on the island in 1932, the approval for lighting and the inauguration of Hotel Montesol in 1933 as well as the opening of Ca n’Alfredo restaurant in 1934. By the 1960s and 70s, the first changes were being made to the zone along with the first requests on the behalf of technicians and architects such as Erwin Broner and Raimon Torres for road traffic to be eliminated or reduced.

The centre of the square is occupied by one of the city’s most important monuments. It is dedicated to General Joaquín Vara de Rey y Rubio, who was born in Dalt Vila Castle in 1840 and who died a heroic death at the Battle of El Caney, in the Cuban War (1898). Rendered in a modernist style, it was erected with donations from the entire Spanish people. King Alfonso XIII opened it in 1904.

The square or boulevard of Vara de Rey is the city’s heart and even more so since it was rebuilt and pedestrianised in 2017, Being the square that divides the old port with the most modern Ibiza.

One of the last official acts to be held there was in May 2018 with the homage to General Joaquín Vara de Rey on the 120th anniversary of his death at the Battle of El Caney.