The Putibarco. Ibiza’s Infamous Love Boat.
Written by Dan Kirwan
A pleasure boat once sailed the seas around Ibiza, following its billionaire owner at a discreet distance on his megayacht, which held the title of the world’s largest yacht at 147m in length, complete with a helipad, black Mercedes cars and a crew of 66. The crew and passengers of this yacht, styled with luxury interiors including gold taps and priceless art hanging from its walls, were all male as it belonged to a Royal family, so appearances of sanctity and decorum were observed. The Megayacht holiday home of the Prince would sail into Ibiza every July accompanied by two smaller yachts; one was for administrative staff, and the other was for partying.
Nicknamed The Putibarco by the local Ibicencos, which translates as The Whoreboat, the third yacht at 77m in length contained roughly 30 female friends of the Royal Entretauge, a high-class collection of the most prestige escorts assembled from brothels around the world and restocked weekly to ensure a fresh supply of entertainment. Ladies of stunning beauty and physical prowess would accompany their companions to restaurants, parties and beaches on the white isle. The Putibarco would appear every summer when the Royal Prince would holiday around Ibiza and Formentera for a month or two. Due to religious reasons, discretion and privacy were paramount, and the ladies would rarely disembark the yacht; they would be transported by private jet from London and Paris and helicoptered onto the megayacht before being ferried to The Putibarco.
Once, the Prince decided to come ashore and lounge on the stunning beach of Ses Illets in Formentera to experience what it was like to live as a hippy. A makeshift beach bar was assembled, and hippy entertainers from the local workforce were hired to entertain the Prince with juggling, fire acts, bongo drums, singing and dancing. The ladies, all dressed in white bikinis, disembarked in groups of five and sunbathed on the beach, which became the private preserve of the Prince. People on the beach or who wandered onto it during the royal visit were paid handsomely to make themselves scarce.
Ibiza an island where money doesnt smell
The Putibarco ladies were primarily decorative to enhance the Prince’s power, style and taste. Those Ibicencos who encountered The Putibarco all describe it as an erotic flotilla of pleasure where all-night parties and scenes of debauchery could be heard drifting across the still waters of the Mediterranean. The crew had installed cameras and microphones on the Putibarco to view the live show from afar. The Prince was well known for tipping large amounts of cash, so he was a popular guy in Ibiza, where discretion is always appreciated by those who value privacy. The Putibarco is one of those stories that illustrates how the wealthy party on an island where money doesn’t smell.
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