It’s begun — another fiery hot 🔥 summer season in Ibiza is underway. There have been several competitors over the years — Kavos, Croatia, Magaluf, Mykonos — but nowhere has rivalled the f*cked up party atmosphere of this little white island. Ibiza is the true No.1 music destination of the world. For us, it’s so much more than just sex, drugs and outrageous parties (contrary to what your family believes).
Surprisingly there are actually other things you can do on the island. But… that’s for another time. For now, I’m going to let you in on what we’ve learnt partying on the island year after year. No need to ask the local promoters on Playa d’en Bossa ⛱
Here’s Waffle’s crap-free guide of things worth seeing and doing in Ibiza this summer 16 ➡️
Day Parties
The ones that are good are phenomenal. You’ll never want to leave. The ones that aren’t are… mediocre at best. Nikki Beach Ibiza and many of the public boat parties are good examples of the latter.
Nikki Beach for some reason doesn’t attract a decent enough crowd (maybe also because of it’s in pretty remote location), and most of the boat parties consist of 80% English “lads,” need I say more. If you were to check out boat parties though definitely go for Capadi Rebels or Ocean Beat, they are by far the best on the island bar unless you’re lucky enough to land yourself on one of the super yachts 🛥
There are however some awesome places to go to for that day-time vibe; Blue Marlin on the weekend is usually pretty popping! Saturday is busy, but Sunday is a whole-other story. I love it ❤️
You’ll experience some of the dopest house music 🔊 amongst a beautiful crowd from around the world. The models and ballers are usually out in full force here, with a large cohort of Eurotrash decked in LV, Plein and Hermes head to toe. But, the atmosphere is something out of this world, with the sun shining and some booze flowing you’re guaranteed to have a good time.
One problem though, if you don’t arrive early at Blue Marlin on a weekend you may end up cueing like I did. Try to get there for 4–5pm to be safe unless you’ve managed to grab a table (especially on a Sunday).
Destino and Beachouse (Update: Beachouse will no longer hold its Sunday parties) are great alternatives to Blue Marlin. In fact, the locals often prefer Destino for Guy Gerber’s Rumours night (that used to be held at Beachouse) on Sundays or the super chilled out vibe of Beachouse a stones throw away from Ushuaia. They’re on the whole less pretentious, cheaper and have a younger crowd. The boys and I generally prefer it.
The only downside is that they only have parties on certain days. But be warned, when Solomun is on… sh*t goes down 😎 For a full list of all these events you’re best looking at Ibiza Spotlight here or you’ll risk hitting somewhere and hearing crickets 😱
Ushuaia…Ushuaia…Ushuaia🤘I don’t even know what to say here but GO 🏃 Ushuaia is my mecca. It holds an evening party that starts properly around 6–7pm. It consists mostly of EDM (yes, I know, lots of “commercial” music), but it really is the perfect pre-party to begin destroying your liver at. I’d stay all night if I could and, soon I might just be able to #Excitement.
Ushuaia lights up at just the right time to get you ready for some late night debauchery at Amnesia, Pacha 🍒 or one of the infamous villa parties. Martin Garrix’s Multiply ❌ event on Friday’s is my favourite party, or for deeper house check out ANTS 🐜 on Saturdays. It gets so busy you can hardly move. But, if you have the luxury of being able to stay at the Ushuaia Club you’ll get the full “Ushuaia Experience” which is f*ed up beyond belief. I’ll explain about that in a later post 😈
Night Parties
There are 4 “main” clubs in Ibiza: Pacha, Amnesia, Space and the infamous DC10.
Pacha 🍒 is probably the most well known, with franchises all over the world (and recently even in Macau 🇲🇴). The most famous night at Pacha, and probably throughout most of Ibiza, is definitely Solomun +1 on Sundays. The music on this night is just ridiculous. It’s my favourite night. It also attracts arguably the island’s best and most international crowd. Solomun’s music is on the whole more accessible for people who aren’t into the deep stuff and he has a way of swaying people who don’t even like house music!
I make sure I go every time I hit the island. It’s definitely worth missing work 🏢 for on Monday. On Thursdays David Guetta has a residency for F*ck Me I’m Famous (the crowd is good but the music is a bit too commercial for my liking). I personally prefer Flower Power 🌸 on Mondays or Nic Fanciulli’s monthly We Are The Night held on Fridays.
Amnesia is known for its deep house and minimal 🔊 You know, the kind of music where you lose yourself and the let the beat completely take control. If you stand outside it all you can here is the BOOM. You’ll know what I mean if you’ve ever been.
For me, it’s the best club in Ibiza. Nothing rivals it night after night. That said, i’ve always had the most fun on Mondays at Cocoon with Sven Väth or on Fridays at Music On 🔛 with Marco Carola. These nights are seriously rammed. Expect heavy drops, bass, more bass and a bit more bass until 8–9am when you’ll walk out into the sunshine and onto the afterparty 😎
Space, is best known for Tuesday nights with Carl Cox. The man, the myth, the legend. Carl has been playing here since most of us were in our diapers. He’s definitely the most loved DJ on the island. Partly because of his energy, techno skills and that infamous “OH YES OH YES!” For me, him and Space are the heart of what made me fall in love ❤️ with the Balearics in the first place. I’ll miss them both 😭
Carl usually comes on around 3am and keeps going more or less all night long. Sometimes even for a whopping 5–6hr set! There is no place i’d rather be on a Tuesday night.
Make sure you see him before the closing of Space this year for a true taste of Ibiza. You’ll be lucky to grab a ticket though. Everyone else wants them too!
DC10 is that place on the island where the cool kids hang out. The mantra is simple — come together to share in a deep love of music on the dance floor. No frills, no fuss, no nonsense — just straight up, inimitable club vibes. DC10 has two famous nights Circo Loco 🎪 and Paradise which features Jamie Jones. Circo Loco is the only party to compete with Cocoon, so you kinda have to decide which one to go to (or like me you’ll end up at both 😂). I would base it on how deep you like your house. Deep — extremely deep, go to Cocoon. Fucked-up-shit deep where you won’t remember your first name go to Circo Loco. Also nobody really knows what time it closes 😂
Paradise is the other night held at DC10 on Wednesdays. Jamie Jones in simple words makes the world a better place. You will forget what time it is, maybe even what day it is. You’ll walk out of DC10 into the sunshine and kind of realise there is a God 🙏 The sun will be out and you’ll have an epiphany. Definitely worth it for the €5 they charge for a ticket (if you buy in advance, on the door it’s €50) 👊
After Parties
You might be thinking….well, considering the nightclubs are open till 8–9am why the hell do I need afterparties…..hahaha well you are talking about an island that literally doesn’t sleep. The afterparties can range from a cave in the side of a mountain 🗻 and the basement of Destino to random villas parties with hundreds of people. There really is no formula to it. It just depends what night it is and who’s in town, but there’s always something going on. In my experience these can be even better than the club nights themselves!
The best way to get the low down is through asking the waiters at the clubs or on Waffle. The waiters usually know what’s going down and on Waffle you can always keep up with the latest stuff that’s happening on the island 🏝
Weekly Party Guide
Monday — Cocoon @ Amnesia or Circoloco @ DC10
Tuesday — Carl Cox @ Space
Wednesday — Paradise @ DC10 or Hyte @ Amnesia
Thursday — F*ck Me I’m Famous @ Pacha
Friday — Multiply @ Ushuaia, Music On @ Amnesia
Saturday — Ants @ Ushuaia, Elrow @ Space
Sunday — Blue Marlin, Heart or Solomun+1 @ Pacha
