Each summer, you can guarantee that there'll be a handful parties you can't bring yourself to miss. Parties where holidaymakers, locals, workers and industry professionals flock to en masse.
Ibiza summer 2019 has already seen its fair share of unforgettable parties - too many to list them all.
Just a few off the top of our heads: Ushuaïa & Hï Ibiza's 24-hour double-header opening party Odyssey, IMS Dalt Vila Grand Finale, Cocoon's return to Amnesia, the first Music On daytime and night Thursday combo and All Day I Dream at Cova Santa. All were epic.
As we fast-approach the halfway marker of the summer, let's take a look at the remainder of the calendar and any parties we consider to be unmissable.
Clockwork Orange |
Benimussa Park/Es Paradis/Amnesia/Café Mambo | Friday 19 July - monday 22 July
Orange Army assemble. Kicking-off today, Clockwork Orange's annual weekender is bigger than ever for its quarter-century celebrations. We start early, outdoor at Benimussa Park before transferring the action to Es Paradis after dark.
Nowadays, Es Paradis programmes its weekly nights in accordance with the mass market. Fun nights such as the water and UV paint parties cater to the younger crowd. But if you want to see Es Paradis in full bloom, then one of the few chances of a guaranteed club in full-swing is tonight's afterparty.
Veterans like Jeremy Healy, Jason Bye and Danny Gould himself are all set to play. On Sunday, the all-day affair at Amnesia is another leg not to be missed - with Paul Oakenfold returning to play the club after many years' absence.
Swedish House Mafia | Ushuaïa | Friday 26 July
Ever since the super-group reformed it was only a matter of time before they returned to Ibiza. Now Swedish House Mafia has a single date in the calendar - back at their former home, Ushuaïa.
Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello reunite on stage on Friday 26 July. An exclusive one-off, you won't be able to catch the trio anywhere else on the island this summer. Trust us, you don't want to miss this - unmissable in every sense.
Warriors x Planet Claire | Octan Ibiza | Sunday 28 July
Steve Lawler's cult Warriors hang-out returned to the basement earlier this month to widespread acclaim. We had missed those hazy Sunday sessions under the neon lights. How you could top the opening, we do not know...
…unless you were to open the adjacent Lab room and have French trilogy Apollonia takeover with their brand new Planet Claire project playing all night long.
Octan Ibiza already offers something different to the island's clubbers, but we can't wait to see the full venue operational.
Carl Cox's Birthday | RESISTANCE | Privilege | Tuesday 30 July
Each week, RESISTANCE packs festival-sized line-ups and production into the World's largest club, Privilege. Every date is a techno-lovers dream, but the history books point to Coxy's birthday being a highlight of the year.
Although the party's opening actually happens a week earlier, the island always comes together to celebrate the big man being a year older. Old friends Loco Dice and Nic Fanciulli are along for the ride, with Jamie Jones also playing. Quite an invite list!
Spaces will be, frankly, gold dust. The only way to guarantee is by purchasing a ticket well in advance.
The Gardenarium | Cova Santa | Wednesday 31 July
After last year's Midsommar one-off, elrow returns to Cova Santa for a single date in 2019. This time none-other-than Seth Troxler has been roped in to help curate a diverse line-up, that also features Hot Chip (DJ), Horse Meat Disco, Virginia and Gideön.
What will The Gardenarium hold in store?
As with all elrow parties, no expense is going to be spared on the production front. Though the one obvious difference is that this is likely to attract a more mature crowd than is typically found at the promoter's weekly Amnesia residency.
Solomun +Live | Destino | Thursday 8 August
In addition to the very popular Music On Daytime events, Destinomakers has programmed several Thursday one-offs that think a little outside of the box. Already this summer, Solomun has invited live performers GHEIST and Francesco Tristano to play his two prior dates at Destino.
The boldest of all has been reserved for the third +LIVE show on 8 August. MEUTE are not your typical electronic live act, nor an act you'll find in Ibiza very often. A brass band reciting techno numbers is pretty niché but equally scene-stealing impressive. Have a look on YouTube.
Making the occasion extra special, Thursday 8 August is the date of Ibiza Town's San Ciriaco fireworks display. Is there a better vantage point than Cap Martinet's clifftop? We doubt it.
ONE NIGHT STAND | DC10 | Friday 9 August
Last summer, Game Over took its new Coxy-fronted party on a tour of the island - stopping at Pacha, Amnesia and DC10. Well, it looks like the party settled on a favourite, with the underground gatekeepers returning to DC10 for three key dates in 2019.
If the first date was anything to go by, then the next is surely going to top that. What are we most excited about, Coxy aside? Got to be that confirmed appearance from Fatboy Slim under his real name, Norman Cook. Now that's interesting...
WNDRLND presents Judgement Ibiza | Eden | Saturday 10 August
Everybody loves a comeback. Judge Jules' legendary trance party, Judgement Sundays (and later Fridays) ruled the roost in San Antonio for over a decade. Sparking the nostalgia, WNDRLND invite the party back to Eden for a special takeover.
The Judge is joined by Vicky Devine.
Transmoderna | Pacha | Friday 23 August
During the party's debut year, Dixon has certainly curated Transmoderna's line-up that panders to the underground demographic. Each week is pretty salivating, from our perspective. Picking-out a highlight was tough, but we think we've spotted it.
Calling on Innervisions pal Kristian Beyer - AKA the DJ half of Âme - the two friends are set to spar all night for one of their famed back-to-back spectacles. These occasions always capture the imagination - and Pacha is in for a treat on this night.
elrow | Amnesia | Saturday 24 August
Realistically, you could pick any date of elrow's 19-week Amnesia run - and it's going to be epic. So why this date? For starters, it's one of the party's most outrageous, colourful and flamboyant themes: the Rio De Janeiro carnival-inspired Samrowbromo do Brasil.
Secondly, it features not one but two DJs who have links to samba-inspired music from South America. Melé is one - and the other is only Fatboy Slim. After appearing for elrow at Glastonbury and its London festival, Mr Cook makes his elrow Ibiza debut. It's going to be a riot.
Plus Steve Lawler plays all night long in the Club room.
Glitterbox | Hï ibiza | Sunday 1 September
Simon Dunmore's house and disco odyssey, Glitterbox made the move from Fridays to Sundays for 2019. Other than that, it's business as usual at Hï Ibiza. Each date is killer in its own right. Though if push comes to shove, we would have to plump for this impressive date.
House master Todd Terry, trans role model Honey Dijon, legendary producer Joey Negro and everybody's favourite wildman DJ Harvey all star. There's still more, as Nightmares On Wax, Luke Solomon and Heidi Lawson round up arguably the most talented line-up found anywhere on the island this summer.
Craig David's TS5 | Ibiza Rocks | Tuesday 3 September
When it launched back in 2016, few could have predicted quite how colossal Craig David's TS5 has become. Simply put, the Ibiza Rocks soiree has become a juggernaut. Although it only opened a few weeks ago, we don't expect much to change in the party's fourth year.
You're not going to get a bad date at any of the remaining ten shows. However, the 3 September event with former JLS member and Craig's good friend Marvin Humes joining the action looks good to us. Make sure you check-out Pat Nazemi's high-tempo warm-up set.
Captured Festival | Benimussa Park | Friday 6 September & Saturday 7 September
Benimussa Park is, of course, the wondrous home of The Zoo Project which continues to be a top drawer each and every Sunday. But the outdoor venue in Ses Païsses is also known to host some pretty special one-offs from time-to-time (Cocoon Afters, anyone?)
One for the trance heads - an event that always has an impressive turnout - is Captured Festival. The big news in 2019 is that Ferry Corsten becomes arguably the biggest headliner in its history. Other confirmed guests include Giuseppe Ottaviani and Menno De Jong.
Cocoon 20 | Ushuaïa | Friday 13 September
Cocoon at Ushuaïa? We can understand why, initially, that might seem strange. Although an odd pairing on paper, some concepts just demand a festival-like stage and gargantuan production.
Anyone who attended the first Cocoon20 party on 25 May will agree. The Underworld party worked incredibly well.
But how do you top that? By inviting godfathers of electronic music, Kraftwerk to play the second one. The fact this is the legendary outfit's first-ever Ibiza appearance adds more glimmer to what is set to be a party for the history books.
Saga | HEART Ibiza | Sunday 15 September
Question - what happens when you book Paradise supremo Jamie Jones to play a 1,000 capacity venue? Answer - Easy. You get a roadblock, that's what. And these were exactly the scenes we witnessed last summer when Bedouin invited JJ to play their Sunday night HEART residency.
Predictably mobbed, the night went down as one of the highlights of 2018. Much to our delight, all parties conspire to repeat the stunt again this summer. We can't stress enough how advance tickets are a necessity for this instalment of Saga. Don't say we didn't warn you.
HotBed | O Beach Ibiza | Wednesday 25 September
O Beach Ibiza works well in scheduling its week, so you know exactly what you're going to get from day to day. That being said, we have a soft spot for the venue's Wednesday incumbents HotBed - and that's down to its soundtrack. Check-out our VIP experience review.
Every week is going to deliver musically, but we have earmarked 25 September. The reason? With Billy Cocks, Danny Langan, Larry London and Parris & Lloyd all present, you get the full rainbow of residents plus live performances from JWalks, Josh Arise and Matt Saxx.
Put a little sweetness into your life.
Wherever you plan or end up partying on Ibiza in 2019, we're sure you have a blast regardless. Keep your eyes open for a future feature, where we round-up all of the island's unmissable closing parties - some of the best events of the entire summer.
In the meantime, heck out our party calendar for the most extensive and comprehensive club listings.
