Following in the wake of Lissy's and Hayley's features, I was the next member of the club team to choose my party highlights. This should be a doddle, right? You'd think.
Turns out, there's been a lot of great parties this summer. Picking just five proved to be a headache. I really struggled in deciding which to include and which to omit.
But being the boss should come with some benefits - and I'm exercising that privilege now. That's why I've gifted myself an extra pick, so five becomes six. Perk of the job.
Half a dozen of the best parties from summer 2022. In truth, I could have easily picked ten, so I'm actually showing a lot of restraint.
Nick Warren | Akasha | Friday 22 April
Being UK-confined all winter, I had read and heard about Akasha from afar. I knew for certain, I had to pay San Carlos a visit within the first few days of returning to Ibiza. If you're still in the dark about this spot, it's the new boutique space at Las Dalias that launched in late 2021.
Both my colleagues and I have already enthused at length about Sven Väth's appearances there this summer, but Nick Warren's dreamy date was my introduction. I couldn't have wished for a better debut. The night was musically incredible. I felt the magic.
The party also featured a rare club set from The Soundgarden resident, Gustin, who warmed-up the night for Nick. Gus laid the groundwork perfectly, teeing things up for Nick to take the floor. Hopefully we get to see him on more line-ups like this in the future.
Akasha's sound is super honed, its DJ booth is positioned in the middle of the room and the drinks are very reasonable priced. Make sure you put it on your list.
Nick Warren returns to Akasha on Friday 7 October. I make that unmissable.
Tales Of The Unexpected | Pikes | Sunday 24 April
Whether you're vibing by the pool to The Brothers Grim, or treating yourself to Pikes' legendary roast dinner in Pamelas, Sundays At Pikes always hits the spot. This early season date took my fancy, because of the headline act later on in Freddies.
Ida Engberg has been one of Ibiza's most consistent DJs for a long time and that fine form has continued into 2022. As well as her residency at Club Chinois, she has played at Amnesia and DC10, but her intimate set in the kitsch discotheque was my favourite of the lot.
It goes without saying, I stayed until the very end, as did everybody else. When we left en masse at 04:00, everyone was on such a natural high. The consensus was unilateral. Ida played her heart out.
Entertainment at Pikes continues all the way until Halloween. Visit its website for listings and to request guestlist.
elrow Outdoors | Ushuaïa | Wednesday 20 July
Although its popularity shows no sign of slowing down, my sentiment is that subsequent visits to elrow never replicate the sense of awe and wonder of your first time. That said, I hadn't yet been to one of elrow's Outdoor editions at Ushuaïa. When the invite came, it had to be done.
I went with an open-mind, but didn't expect to be bowled over, but I'm happy to concede that I was very wrong. The atmosphere and spectacle blew my mind. Both the venue and the promoters are production specialists and that expertise showed.
Being on stage to see a confetti eruption on the drop of Blinding Lights was quite something. It has to be experienced to be believed. This track means a lot to me, because it brings back great memories from 2021's late season. I really pinched myself at being there for that moment.
The three elrow Outdoors parties have been and gone, but the programme continues with parties like ANTS, CAMELPHAT, Afterlife Day & Night and the dual Closing Party with Hï Ibiza.
Defected | Eden | Friday 22 July
I'm a huge advocate for there being no better place than the dancefloor. I'd also far rather be exposed to fresh music, than hear obvious crowd-pleasers. So in that respect, I'm reneging on my principles with this next choice, but it's up there with my favourite moments of 2022.
Defected don't get enough credit for making clubbing accessible to Ibiza's younger visitors. At a time when some ticket prices are closing in on €100, entry for €35 (€25 with early-bird!) to hear some great DJs is a revolution. This summer, Defected's bookers went bold, securing fresh names like Mason Collective, Sosa, Prunk and Dirty Channels.
However, it was old sage A-Trak who stole my heart for dropping his anthemic Yeah Yeah Yeahs remix as I was stood behind him in the DJ booth. Absolute scenes. A few weeks later, I heard it played again on a very choppy Lost In Ibiza sailing. Yet again, everybody went nuts.
Big up A-Trak. I'll never forget that moment and you making me dance like a loon.
After it opened on 29 April, unbelievably there are only two more Defected dates left for 2022. TICKETS & INFO
Glitterbox | Hï Ibiza | Sunday 4 September
Glitterbox may be widely considered a retro party and find that tag hard to shrug. Let's be real though, the party excelled itself with its 2022 roster. You could make the argument that it went more underground than the parties that market themselves as "underground".
Kiddy Smile, Natasha Diggs, Girls Of The Internet and some guy known to his mother as Kenny Dixon Jr - those are audacious bookings by Ibiza standards.
On this night, the energy levels inside the Club Room were insane and DJ Harvey is always a joy to hear play. Watching camera-stealing Lucy Fizz strut her stuff on the cat walk was mesmerising.
It's also worth saying that the crowd is not exclusive 40+, as some might wrongly expect. It's glam but polite, and well and truly up for a party. Even the younger generation are on board with the Disco revival. Get yourself to Sundays at Hï Ibiza for a guaranteed fun time.
Solomun +1 | Pacha | Sunday 11 September
Sometimes building a night up too much in your head can have the opposite effect, when reality outweighs expectation. Fortunately, there are still times when a good night on paper turns into a great night. Since they don't happen often, I savour them all the more.
Since Cocoon ended, I've been somewhat of a party refugee. In its absence, I always assumed that Solomun +1 would become my weekly go-to this summer. For whatever reason, I struggled to find that emotional attachment in earlier visits to Sundays at Pacha.
Things all changed on 11 September, when &Me, Adam Port and Rampa came to town. The keinemusik date in 2019 was one of the best parties that year. It would take a lot to top it, but I think they did more than enough to equal it, as well as getting the best out of Solomun himself.
The format was a little tweaked for this night, as keinemusik played open to 02:00, Solomun 02:00 to 04:00 and then b2b2b2b 04:00 to close. Unreal. There's still some great +1s coming up: Kristian Beyer (Âme), Midland and Erol Alkan. Just try to keep me away. TICKETS & INFO
Slam the brakes, we are hurtling towards the Ibiza 2022 finish line. By this time next month, we'll already be looking back on the season that was. It's a bittersweet feeling, since some of the parties of summer are still yet to come.
Make sure to plan your club itinerary by visiting our world famous party calendar.
For all the latest closing party news, bookmark this page, which we update frequently.
It's about to get wild! See you on the dancefloor.
