Day 7 – Ibiza
Today is the day we’ve been planning our whole European vacation around: Swedish House Mafia in Ibiza! For those not a part of the electronic music scene, Swedish House Mafia (aka SMH) is a trio of Swedish DJs who formed in 2008 and quickly became a dominant act in the progressive house scene. They garnered quite a following and subsequently caused quite a stir when they announced their break up and “One Last Tour” in 2012, culminating in a final Miami show for Ultra Music Festival in March 2013.
The group remained apart until 2018, when they reunited for the 2019 Ultra Music Festival (20th anniversary) and announced a limited schedule of reunion dates for 2019. The Ibiza date has been on the calendar for a few months, but the venue was TBD until recently. Knowing Ibiza as we do (5+ visits each) and the popularity of SHM, we figured their ONE show in Ibiza this summer would have to be at one of two places: Ushuaia (80% chance – biggest venue, best VIP and stage, plus SHM had played there before) or Privilege (20% chance – largest indoor venue). We threw the dice and booked our rooms at Ushuaia to ensure we were there for the July 26th date and were rewarded when we saw the post about a month ago that Ushuaia would indeed be the venue.
Pro tip: In retrospect, knowing how popular the group is and how limited the number of “good” rooms are at the venue, we should have booked multiple rooms (refundable) so that any additions to our group could have had the same access we did.
The concert started at 5:00, but SMH didn’t go on until 10:20 (until midnight), so we had the whole day and early evening to kill. Ushuaia is strict about bringing alcohol into the rooms (especially those on the “club” level. adjacent to the stage). To that end, we went to the store before noon and stalked up on wine, beer and a couple of bottles of vodka and tequila for “bribery” later on in the evening. For most of the day, we just enjoyed the amazing pool that is in the Ushuaia Tower area. Despite staying at Ushuaia several times, we’d never been to that pool and were not disappointed. The architecture and stying is just like the rest of Ushuaia: oversized architectural flower and insects, giant hummingbird statues, various nature-themed art installations, beautiful pool, food, champagne bar, lots of day beds, lounge chairs, etc.
Eventually, it was time to head back to our part of the hotel and see the show. After showering and changing, we had a few friends talk their way from the main floor into the hotel area where we were staying. Having a stac= of alcohol really saved the day, as $150 of drinks and mixers would have cost us probably $600 at the bar and would have resulted in long lines and slow service. As the drinks were flowing from our room, we started to network with our neighbors. Our particular room didn’t overlook the stage, but our neighbor’s room (across the hall) did and they were more than happy to let us join the festivities. Ibiza is a place of good vibes and sharing, and this was no exception.
Despite having seen SHM in Mexico City a few months earlier, the nostalgia of the venue, the energy of the crowd and the overall experience could not be matched. Ibiza is a magical place and we were truly blessed to see such a great show, from such a great venue, in such an amazing place!