Amnesia is one of several internationally renowned clubs in Ibiza, and was awarded Best Global Club at the 2007 International Dance Music Awards at the Winter Music Conference in Miami. The club is located close to the village of San Rafael on the highway between Sant Antoni de Portmany and Ibiza Town, and less than a kilometer from Privilege, both among the island's most popular nightclubs. The club can pack more than 5,000 people on its dance floors. Amnesia was the first major outdoor club in Ibiza. Today the previously open-air terrace is closed, but light still floods in as sunrise approaches. Like Privilege, it is famous for its sunrise dance floor.

Amnesia has been home to the hugely successful Manumission club night since mid August 2007, after an unexpected mid-season change of venue from Amnesia's biggest rival, Privilege. Another successful club night is Cream, one of the longest-running UK nights on the island. Cocoon, promoted by the veteran German DJ and producer Sven Väth, is another popular night, taking the share of Monday's crowds since Manumission, for many years its biggest rival at Privilege, moved to Fridays in 2006. Amnesia was also home to the famous club night La Troya Asesina night up until 2006, when it finally moved to Space to end a long association with the venue.

One of the oldest clubs on the island (Ibiza legend Alfredo was a resident in the 80s - in the company of celebrities when the club was open air, in the days before thousands of clubbers flocked to the island every season) it opened in the 1970s, and survived closures and memorable summers alike before it finally cemented its position as one of the island's premier clubs in the early 90s.


The History Of Amnesia

The house where Amnesia now stands was built at the end of the 18th century. Five generations of the Planells family lived within its thick, whitewashed walls. They cultivated the land and built a mill out of stone. 

The first foreign visitors to came to the island around 1950. They were drawn to the island by rumors of its mysterious legends and breathtaking, untouched nature. In 1954 people like Aristotle Onassis and Prince Rainier of Monaco were startled by the beauty of the Pitiusan coves. Ibiza then discovered tourism and began to prosper and grow. However, during the 60’s the ones to really enjoy the island were the hippies. They were the first to transgress. Idealists from all over the world chose Ibiza or Formentera as their paradise to live in peace. They listened to music, enjoyed nature and smoked. In 1964 the Rolling Stones spent a couple of days on holiday in San Antonio. By now the island had more than five thousand hotel rooms.

Europe convulses in May of 68 whilst the film More, with music by Pink Floyd, filmed and inspired in Ibiza, presents the island as a paradise.

In March of 1970 the Planells family decide to end their long life in the country and move to a flat in town. They sell their ‘finca’ (country house) and the house to Maria Fuencisla Martínez de Campos y Muñoz (a widow from an aristocratic background). This is when the most recent history of our discotheque really begins.

The island begins to enjoy a freedom unheard of in the rest of Spain. The house soon to become Amnesia turns into a meeting point for idealists and counter-culturists. Hippies play in live bands and amongst their friends, they dance till dawn. They touched the heavens, organized art exhibitions and many other events.

In 1974 a young man born in Madrid, with a degree in philosophy came on to the scene, his name was Antonio Escohotado. 

One fine day in May 76 Antonio makes a deal with the landlady of the house and she rents it to him for 20.000 pesetas (120€) a month. Now all that was left was to christen the discotheque with a name. He thought hard about this until he came across the name, “The Workshop of Forgetfulness”. He wanted to express that when people go out at night it is to forget their problems and indulge in an unknown world far away from ordinary routine. The next day he realized that just one word from Greek etymology explained it all. This of course was Amnesia, and that is how the island’s most authentic discotheque was born.

In the 80’s a young Basque named Prontxio Izaguirre took over the running of Amnesia, and the music changed to dance music, a mix between pop and funk, and hip hop. Freestyle mixing was permitted and house was about to take over. The Ibizencan discotheques introduced the magic of open rooftops. The original Balearic sound emerged spearheaded by legends like DJ Alfredo Fiorito and DJ Huggy MacPherson.

The most important changes came from the hands of MFC at the beginning of the 90’s. The Berlin wall comes down and house music becomes international. The re-opening of Amnesia on the 22nd of June, 1991 is still remembered to this day on the island. Thousands of young people invade Amnesia, labeling the beginning of the most fruitful times in this temple of sound. It is at this time that the clubs of Ibiza begin to gain international fame.

Due to complaints from its neighbors Amnesia had to cover its open-air dance floor. Even so, the club experienced massive expansion with the number of bars increasing from four to 16, and from a staff of 30 employees to more than 200 during the summer festivities. The staff now includes waiters, spectacular go-go dancers, security, light-jockeys, as well as office workers.

In 1999 the UN claims Ibiza cultural heritage. The island reaches one hundred thousand habitants and the label Amnesia extends from magazines to records, clothes…etc. Its fame grows. Today in the 21st century who hasn’t heard of parties like Cocoon, Manumission, La Troya Asesina or Cream? DJs like Sven Väth, Paul van Dyk, Tiësto, Danny Tenaglia, Laurent Garnier or Carl Cox are just some of the legendary stars to have passed through Amnesia’s DJ booth.

Likewise the list of rich and famous that have been to the disco during their summer holidays is endless…Naomi Campbell, Puff Daddy, Dolce & Gabbana, Bono, Boy George, Elle McPherson, George Michael, Paris Hilton, Valentino Rossi, Calvin Klein… the gods of fashion and beauty.

One of the secrets to its success lies in the quality of its sound. Today the discotheque has one of the most advanced sound systems (Expanded Amnesia Technology) due to the dynamic electronic process. Its function is to analyze and submit frequencies that provoke the human body to feel sensations that compare to having a sound massage…enjoy it!


Web site: www.amnesia.es

Berghain, the world's #1 club for 2009 according to DJmag, is located in a former power plant in Friedrichshain, behind the Berlin Ostbahnhof railway station, and has a strong reputation for decadence and hedonism. The building is distinguished by its enormous dimensions, which accommodate an 18 meter high dancefloor and space for 1500 guests, and also its minimalist interior design, dominated by steel and concrete. The club contains a "cavernous" main room, as well as a smaller upstairs space called the Panorama Bar, which is decorated by enormous Wolfgang Tillmans photographs and tall windows with a view of East Berlin. Only half of the building is currently in use.

Berghain's door policy is selective, and there is no VIP entrance or VIP areas. Like many Berlin clubs, Berghain hosts extremely long events; a Philip Sherburne column in Pitchfork describes a Carl Craig set that began at 3:00 Sunday afternoon and continued until the club's ending time.

Berghain is the reincarnation of the "legendary" club Ostgut (1998-2003). This club itself emerged out of a male fetish club night, called "Snax", which was held in different locations before it found its permanent home at the new club "Ostgut" as a part of a new concept. Quickly the "Ostgut" developed into a focal point of the Berlin techno-subculture since the venue was now open for all genders on regular nights except on those "Snax" club nights six to eight times a year. "Ostgut" closed down on January 6, 2003 following a 30-hour farewell event, and the former railway warehouse which housed it was subsequently demolished. Berghain opened in 2004. The name "Berghain" is a composite of the names of the two quarters, which flank the building south and north: KreuzBERG (former West Berlin) and FriedrichsHAIN (former East Berlin).

The music is mostly techno and minimal techno. The Panorama Bar hosts well known house and electro DJs. Nick Höppner, a resident DJ who manages the club's record label, states that "The simple division is that Panorama Bar more or less caters to house...and Berghain is really the platform for purist techno."

In 2005 the club's owners started a record label, Ostgut Tonträger (or Ostgut Ton). The label's first releases were by Berghain/Panorama Bar residents such as André Galluzzi, Cassy, and Ben Klock. In 2007, Berghain collaborated with the Berlin Staatsballet to create "Shut Up and Dance! Updated" a ballet for five dancers that was performed at the club in late June and early July. The ballet's soundtrack (released on Ostgut Ton on May 29) is made up of five specially composed tracks by prominent minimal techno artists such as Luciano, Âme, Sleeparchive and Luke Slater (here using his pseudonym The 7th Plain). The soundtrack received some positive reviews, including a five star review in The Guardian, although the ballet itself was panned by Resident Advisor.

Website: www.berghain.de

Latvians are full of energy and love to party until the early hours of the morning, so they don’t head toward the nightclubs until after midnight. The selection of clubs is awesome, from small basements playing reggae and funk to large super clubs like Club Essential.

This is not one of your normal clubs. Probably Riga’s most renowned and popular dance club, Club Essential is an impressive place: well-designed, modern, sleek and always packed with well-dressed clubbers dancing to a wide variety of contemporary club music. The club is spread over three floors, has 2 main halls and 6 bars, pumping out Europe's most modern & progressive music. It has a capacity of 2500 people and prides itself on bringing some of Europe's top DJs to Riga to spin the best in dance music. You can enjoy banging European House and be mesmerized by the amazing light effects in the main room, or enjoy the cozy sofas while grooving to funky house in the chill out room.

There is no overbearing security and the club is mainly free from pretense, although they do delay the opening time to ensure there is always a respectable line at the door. The club has a really cool, party-like atmosphere in that it seems so carefree and fun. They even had a magician on stage at one point. It’s a bit pricey by Riga’s standards with beers and spirits costing about $5.60 and cocktails about $7.50. Cover starts at about $5 depending on the night. Everyone here is ridiculously good looking, so much that it feels almost unreal and that you've been invited to a supermodel party. I've also been to Pure in Las Vegas, which is supposed to be one of the hottest nightclubs in the USA, but Club Essential was much "hipper" and "hotter". If you like clubbing and want to meet some beautiful people, this could be the 'Essential' club for you. - Eric, Travel Buddy

Web site: www.essential.lv