Croatia vs Ibiza

Far from Balearic hype, Croatia's move into music is gradual and organic, while in Ibiza – despite continued murmurs about its demise as the clubbers destination of choice – there's still lots to celebrate.

Croatia

Croatia is all the things the Balearics aren't. Its 1,135 islands are mostly uninhabited. Instead of full Englishes, it boasts the truffle country of Istria. The Croatian National Tourist Board's slogan, 'The Mediterranean as it Once Was', is corny but true: life here is slow, simple, traditional. But for a country so reliant on foreign visitors – approximately 25 per cent of GDP is tourism-related – there's been a surprising lack of cool, contemporary cultural events. But gradually, quietly, one small coastal village is becoming established as central Europe's festival capital.

Clubbing and music

Summer 2009, Zagreb has gigs by U2, Patti Smith and Kraftwerk. Second city Split hosts the Arctic Monkeys in a Roman square overlooking the sea. But if you want to experience something truly Croatian, and at the same time cleverly cosmopolitan, head to the tiny, 900-year-old fishing village Petrcane, just outside Zadar, which hosts The Garden Festival in June – a softly-softly, word-of-mouth development, which planted the seeds of a summer-long scene that is changing the face of Croatia – and, arguably, of European clubbing.

Unspoilt summer fun

The project was kicked off in 2003, when music producer Nick Colgan and UB40 drummer James Brown passed through Zadar, fell in love (with it), and opened a lounge bar with beds called The Garden. In 2006, the first festival followed and the following year they opened an on-site club. The venue and vibe are far removed from 24-hour party places like Berlin, London and, yep, Ibiza. The festival and summer scene are unspoilt, intimate, fun, respectful, non-corporate, €-free, largely E-free and eclectic: there's everything from hip hop to R&B, house to techno, disco to soul. But it's anything but amateurish. Expect bespoke Funktion 1 soundsytems inside the uber-cool, '70s-inspired, circular boutique club Barbarella's, the bolthole for disco-heads come 2am when the outside DJ action closes down.

It's a hard life...

The wider setting – a pine-dotted coastline, a terrace overlooking the main stage, natural shade from a tree canopy – is just gorgeous. Glance one way to the bay and islands, the other to the distant Velebit Mountains. Oh, and there's the lighthouse, and cocktails, and sunset beach parties, and dancing in the warm waves under the stars by the Tiki Bar.

For many the highlight is Captain Eddie's all-day Argonaughty boat parties, which set sail for the nearby Kornati Islands, a protected national park, while passengers dance to the sounds of Sir Norman Jay, Jazzanova, Faith, Rub-n-Tug and Future Boogie.

A series of complementary festivals follows the two-week Garden events . The people behind Like Minded talk of the need to 'watch things grow organically'. Croatia is not about hype or hurrying. This summer, Mulletover, Electric Chair and Leftfoot each host a week of music with guests including Einzelkind, Meat, The Unabombers and Daddy G.

Food and drink

In laidback, lovely Petrcane, kick back in any of the fish restaurants. In Zadar, Kornat (Liburnska Obala 6, +385 023 254 501) serves great monkfish, angler fish, steaks and yummy chocolate cake. Adriatic-caught fish is served by the kilo (approx HRK300 per kilo (£40) for first-class fish). A plate of sardines costs just HRK40. Make sure you try Marask, an aromatic local cherry liquor aged in oak casks, and look out for Velebitsko Pivo, a boutique beer from the mountainous national park. It's got limited production and limited distribution: if you see one, buy it and quaff it. Drink prices at the festivals are cheap: expect to pay around £2.30 a pint and slightly more for a (free-poured) spirit and mixer. More generally, Croatia is neither very cheap nor crazily expensive. The local currency is the Kuna (Kn or HRK), exchanged at eight to nine to a pound. In bars, expect to pay approx HRK10 for coffee and HRK15 for a beer. To save on food, eat in the local cafés, called konobas. Note: There is no cash machine in Petrcane, so stock up on currency at the airport on arrival or in Zadar.

Getting there

Ryanair flies Stansted-Zadar. Typical high-season return fares cost around £280 (www.ryanair.com). Petrcane is a 20-minute taxi ride from Zadar.

More info

The Garden Festival

When June 11-12
Where Zadar
Web www.thegardenfestival.eu

Soundwave

When July 17-20
Where Petrcane
Web www.soundwavecroatia.com
Presented by Soundcrash and New Bohemia, the first-ever Soundwave Festival is three days, three arenas and a boat. Hear Friends & Family, Tru Thoughts, Rukus, Ballers Social, Mixed Business and many more.

Airbound

When July 31-August 2
Where Petrcane
Web www.airbound.net
Bodytonic and Nightflight unite to deliver an impressive array of international DJs, live acts and collectives, including Alexander Robotnik, Ben Klock, Chymera, Jape, Kormac, Mondo Disco and Nathan Fake.

Like Minded

When August 13-16
Where Petrcane
Web www.likemindedfestival.co.uk
Underground electronica including Hector, Toby Tobias, Café Del Mar resident Phil Mison and Chicks Dig Jerks.

Exodus

When September 11-13
Where Petrcane
Web www.exoduscroatia.com
The best in sunshine reggae, dubstep, soul, dancehall and dub, with Zion Train, Vibronica, Heatwave, Dub Boy, Funky Wormhole, Plastician and Slugz.

Time Out publish 'Time Out Croatia Visitors' Guide 2009' (just £4.99) and 'Time Out Croatia' guidebook (available for the discounted price of £8.99) at www.timeout.com/shop.

Ibiza

Ibiza, of course, is always nearly dead. Admittedly, there's much to lament in 2009, especially the much-loved Monday after-party DC-10's closure and in-it-for-the-love art-sex duo Mike and Claire Manumission's grand departure. But given this year's broader music policy, new clubs and palpably less pronounced 'avinit large' ethos of the newly energised pre-club bar scene, Ibiza is still the destination of choice for discerning, music-savvy cool cats looking for a week of blissed-out sonic wonderment and beachside revelry.

Clubbing and music

Pete Tong gives Fridays at Eden (Salvador Espriu, San Antonio; +34
971 803 240/www.edenibiza.com) a reboot with his house-led behemoth Wonderland, which sees guest sets from the likes of Fake Blood, Chase & Status and Mowgli over the season; Groove Armada join the residency with techno ace Deadmau5 and fellow Radio One truant Zane Lowe. We Love... Sundays at Space (Afueras, San Jorge; +34 971 310 626/www.space-ibiza.es) returns with the Chemical Brothers, Felix da Housecat and Boyz Noise; decks-based sets from Hot Chip, DFA's Juan Maclean and glossy disco revisionists Hercules and Love Affair offer a more tuneful antidote to the sometimes-stifling mumblecore techno in the main rooms.

Bring out your 'BoHo' side

For more glammed-up frippery, Hed Kandi at Space includes a dedicated nu-disco room on Saturdays with Manchester's Adriatic moonlighters Unabombers. Ibiza Rocks (Calle Carvantes 27, San Antonio; 0871 716 1099/www. hotel.ibizarocks.com) continues to push the indie-electro envelope with live sets from Vampire Weekend and MGMT. Plus, their Tuesday after-party Reclaim the Dance Floor at Eden boasts an enviable residency from playful electro-pop butchers 2ManyDJs. New boutique venue BoHo (Aveda De Portmany, San Anotonio; +34 654052420/www.bohoibiza.com) promises a neat sidestep from the superclub circuit, touting cheaper drinks and a distinctly nostalgic music policy with Nicky Holloway's Desert Island Disco on Mondays.

Food and drink

By all accounts, San Antonio is Basildon dressed up for the ball in a borrowed Blackpool tracksuit and is best avoided. Base Bar (Plaça sa Riba, Eivissa, +34 971 31 77 86) and Rock Bar (Plaça sa Riba, Eivissa; + 34 971 31 01 29/www.therock baribiza.com) are fairly priced pre-club drinking holes in the more restrained Ibiza Old Town. Brilliantly unpopular with the amped-up superclub set is beautiful jazz bar Teatro Pereira, (Carre Comte De Rosselló, Eivisa; +34 971 304 432/ www.teatropereyra.com) with its often-great live music and arty local crowd. For cheap, authentic Spanish fare head inland to the hip village of San Rafael for locals' favourite Can Pilot (Travesia Isidor Macabich, San Rafael; +34 971 198 293). Nearby is Atzaro (Ctra Sant Joan, km 15 Santa Eulalia; +34 639 960 291/ www.atzaro.com), a chic but accessible agroturismo with a widely revered outdoor restaurant surrounded by orange groves.

Getting there

EasyJet (www.easyjet.com) can do return summer flights to Ibiza for £87.98 including all taxes and charges.

More info

For insular gossip see www.spotlight-forums.com or www.ibizablog.co.uk. For general info see www.ibiza.travel.out.com/travel.