Pag Island, Croatia

Hideout Festival is a week-long run of parties ’til sunrise set along Croatia’s Zrce Beach on Pag Island. Here, party-goers from as far afield as Australia and the USA have come to see Solardo, Peggy Gou, Skream and more in a stunning setting, complete with turquoise waters, palm trees and a backdrop of golden mountains.

Festivities jumped from numerous open-air venues stretching across the beach to pool parties and super clubs. Bicep, Jackmaster and Gorgon City more than matched the dramatic surroundings of Nao Beach Club, a giant wooden structure that could’ve been dreamed up by Donkey Kong. Jutting out of the sea on stilts, it had swimming pools, thatch-covered bars and a magnificent view of the waters below.

But it was the massive club Papaya which drew in the biggest audience, with highlights including Patrick Topping, AJ Tracey and – notably – Mistajam, whose set touched on house classicism, old school grime and the best in contemporary UK rap. The club was also home to Radio One’s final night takeover where the likes of Artwork and Eats Everything presided over one of the most rammed parties of the entire festival.

  • AJ Tracey, Hideout 2018 © Luke Dyson

  • AJ Tracey © Luke Dyson

  • © Matt Eachus

  • © Luke Dyson

  • © Luke Dyson

  • © Luke Dyson

Over at Aquarius Club, My Nu Leng’s set of heavy set of bass and grime was a crowd favourite. They were joined by Dread MC, Skepsis and Chris Lorenzo, who dropped Hideout’s unofficial anthem, the Chris Lake collab Pizza. Given that the crowd was largely fuelled by jumbo cocktails and the aforementioned foodstuff, it made perfect sense.

Away from Zrce Beach, Hideout’s programme of boat parties proved unmissable. At the Clash party, Strictly Rhythm’s William Djoko helped warm up the crowd for Kerri Chandler, who arrived on a speedboat and received, unsurprisingly, a hero’s welcome. The party ended with an impeccable sunset over the water, replaced by a beautiful, bright red super moon. Back on dry land, DJ EZ’s beach party also proved a major highlight. The UKG veteran got wild reactions with each and every drop – given that he’s had 20 years to perfect his craft, it’s no surprise that his was one of the best sets of the festival.

Hideout offers a simple promise: beautiful location, heavy partying and great music. It delivered, in an incredible blur.