Gadling

I’m only in my 20s, but there have been a few places where the party-hard attitudes of locals and visitors alike have left me feeling more like 87 than 27. I like have fun as much as the next gal, but I’m not one to stay up drinking all night and into most of the next morning too. I need my rest, and plus, I am not good with hangovers. But nonetheless, I’ve been to a few excellent parties and made a valiant effort to stay up past midnight. Here are the top party spots I’ve visited at some point or another:

• Ios, Greece: When people think of European party Islands, Ibiza is what automatically jumps to mind. But Ibiza’s lesser known Greek cousin, Ios, is still a pretty wild time. All the bars seem to be within stumbling distance of one another, and there are lots of post-club gyros vendors for some late-night snacking. For the record, the last time I was in Greece was 8 years ago, and apparently the party scene has shifted a bit …
• Mardi Gras, Sydney, Australia: Sydney’s gay Mardi Gras is one of the world’s best-known parties. Is it for you? If you don’t mind crowds, gratuitous nudity and occasionally being groped by friendly Aussies, then yes. But don’t expect to actually see the world-famous parade unless you get a seat ahead of time (read: 8 o’clock in the morning.) — there are just too many people!

• Full Moon Party, Koh Phangan, Thailand: I saw some pretty crazy things when I went to a full-moon with my friend Jenny and a group of Irish blokes we were travelling with. But when the drink of choice is buckets filled with coke, a mickey of Thai whiskey and Red Bull, you pretty much expect to see some pretty strange things — including a person you’ve never met snoozing on the hammock of your beach hut when you wake up the next day.
• Puerto Vallarta, Mexico: I don’t remember much from my night out in Puerto Vallarta, except that a man dressed in a gorilla suit accompanied me to the ATM and I ended up on the stage of a club, showing off my mad drumming skills (for the record, I had never played the drums before, and haven’t since either.) I know many people say Cancun is ‘the‘ party capital, but I can’t vouch for that as I’ve never been out in Cancun.

That said, I’m sure there are much more wild places out there … I’m just not sure if I can handle them.