So this year I got to attend Coachella and it was literally a massive tick off my bucket-list. I have been following the festival for years. The fashion, the artists, the celebrities who attend and I have always been mesmerised by it but never thought I would ever get the chance to go myself.
I absolutely love music and Coachella was always right up my alley with such an awesome mixture of DJ’s and modern artists .
After turning 30 last year, I really wanted to do something massive to celebrate. After all, it’s downhill from here right?! (I joke). Something that I would never forget. So, I messaged one of my closest friends who was also turning 30 and said let’s go to Coachella and within a few hours we had booked. We opted for the second weekend as we weren’t really fussed which one we attended and due to our schedules it worked best for us.
The first thing I will say about this festival is it is so well run. There’s plenty of toilets, security everywhere and despite over 100,000 people walking through those gates every day, we did not see one fight or disagreement amongst the crowds.
So after a ripping three days experiencing this magical festival, I thought I would share some insight in to what it is like and tips for attending!
Picking up your wrist bands
If you purchase your tickets online and internationally, your tickets will normally be Will Call, which means pick-up on arrival.
We collected ours the morning of the festival but you would be much better off getting them the day before so you don’t have to worry about it. You pick them up from the box office at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden which is NOT at Coachella, but about a 20 minute drive from where the festival is. You’ll need your ID & credit card you purchased them on and don’t get someone else to pick them up as they won’t let you.
The line will be long depending on what time of day you go so dress lightly AND don’t do your make-up because it gets hot and take a water bottle. The collection itself once you reach the box office only takes a few minutes and you are on your way but the line-up can take hours so plan accordingly.
Alternatively, pay for postage and get them sent to your home when your purchase them.
Where to stay:
As to be expected when Coachella comes to town, all the accommodation in the area triples in price so be prepared to fork out some serious dollars
There are a few different options but ours is definitely the best! Originally, we were going to camp at Coachella itself. It was the cheapest option but after researching and reading a lot of reviews there were many complaints about long lines for bathrooms/showers and of course the noise. Plus, once you have your car in on the Friday, you’re not allowed out until Monday which wasn’t going to work for us as we drove to Las Vegas Sunday night (rookie mistake on my part).
We stumbled across Festival Camp Grounds run by a beautiful Mexican couple, Claudia & Johnny. They purchase the property last year so this was their first year hosting people for Coachella and you seriously thought they would have been doing it for years, You have two options, bring your own tent or hire out one of their beautiful glamping tents. The glamping tents weren’t available when we booked so we did a trip to Walmart and purchase some cheap camping gear which served its purpose. We probably spent $100 all up on the gear and then $600 for accommodation for three nights so it was a really cost effective way to stay considering how hiked the prices are at this time.
The camp site has a swimming pool, the nicest portable trailer toilet/bathrooms that were so clean and you never had to line up for (unlike at Coachella!) and the same for the showers. They had a beauty bar set up each day run by Claudia’s sister Melissa who did my braids and makeup on the first day and she did a beautiful job. Prices were really reasonable and it was great not having to worry about it. They also had a taco food truck which was there until like 3am and was epic after a huge day at the festival AND they had a frozen tequila Popsicle stand which was the best on the hot days!
They also had charging stations for your phones everywhere as well as tall mirrors for everyone to get ready in front of it. Seriously, the had everything you could need for Coachella. What they don’t have is a kitchen or any utensils/cups etc so that you will need to source yourself.
We couldn’t recommend our stay here any more and just look at all the beautiful palm trees surrounding the site. It couldn’t have been a more picture perfect stay.
I have included a link to their Air Bnb listing below.
Getting to Coachella
You can park at Coachella, but apparently it is awful trying to get out at night as you could imagine. If you’re camping onsite then obviously you don’t have to worry but if you’re staying away from the festival grounds then you will need to arrange transport. We stayed only 1.5km away and were planning on walking UNTIL we realised what a freaking awful idea that would be in 37 degree heat and knowing we would be walking around all day/night. We had a shuttle service at our campsite which we paid and in the end we would have saved money had we have uber’d home every night. Try and scope a local shuttle service out or alternatively there are plenty of Uber/Lyft options available. Just be prepared to line up at the end of the night in the pick-up zone with a sea of tired festival goers trying to fight for your ride. It’s honestly carnage.
What to take to Coachella:
There’s hundreds of online lists telling you what to take with you to Coachella but from our experience some were helpful and others weren’t so these are what we believe to be necessary.
Comfortable shoes-you are going to be walking around A LOT! It is a huge space with multiple stages so you will want to have sturdy shoes.
A bandana/face mask of some sort-it isn’t always dusty and you may not always feel it BUT it is there (it’s the desert!!) and you’ll notice it at night when the wind kicks in majorly. Avoid clogging your sinuses with dust and cover your face with one of these and your sorted. If you don’t, you will most likely end up sick in the days that follow (don’t ruin your holiday!)
Sunglasses-during the day they help with the sun obviously but at night they also help with the dust!
A bum bag-you won’t want to carry around anything bigger than a belt bag because it will get annoying UNLESS you take one of those awesome backpacks that have the water filters in them which were everywhere. In fact you should definitely take one of those with you and we wish we had one because having to leave a mosh pit to get water bottles is a pain in the ass.
A lip balm-because, desert = dry lips.
A warm jersey/sweater/cover-up-During the day it can get super hot, but at night it gets pretty damn cold and to be honest, comfort is super important when you want to make the most out of your time at Coachella. If you’re cozy and warm, you’re going to find it much more enjoyable so if you can at least take something around your waist, in your bag or if you’re accommodation is close by you can even go back and grab a sweater. Otherwise you will end up paying $80 for a merch hoody that you will never wear again.
Cash-you can take card or cash to Coachella and there are plenty of ATM’s around although you’ll find most places take card anyway. Just make sure you have enough to purchase food and drinks.
Power bank-you’ll be using your phone a lot. Taking videos of the artists and photos of yourself (obvs!) and the last thing you want is your phone running out of battery before the main act comes on. Either have it super charged before you go or take a power bank. The power bank was a life saver for me. I think Coachella may have charging stations but we couldn’t find them easily and you don’t want to miss out on acts because you have to sit with your phone right?!
Planning your day
The gates to Coachella open at 11am and the first act usually starts at 12pm. However, you’ll find most people won’t usually go until the afternoon and for good reason. It is a super long day!
Best thing to do is scope out all the artists in the line-up on your mobile app and work out who you really want to see. Most of the bigger acts start in the late afternoon/early evening which gives you plenty of time to get there. You’ll be staying until the last act every night which is until after midnight so you’re guaranteed to be there for at least 8 hours a day (from 4pm) and even that is bloody exhausting. Also, their a several stages and they are spaced a fair walk apart so you will be moving around a lot (you can see who is playing at what stage on the app and their is a map to know where to go). The first day you might want to arrive early and scope out the festival. There’s a few pop-up stations to check out like NYX makeup tent, art stations, merch tents and of course the Ferris Wheel. The following days we arrived at 4pm and 5pm and it was perfect for us. We got the day to explore Palm Desert and Joshua Tree and then come back, have drinks and get ready at our own pace before hitting the festival for eight hours.
It is also really great to check out some of the smaller acts that you haven’t heard of as some of them are incredible. We loved Zed (who is still pretty big) but was one of our favourites and heaps of others who are up and coming as well as the big acts of course. If you want to get up close you’ll have to get to the stages early as the crowds gather at least 30 minutes before they start.
Food at Coachella:
The food at Coachella is EPIC! and there are so many options. Prior to going I did a bit of research and a lot of people complained it was expensive and to eat before you go but really I found it to be on par with what you would expect at any type of event like this and it was worth every cent. We tried everything from acai bowls to the best ever Paella, the biggest slices of pizza and Brogan’s favourite dumplings! Prices range from $10-$17 and there is something for everyone. Definitely go hungry so you can make the most of it!
Alcohol:
Alcohol is super expensive at Coachella so if you’re planning on drinking, plan on spending A LOT of money. The bars are also located on the sides of the grounds and you’re not allowed out of the area with your drinks making it not the easiest place to get crunk. We had drinks at our campsite before going to get us in the groove and then topped up with one or two cocktails throughout the night and it was perfect because you don’t want to waste time sitting in a bar for hours and missing out on the acts.
What to wear:
I almost feel like more people go to Coachella for the fashion more than the artists. Be prepared, you will see some weird, wacky and wonderful outfits AND lots of boobs and bums. It’s a place where you can literally wear anything and not stand out because so many people are dressed the same way. As a mum of to and now in my thirties, I planned my outfits accordingly (ha!) and kept my boobs (or lack of) and bum (or lack of) covered but I loved choosing them. The first day I went all out with the hair in braids, my makeup done (which melted off) and my favourite outfit. Day two I was more relaxed with the boho style white lace dress (we took photos at Joshua Tree which is also freaking amazing) and day three I followed the crowds with the ripper denim and hiking boots (which was the most comfortable!). Brogan hadn’t planned out her outfits so went for comfort with jeans, t-shirts and hiking boots and looked equally as festive so you can really dress up or down as much as you like. You own your style baby!
Also, if you’re needing last minute outfits or accessories, Palm Desert mall is about a 25 min drive from Coachella and has some great stores for festival clothing.
Overall, this definitely rates as one of the best experiences of my life. We had an absolute blast at Coachella and I could easily go back year after year (before kids, ha!). It is so well run, clean and EVERYONE is so freaking happy to be there (I think happy pills had something to do with that for a lot of people) but with literally 100k people walking through those gates every day and not seeing a single fight was amazing.
This NEEDS to be on your bucket list. Make it happen and I hope this helps you plan your visit.
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