Coachella, Lollapalooza, ACL and Summerfest are some of the largest music festivals in the world, and a hotspot for teens and students. In 2023, over 500,000 people attended Coachella within its 2-week duration, nearly doubling attendance from the year prior. In fact, Coachella’s attendance averages around 125,000 people each weekend, skyrocketing the traffic in Indio, California. Every year there are superstar headliners, tons of aesthetic photo-ops, and even a chance to meet your favorite influencers attending the event. But, is every year nearly the same festival, and is it even worth going to Coachella?
Crushed in Concert
I’d hate to break it to my fellow short queens and kings out there, but you probably won’t see a thing at Coachella concerts unless you get barricade. Too bad thousands of people are thinking the exact same thing and will wake up at 2 a.m. to spend their day sitting in line rather than exploring the other Coachella festivities. If you’re short and hoping to get a better angle from the back, you’ll be so far away that you might as well watch the Coachella livestream on YouTube instead.
However, maybe you’re a little taller and get a great view no matter where you stand (lucky…)! Then, all you should watch out for is the massive amounts of waste that flood the concert floor each day. In fact, studies show that over 100 tons of waste is produced at Coachella every day, only 20% of which is actually recycled. With over 100k people fitted into a 78-acre area, you’re bound to have cleanliness and pollution be a barrier to environmental enjoyment.
Weather vs. Wardrobe
Indio, California is a great place to be if you want to have predictable weather, but would predictably dry and hot be the best bet for a concert outfit? You might cancel this out if you’re bringing a handheld fan that has a 3-hour battery life, or think, “I’m wearing linen, I won’t sweat that much,” but let’s look at it from another perspective. If you’re truly having the most hyped-up concert experience, you will definitely need to shove some people around in that concert pit. It might not be the best idea for that to happen in coquette ballet flats or heeled-up cowboy boots.
Not to mention, being in a desert without shade can make you look like a tomato if you aren’t careful. And how does Coachella suggest you be careful? By bringing a hat, or an umbrella, or paying $500 more for a VIP ticket to stand inside an exclusive shaded area.
On the off chance that the weather might be breezy, a staple of Western concert wardrobe to show off some skin and I can’t tell if I would rather have a sweaty and funky tan-line or be chilling cold.
Would You Rather
There’s no doubt that this festival would be a splurge. The lowest ticket price starts at $499, without taxes and fees, and that doesn’t include prices for transportation, housing and basic human needs like food. Whether you camp out in your car in the middle of a field or opt for the shuttle service as a part of general admission, you’d still be spending at least $120 (without fees) extra to get to the festival itself. Do you want “preferred car camping?” That’s an extra $200. Would you like to have a lodge or hotel that may or not be on site for the festival? That’d be at least $2000. The costs slowly add up, and by the time you click one of those options for staying in Indio (but seriously, who needs an $11,000 Safari camping package for 3 days), you would have spent more money than buying tickets to all of the artists’ individual tours or concerts.
Especially with the large but thinly-spread lineup, it’s important to consider if it is even worth going to Coachella if you’re unfamiliar with the artists, or not a fan of most of the other featured music styles. You might go to see just five or six of your favorite acts. Who knows, maybe your ultimate music group is headlining for a day? But with the enormous costs that come with attending, not to mention the limited views unless you brawl your way through crazed fans, you might as well save the money and max out on a concert experience that’s specifically for your favorite artist.
Coachella is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for most people, and while the caption “Life is short, but Coachella is forever ⋅˚₊‧ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅” would definitely please your followers, there are some aspects of Coachella that I think make it not worth going to and fairly overrated.
