Donning a coveted Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival wristband for the first time this year? Exciting! But there are some things you should know about attending — and getting the most out of — the famed festival.
From navigating the grounds to making purchases, we have you covered on what you need to know to have an unforgettable weekend.
Here are five things to know about attending Coachella for the first time.
1. Know where you're going at the Empire Polo Club, and prepare to walk far
Even though the Empire Polo Fields is a beautiful setting, it’s very large, so it can be strenuous and taxing to navigate during the festival. Plan accordingly for a long day with plenty of walking from the parking areas to the gates, and back and forth between stages.
The official Coachella app features a map of the festival site, schedule, list of food vendors and more. It'll also notify you when a set is about to start, if there are any weather advisories in the area, etc. However, as capacity increases, it’s difficult to receive text messages or access specific information on the app because the signal weakens, so taking some screenshots on the app ahead of time is a good idea.
Passholders with disabilities can access the festival’s ADA department for services such as transportation to and from the parking areas, and viewing platforms at each stage.
For those who need to bring medical-related items such as prescribed insulin for diabetes, identify yourself to security at the gate and medical staff will provide an area to secure all items. You may need to provide medical documentation detailing use and necessity.
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2. When packing your Coachella bag, prepare for the desert weather
This year, the forecast for Weekend 1 calls for a high temperature of around 90 degrees on Friday, but conditions are expected to cool into the 80s on Saturday and down to the mid-70s by Sunday, as a weather system moves into the west coast, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Casey Oswant.
While rain is not in the forecast, the main impact from the storm system will be gusty winds, as high as 30 miles per hour. "We are expecting the winds to really pick up on Friday," Oswant said. "The peak of the winds will be Friday evening into early Saturday."
For those with seasonal allergies, there’s natural irritants in the air such as sand, pollens and bales of hay positioned around the site (both at Coachella and at Stagecoach, but the hay is more Stagecoach specific). A good face covering can go a long way during a windstorm or that walk out to the car as the dirt kicks up into the air.
It’s best to prepare for anything when it comes to the climate, so to stay comfortable, wear a hat for sun protection during the day and tie a jacket around your waist to keep from shivering once the sun goes down.
If you forgot something important like shades, a bandana or sunscreen, you can always purchase it on the grounds at one of the various General Stores marked on the map.
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3. Build a schedule so you can maximize your time at Coachella
Performances at a music festival are exciting, and there’s many going on at once. One of the unfortunate realities of attending Coachella, however, is scheduling conflicts and limited capacity at some of the stages, which means there’s no guarantee of catching everyone on your list.
Each stage has a schedule and is required to run on time. Even though it’s tempting to cram as many sets into your daily schedule as possible moving between stages, you might only see 5-15 minutes of each performance.
Speaking from personal experience, it’s best to focus on the sets you want to see in entirety and make the difficult decisions in a conflict. By the time you leave one performance for another, you might have missed a special guest or the song you wanted to hear might have already been performed.
The food vendors are busiest during the evening hours from 6 to 9 p.m., and if you don’t want to spend a lot of time in line away from performances, plan meals accordingly.
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4. Want to buy Coachella merch? Prepare to stand in line — or go super early
If you’re hoping to score that Lana Del Rey T-shirt or Coachella hoodie, prepare to stand in line. The last couple years, the traditional merch booth was packed an hour after the festival grounds opened (same for Stagecoach and Power Trip). There is no guarantee the item you want, or the size, will be in stock when you reach the front, so browse the options displayed on the wall while standing in line.
One tip, if you're OK with some items being sold out by the time you get there, is to wait until the last day of your weekend to get your merch. In 2022, the lines were busiest during the first two days of each weekend, and because many people had their merch by day 3, when gates opened on Sunday, the lines were much shorter (but the later in the day it is, the less luck you'll have, so do it first thing that afternoon).
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5. Don't forget to bring your debit/credit card, phone charger and empty water bottle with you to the Coachella festival grounds
There’s something to know before you buy that slice of pizza or strawberry lemonade: Coachella is a cashless event, so you’ll need to bring a debit and/or credit card to make purchases, or use Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay, Google Wallet or other contactless cards.
If you're looking for somewhere to charge your phone so you can keep in touch with friends, follow along on the Coachella app or simply Instagram to your heart's content, look for the blue pyramid-like structures with several people standing around them scattered throughout the grounds. (And be patient, because you're one of literally thousands of people with a dying phone battery.)
Also, please don't forget to bring a refillable water bottle — but NOT a metal one, you will be forced to throw it away. There are water stations scattered throughout the grounds that are clearly marked with large signs and also marked on the official Coachella map, which you can see on the app or grab a print version of upon entering the festival and seeking out an information tent.
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Desert Sun reporter Brian Blueskye covers artsand entertainment. Hecan be reached at brian.blueskye@desertsun.com or on Twitter at @bblueskye.
Desert Sun reporter Jennifer Cortez contributed to this report.
