Coachella Hacks

The amount of messages and comments I get about doing a Coachella hack post is UNREAL.. soo without further ado, let me give you what you want! I’m particularly excited about this post because I absolutely love Coachella! I can complain about how crowded it has become these days and how I personally don’t care for the line up at all this year (BRING RADIOHEAD BACK), but I’m just excited to be back on the grounds! I touched base on Coachella clothing ideas with my Ooh La Luxe collab, find here, so this post is solely dedicated to hacks on how to survive, and more importantly, thrive at Coachella. Every year I learn something new but these tips have been my saving grace so far. LET’S DO THIS.

LOVE MY FANS

Battery powered fans. These are a major must. I’m the type of gal who gets hot quick and the only remedy when shade and water aren’t an option, is to complain. I completely turn into a little brat and complain about how hot it is and how I feel like I’m dying. CLEARLY, I’m a fun person to hang out with. Last year was the first year my group decided to bring small battery powered fans and oh my god, it was a GAME CHANGER. You can find them super cheap on Amazon. This brand here is the specific one I used, but any one them could work just fine. Trust me, you’ll need this. Also, bring extra batteries!

CIRCLE OF TRUST

When you’re in a bigger group of friends, you’re going to run into the issue of drunk crazy people stumbling around aimlessly trying to break up your group while you’re minding your own business. The best trick I’ve learned from my years of Coachella adventures is throwing down a blanket or tarp (or both) and then putting all your belongings: purse, backpack, etc., in the middle and then surround it. Basically circle around your belongings. Trying to visually explain this much as I can. When you have your backpacks in the middle and you’re surrounding them, people have to go around your entire group, rather than walk right through it. It helps immensely so you don’t become a walk way and the people that try to ram through your circle of trust end up getting death stares and looking like complete assholes. Less asshole encounters and more dancing.

DITCH THAT MEET UP

I know Coachella is exciting and you want to spend it with all of your friends and show off your meticulously picked outfit to everyone and their mothers, BUT when you spend so much time trying to meet up with people, you could miss the best spontaneous parts! I’ve made the mistake of spending far too many hours trying to meet up at some persons set at some particular time, and ultimately miss a great performance. Go with the group you’ll be happy to spend all your time with and let the Coachella gods do the rest. If you’re meant to run into each other, YOU WILL. 

CAMPING

For the second weekend last year, Vanessa, Eric and I decided to camp. It was our first time camping at Coachella and we ended up having the best time. One of the problems we ran into was how AGGRESSIVE the sun was in the morning. IF you are camping and it’s your first time, DO NOT forget eye masks. They will save your life and if you like to sleep in like me, it’s necessary. But be cautious of taking the mask off in the morning because you go for complete darkness to seeing heaven in seconds.

DUST STORMS

Dust storms are a REAL thing at Coachella. If you’ve never experienced it before, you’re one of the lucky ones. I had a friend get dirt stuck in their eye behind their contacts. Sounds like a new Saw contraption. (Although, it happened to one of my ex’s so HA, even mother nature’s on my side!) I’ve had times when I’ve gotten into the shower after a Coachella dust storm and had black dirty water running off my body for an uncomfortable amount of time. The past two years I’ve been have been lucky due to the absence of dust storms but one can never get too comfy. I always bring a scarf or a bandana just in case. Scarves are great to bring for women AND men in the situation of a dust storm or even cold weather at night. Trust me, you’ll be happy you did if it does happen. Oh, Coachella gods be kind to us this year!!!

MORE OUTFITS

I think it’s smart to always have a change of clothes. Whether it’s a pair of pants,  sweats, an oversized sweater or whatever your poison is, bring it. I clearly am heavily affected by weather if you haven’t gotten that by now, so having an outfit for when the temperature drops is key. Just throw it in your backpack, or get a locker if you’re not camping. GIRLS – don’t risk pneumonia for a cute outfit!!! I can’t stress that enough.

MAIN STAGE

The artist area for the main stage gets so overly populated, it’s pretty impossible to even have room to dance. So when the Beyoncés of the world are performing, being in the artist area is more just for the sake of being able to say you were in the artist area. Lameeee. My favorite place to watch popular performers for main stage is in General Admissions very far left side, behind the artist area and to the right of the VIP area. Everyone is either in artist or VIP or so close to the stage that this area is basically abandoned. You have a great spot to spread out, dance, see, hear and actually enjoy the set! I’m not the type of person to wait six hours just to be at the front of the stage, even for my favorite artists, but if that’s you, go for it! If that isn’t you either, take my advice and utilize this gem of a spot! Maybe i’ll see you there.

ROSE GARDEN

If you have VIP, don’t forget to hit the Rose Garden! This is my favorite VIP area, so much I’m almost hesitant to be writing this. I’ve had so many conversations with people who have missed the Rose Garden which absolutely blows my mind. The VIP spot by the main stage is sooo, je ne sais quoi, shit showy… Literally shit show city. The Rose Garden is waaaaay more chill. The amount of times I’ve napped in the Rose Garden area is amazing and you get really cute pictures in there! You could even get a photo of you laying down, sucking a ring pop, living your best life in the Rose Garden… sound familiar? OH, and don’t forget to try the sushi restaurant in there (I always forget the name). DON’T JUDGE SUSHI IN THE DESERT, it’s surprisingly amazing and one of the few times I’ll eat fish. Aside from the occasional Sugarfish or Subway tuna melt. Mmm…

HOUSING

If you are staying at a house nearby, bring a bike! It makes it super easy to get back to your house without waiting in a crazy line or desperately searching for your uber everywhere. If you’re staying further away and biking is a helllll no, set up a specific meet up spot at a specific time for you and your group to get together so you’re not in it alone. I’ve known friends to walk miles to get home because their phones would die and they had no actual plan of what to do in case of emergency. Getting home always feels a little hellish when you’re not staying on the grounds so don’t take this lightly! 

YOU GLOW GIRL

GLOW STICKS are a must. Not only are they fun, they’re also super practical to use to help navigate or find your group. Make a big glow stick flower to hold in the air or even just attach a few glow sticks to your bag and when you’re pushing through crowds. It’ll help keep you guys together in style.

I hope these help! Just remember to hydrate, wear sunscreen and have fun! Don’t get too caught up in anything and just go with the flow! Leave me some comments if you have any other useful tips you’ve discovered for Coachella or other festivals! STAY SAFE COACHELLA BABIES.