Pop music, scorching hot temperatures, and high fashion outfits point to one specific time of year – festival season. Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is a widely known three-day festival which has a variety of bands, artists and top head liners that attract people to want to come back every year.
This popular music festival, Coachella, runs for two weekends. Weekend one was on April 13-15 and weekend two is coming up on April 20-22. The music festival is held in Indio, Calif. and attracts over 99,000 people per-day, according to Goldenvoice last year. You might ask yourself, why is this festival so popular and is it actually worth the costs?
A famous rapper who played at Coachella two years ago, G-Eazy, explained to the Los Angeles Times the significance of the festival.
“It’s pretty much the most important festival in the country,” said G-Eazy. “It’s one of the rare instances when all of the celebrities, influencers and other musicians are watching, and their voices are amplified through social media.”
The main issue with this event generally seems to be the cost. Many music festival fanatics say that this experience is one of a kind and others say that they don’t see how the festival is worth the expense. This years tickets ranged from $429 for general admission, to almost $1,000 for VIP passes. Yet, getting the tickets is only half the battle. People need to arrange transportation, hotels or a camping site, food, and other necessities in addition to purchasing a ticket.
Coachella is not worth the money since it is not just the ticket you are buying. For a student like me, a few thousand dollars on one weekend just seems a bit much. The ticket itself is about $450, not including three nights of staying at a hotel, food, purchasing other necessities and the cost of high-fashion clothes.
The cost of everything combined can total to a few thousand dollars depending on which travel package you decide. Camping at Coachella is definitely more budget-friendly and sells for $100, but camping isn’t for everyone. Many people lean towards hotels, but due to the popularity and demand, hotels raise their price by 70 percent.
Hotels up their prices because they know people will pay the price. Attendees should expect to pay $343 a night for a room at a cramped one-star hotel near the annual two-weekend bash at the Empire Polo Grounds in Indio, according to the LA Times.
Many students from Moorpark College who have gone to Coachella in the past, went this past weekend or are wanting to go. For many, buying the ticket isn’t the issue, it is the cost of everything else. Reno Watkins, a 20-year-old, Psychology major, has never attended Coachella before but believes it would be worth the money.
“I think it’s worth it because of the experience, and you’re getting a bunch of performances from many different artists,” said Watkins. “I’ve personally never been to Coachella, but I plan on going next year.”
Other students agree with Watkins’ stance, that you do get a variety of performances with lots of artists in one place, where as at a regular concert you only see one artist perform. Although a three-day music festival seems amazing for some, the costs can be just too much. Moorpark College student, Gal Toren, 19, International Relations/Political Science major, believes that Coachella is more of an inconvenience than a good time.
“I think overall its not worth it because it is such a hassle,” said Toren. “There are better concerts and festivals out there for cheaper.”
It’s not too late to purchase a ticket for this upcoming weekend. Many different websites are selling last minute deals for those who couldn’t decide on buying their tickets ahead of time. If the expense is the issue for you, don’t worry. You can catch a live stream at Coachella and won’t feel left out at all. You can listen to all the performances in the comfort of your own home.
Check it out at: https://www.coachella.com/guidebook/youtube-livestream/
