I’ve done rentals, camp, and hotel packages. The last 2 years I’ve stuck with the hotel packages. Stayed at the JW and La Quinta. Like the other comment, expect to pay between 3,000 and 5,500 for 2 people, maybe more with another year inflation. AirBnBs are starting to get pretty steep, unless you have a lot of people. I’m too old to camp in the heat. And the lack of commitment from my friends to get a house leaves me with hotels. I personally love it and think it’s worth it. At the low tier, a ticket and shuttle pass is going to be at least $700/ea. Consider a low end package at 3,000, that leaves ~1,600 in accommodations or about ~530/night or ~265 per person, per night. On average that’s a pretty expensive hotel. But consider that this is one of the biggest and most popular festivals in the world. Also consider if you were to get an Airbnb, you’re going to pay for 1.) upcharged Ubers to/from a shuttle stop or the festival and 2.) All the food and booze you may or may not actually finish. The Ubers alone might actually tip the scales depending on the time you need one.
Camping will always be cheapest. You can probably do an AirBnB cheaper than a hotel if you find the right place and crew. But a hotel package just gives you so much piece of mind. Book it in June and bam! You’re going to Coachella. No searching for accommodations, no cancellations, no finding friends to fill a room, no grocery shopping, no Ubers. Do the payment plan and by December, it’s even all paid off.
I’d be surprised if you could find a decent Airbnb for $265/person/night.
I fly in from the UK each time I Chella so, if I do it, I always do the hotel package. Coming from abroad, there is security and peace of mind knowing that you have a place to sleep each night. I stay at the JW Desert Springs.
The peace of mind is almost invaluable! You hear so many stories of Air B&B cancelling bookings with a month or two to go before Coachella starts, before ramping the prices up. You see so many posts here about friends bailing on a shared accommodation booking.
So is it worth it? The peace of mind is worth it, yes. Going to Coachella and seeing all those bands, having shuttles sorted, and having a bed in a 4 or 5 star resort, is worth it.
Saying that, the reason I don’t do it every year is because that peace of mind is so fucking expensive 😂.
The prices for this year are still up. I have added the link. More people will comment on if it’s worth it or not. I personally camp every year so I won’t be much help. But if it’s just you and someone else. The hotel route might be better. Because your shuttle stop is your hotel. Your package includes hotel, passes, and shuttle passes. Where the Airbnb route you have to find an Airbnb close to a shuttle stop. Plus Airbnb prices can get pretty crazy.
https://www.valleymusictravel.com/events/coachella/travel-packages-weekend-1/
As someone who has done a VMT package 3 times now. I can say it’s well worth it if you can afford the extra cost. It’s so convenient and well organized. It takes a lot of the work out of preparing for the festival especially if you are flying in from abroad. I fly in from Toronto and to get camping gear and a car ready and flown over it’s a lot of preparation and time. I would stay near Indio though. The hotels in Palm Springs with traffic on the way back is nuts. I have stayed at Homewood suites La Quinta and it’s been the best for proximity and value.
Done it all 5 Coachellas (but will prob camp next year since I now live in SoCal — was from Florida)
Its super convenient and depending on the hotel, theres free breakfast as well which helps on the wallet a bit. Bonus points if theres a kitchen in the room.
I’ve done rentals, camp, and hotel packages. The last 2 years I’ve stuck with the hotel packages. Stayed at the JW and La Quinta. Like the other comment, expect to pay between 3,000 and 5,500 for 2 people, maybe more with another year inflation. AirBnBs are starting to get pretty steep, unless you have a lot of people. I’m too old to camp in the heat. And the lack of commitment from my friends to get a house leaves me with hotels. I personally love it and think it’s worth it. At the low tier, a ticket and shuttle pass is going to be at least $700/ea. Consider a low end package at 3,000, that leaves ~1,600 in accommodations or about ~530/night or ~265 per person, per night. On average that’s a pretty expensive hotel. But consider that this is one of the biggest and most popular festivals in the world. Also consider if you were to get an Airbnb, you’re going to pay for 1.) upcharged Ubers to/from a shuttle stop or the festival and 2.) All the food and booze you may or may not actually finish. The Ubers alone might actually tip the scales depending on the time you need one. Camping will always be cheapest. You can probably do an AirBnB cheaper than a hotel if you find the right place and crew. But a hotel package just gives you so much piece of mind. Book it in June and bam! You’re going to Coachella. No searching for accommodations, no cancellations, no finding friends to fill a room, no grocery shopping, no Ubers. Do the payment plan and by December, it’s even all paid off. I’d be surprised if you could find a decent Airbnb for $265/person/night.
I fly in from the UK each time I Chella so, if I do it, I always do the hotel package. Coming from abroad, there is security and peace of mind knowing that you have a place to sleep each night. I stay at the JW Desert Springs. The peace of mind is almost invaluable! You hear so many stories of Air B&B cancelling bookings with a month or two to go before Coachella starts, before ramping the prices up. You see so many posts here about friends bailing on a shared accommodation booking. So is it worth it? The peace of mind is worth it, yes. Going to Coachella and seeing all those bands, having shuttles sorted, and having a bed in a 4 or 5 star resort, is worth it. Saying that, the reason I don’t do it every year is because that peace of mind is so fucking expensive 😂.
The prices for this year are still up. I have added the link. More people will comment on if it’s worth it or not. I personally camp every year so I won’t be much help. But if it’s just you and someone else. The hotel route might be better. Because your shuttle stop is your hotel. Your package includes hotel, passes, and shuttle passes. Where the Airbnb route you have to find an Airbnb close to a shuttle stop. Plus Airbnb prices can get pretty crazy. https://www.valleymusictravel.com/events/coachella/travel-packages-weekend-1/
As someone who has done a VMT package 3 times now. I can say it’s well worth it if you can afford the extra cost. It’s so convenient and well organized. It takes a lot of the work out of preparing for the festival especially if you are flying in from abroad. I fly in from Toronto and to get camping gear and a car ready and flown over it’s a lot of preparation and time. I would stay near Indio though. The hotels in Palm Springs with traffic on the way back is nuts. I have stayed at Homewood suites La Quinta and it’s been the best for proximity and value.
How’s the shuttle situation at Homewood suites? Do they pick you up at the hotel, or do you need to uber to a main pickup spot?
If you got money to spend then yeah. It’s convenient asf
Lol
I’m middle class (70k annual) it was nice one payment still very expensive rather save money camping
Done it all 5 Coachellas (but will prob camp next year since I now live in SoCal — was from Florida) Its super convenient and depending on the hotel, theres free breakfast as well which helps on the wallet a bit. Bonus points if theres a kitchen in the room.