I've Been To Lolla As A Normie & A VIP — Here Are The Biggest Differences

There’s no in-between when it comes to music festivals. You’re either caught up in ecstatic bliss scream-singing with your favorite artist, or you’re fighting heatstroke trying to re-send a failed “Where r u?” text in the middle of a pushy crowd. I first experienced those extremes when I attended Lollapalooza in 2015. I ended that weekend with lifelong memories, a sore body, and a nasty sunburn. So when I had the opportunity to go back almost a decade later, I started weighing the pros and cons... until three important letters tipped the scale: VIP.

I immediately assumed all my woes from last time would be left in the past. This time I wouldn’t be trying to peek over a sea of heads to just barely see Florence + the Machine; I wouldn’t lose my life savings to upcharged drinks and food; I wouldn’t leave Chicago’s Grant Park drenched in a layer of sweat. And now that I’ve been on both sides of the luxury lounge, I know just how much the VIP perks are really worth.

My specific VIP package came courtesy of Chase Sapphire, which allowed its cardholders access to its viewing lounge at the southern end of Grant Park. Not only did that get me an uncrowded space to check out two of the main stages, but there were also complimentary snacks, a happy hour, and several much-needed fans to cool you off. This package will also be available at a few upcoming festivals like Outside Lands and Oceans Calling (their website has all the details).

I was also given a VIP wristband for the weekend — a value of $1,670. That’s a very steep price, but if you’re attending all four days of Lolla, it might be important to you to have access to a dedicated entrance with no line, exclusive lounges on both ends of the festival, and a golf cart that can quickly get you from one stage to the next.

As someone who had a few complaints about my last Lolla experience, I can definitely say that some of the VIP perks are musts for me going forward. But not all of them are necessary. Here are the elements that make VIP status worth the price.

The Shaded Lounges Come In Clutch

For many of the bigger sets, the VIP lounges were the only way I could have seen the stage. This was especially true when I saw Chappell Roan perform on Thursday afternoon. The overwhelmingly massive crowd — estimated to be the largest daytime set in Lollapalooza history — was impenetrable.

Having the space to freely do the “HOT TO GO!” dance and belt out “Good Luck, Babe” without jostling for position in that wall of people made Chappell’s performance that much more memorable for me.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve lounge has a great view of two of Lolla’s bigger stages: the T-Mobile stage and the IHG stage, which trade off performances throughout each day. Basically, you could hang out in the shaded area all day and catch some of the biggest acts, like Kesha, Reneé Rapp, and SZA. There’s also another VIP lounge across the field with a view of both stages.

Plus, it’s not like you’re required to stay in the lounge if you want to join the crowd. Back in 2015, one of my favorite experiences was the collective euphoria everyone in the Florence + the Machine audience felt when it started to rain during her headlining set. It was a magical moment then, but it would have been even better if I had the option to run back to a sheltered area after that initial bliss.

An Exclusive Bar Helps You Avoid The Lines

Anyone who’s been to a music festival knows how important food and drinks are... and how annoying it can be to get them. An aggravating amount of time at my first Lolla was spent waiting in lines at the food stalls and dropping $20 at a time for hot dogs and cocktails.

While the Chase Sapphire lounge didn’t have large food offerings, there were plenty of complimentary snacks circulating to keep me satiated, including trays of chicken tostadas, mozzarella sticks, popcorn, cookies, and popsicles. It’s not really enough to fill you up, so you’ll probably still need to venture out to grab real food at some point, but it’s nice to help hold you over between sets.

The more important perk, IMO, is access to a private bar with no lines. Each day from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., this bar had a happy hour where everyone got one free drink. Outside of that, I did still have to pay for my drinks, but I didn’t mind considering how nice it was to quickly grab a hard seltzer whenever I felt like it. In my general admission days, getting a drink meant nearly 30 minutes of walking from the stage and back, hoping I didn’t forget where my friends were or that I wouldn’t miss the next performer.

The Golf Cart Is Game-Changing For Moving Quickly Between Sets

The VIP lounges are great for the bigger stages, but I also wanted to hit up the smaller side stages while I was at Lolla. Back in 2015, it was on these stages that I got to see some of my favorite artists who hadn’t fully blown up yet, like Halsey and FKA twigs.

This year, my sights were set on the girl group FLO, who were performing on a smaller stage on the north side of Grant Park.

The problem? FLO’s stage was all the way on the other side of Lollapalooza, and it would take me at least 20 minutes of shoving through a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd in the Chicago heat to get there after watching Kesha perform on the IHG stage. That’s where the VIP golf cart access saved the day.

By flashing my wristband, I was quickly ferried to the other end of the festival just in time for FLO. The whole time, I was thinking about how many more performances I could have seen back in 2015 if I had this perk then.

You Might Even Get Stage Access

The VIP lounge isn’t the true best view at Lolla — for that, you’d need to get on the stage yourself. And... I actually did! Part of Chase Sapphire’s package allowed cardholders to watch Zedd’s headlining set right on the side of his stage. Although, this isn’t a perk for all VIPs — Chase Sapphire members had to pay an extra $100 for this access.

This was my first time experiencing such a huge concert in this way, and really seeing what the artist sees looking out over the huge crowd. To make this moment even more special, Zedd premiered his new song “Lucky” and brought out one of my favorite singers: Remi Wolf.

Interacting With Celebs Is Fun, If You Can Afford It

Another part of Chase Sapphire’s VIP package was a DJ class with Zedd on Saturday afternoon. This, I was a bit more apprehensive about, especially after seeing the intimidatingly button-filled mixing board we’d be working with. The class consisted of about 24 people and lasted half an hour, with Zedd making time to stop by each of our booths for personal DJing advice. Afterwards, he posed for photos with everyone.

I can’t say I gained much confidence in my DJing skills, but I feel like I can maybe pull off a passable transition between two songs thanks to Zedd’s guidance, which is pretty cool. I also got some time to talk to him and ask about the main thing I cared about: all the pop divas he’s worked with.

He told me how working with Hayley Williams was major for him because he’d always been a Paramore fan growing up, and how collaborating with Kesha in 2016 was so meaningful because she hadn’t been able to release music for three years. He gushed about how Maren Morris’ country rasp improved his productions, how Katy Perry had long been his dream collaborator, and lauded Ariana Grande as having one of the greatest voices ever.

He also spilled a little tea about when he worked with Selena Gomez in 2015, revealing they also recorded a second unreleased collaboration that may eventually see the light of day.

The two-hour event cost $300 for Chase Sapphire members, which is definitely a bit pricey, but I think it would be worth it for a Zedd super fan. It’s not often you get one-on-one time with your favorite artist!

All in all, I’d say the VIP lounge may have been the only thing that could have gotten me to come back to Lollapalooza nine years after my last experience. I was fine with sweating it out in the crowds back then, but I’m almost a decade older now, and having the space and comfort to enjoy my favorite musicians without any stressors is worth dropping some money on to me.

As far as perks that don’t feel super necessary, the food offerings were so small that I wouldn’t have really missed them if they were gone. And I probably wouldn’t have gone to the DJ class if I had to pay $300 for it — although I might consider it for a performer I really stan.

Maybe I didn’t have the true Lolla experience this time, like when I was dancing in the rain to Florence + the Machine and stumbling onto Halsey’s set in a sun-baked delirium, but I’m totally content with that. I already did all that once. Now, I’d rather chill. And if it costs a little extra to do that, it’s money well spent.