La Grande XL Ferris Wheel Assembled for Coachella Festival in Indio

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival takes place at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California. Each year, the La Grande XL Ferris wheel is set up as a prominent feature against the desert landscape. The wheel is not a permanent structure at the site.

Ray Cammack Shows owns and operates the La Grande XL. The wheel is transported to Indio on 20 semitrucks. A team of 10 members assembles it over five days with a 70-ton crane. The La Grande XL debuted in 2017, replacing the original La Grande Wheel.

It includes 36 air-conditioned gondolas. Hundreds of thousands of festivalgoers have ridden the wheel over the past 15 years, according to Ben Pickett, vice president at Ray Cammack Shows.

Travel and Other Events The wheel travels to various events across the country.

A. County Fair, and the Orange County Fair. It is also used at the Stagecoach Country Music Festival. A custom logo featuring a palm tree and a roadrunner is added specifically for Coachella and Stagecoach.

The logo lights up at night and remains in Southern California when not in use. The wheel has more than half a million LED lights. Installing the logo takes the team about six hours and is the final step in setup.

Ben Pickett described it as the element that completes the wheel.

“Because it is only used for Coachella and Stagecoach, the sign remains in Southern California when not in use. Altogether, the wheel features more than half a million LED lights and installing the logo is a detailed process that takes our team approximately six hours to complete. It’s the final element added during setup — we consider it the ‘cake topper’ that completes the entire wheel.”

Rides on the La Grande XL cost $15 for a 10-minute general admission experience. A private gondola for up to six people, including an express lane, costs $80. The wheel operates during the festival in April.