Visitors to Palm Springs have found a festival built on sunshine, music and instant connection. Marking its 35th anniversary, The Dinah 2026 brought thousands of queer women and gender-diverse guests together for poolside parties, comedy, live performances and a famously welcoming atmosphere.

Essential Takeaways

  • A landmark anniversary: The Dinah celebrated 35 years as a major event for queer women.
  • Palm Springs setting: Blue skies, warm weather, pools and mountain views form part of the festival's appeal.
  • Big-name entertainment: The programme included Da Brat, Sasha Keable, The Aces and Hayley Kiyoko.
  • More than nightlife: Guests could join workouts, pool games, comedy events and singles activities.
  • A changing leadership team: Founder Mariah Hanson has moved into a consultancy role as Bella Barkow and Rose Garcia take over day-to-day leadership.

Palm Springs turns gloriously sapphic

The first thing that hits you at The Dinah is the sheer scale of it. Palm Springs is already a sun-soaked playground of palms, pools and dramatic mountains, but during festival week it becomes something more specific: a temporary home for queer women and gender-diverse people from around the world.

According to DIVA, thousands attended the 35th anniversary event, filling hotel pools and surrounding spaces with a remarkably broad mix of ages, styles and identities. The atmosphere was busy and exuberant, but also reassuringly open. For many guests, simply being surrounded by people who understand the experience of finding community can be as powerful as the entertainment itself.

The Dinah's official website positions the event as a destination festival, while Palm Springs Life lists it among the city's established calendar highlights. That combination matters: visitors aren't just buying entry to a party, they're stepping into a week-long social world. [2], [3]

The line-up brought serious star power

The festival's programme moved briskly between live music, comedy and late-night events. Da Brat, whose breakthrough album made her the first solo female rapper to sell a million copies, headlined the Friday entertainment, while British-Colombian R&B singer Sasha Keable added a contemporary London connection.

Saturday kept the pace high with comedians including Cameron Esposito, Pink Foxx and A.B. Farrelly, followed by performances from The Aces and Hayley Kiyoko. Kiyoko's status as a queer-pop favourite gave the evening an obvious emotional pull, particularly for fans who have watched her work expand from music into books and film.

The result is a programme that feels deliberately varied. You can dance, laugh, discover a newer artist or see a familiar favourite, often without leaving the festival's social orbit. For a major LGBTQIA+ event, that breadth is part of the point. [4], [5]

Friendship is the festival's real headline

The Singles & Solos event offered a playful route into meeting people, with attendees introduced and interviewed in front of the crowd. It might sound nerve-racking on paper, but the format appeared to do what good festival programming should: break the ice quickly and give strangers a reason to start talking.

Guests also described returning year after year, including couples from Britain and Switzerland. That repeat custom suggests The Dinah has developed something stronger than a one-off party reputation. It has become a place where friendships, relationships and annual rituals can take root.

DIVA's review also highlighted the importance of trans inclusion. One visitor who had worried about feeling isolated quickly encountered other trans women, including people connected to the wider lesbian festival scene. Those small moments can carry enormous weight, especially at a large event where a first-time guest may be unsure what to expect. [2], [3]

There is more to do than party until sunrise

For anyone wondering whether The Dinah is simply a sequence of pool parties, the daytime schedule offers a useful correction. Morning workouts and pool games gave guests an active alternative to the previous night's dancing, although voluntarily exercising at 10am after a late finish takes a special kind of commitment.

That balance is practical as well as entertaining. A destination festival works better when it offers different speeds: loud headline sets for one crowd, comedy for another, and quieter opportunities to meet people or relax by the water. In Palm Springs, the setting does much of the supporting work, with hotels, coffee shops, bars and pools becoming informal meeting points.

If you're considering attending a future edition, it makes sense to plan around your own energy rather than trying to do everything. Choose one or two headline events, leave room for unplanned conversations and keep daytime activities flexible. The best memories may happen away from the main stage. [5], [6]

A new chapter after 35 years

Founder Mariah Hanson has handed the festival to longtime team members Bella Barkow and Rose Garcia, while remaining involved as a consultant. After three and a half decades, that transition feels less like a departure than a carefully managed handover.

Hanson told DIVA that success eventually made the work more sustainable, allowing the event to hire strong managers and book larger performers. It's a useful reminder that longevity isn't only about passion. It also depends on building the systems and people needed to keep an ambitious festival healthy.

The next era will inevitably bring questions about scale, identity and audience expectations. But the 2026 edition suggests the central appeal remains intact: a warm, crowded, proudly queer space where people can arrive alone and quickly find company. Sometimes the most important festival feature isn't the headliner. It's knowing you'll be welcomed when you walk through the gate. [2], [7]

It's a small wonder that The Dinah still feels like a homecoming after 35 years.

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