The Dinah: Act II
Since 1991, The Dinah has brought the heat to the Palm Springs area, as the world’s largest and longest-running party for queer women, nonbinary people, and allies. When legendary founder Mariah Hanson announced her departure last year, longtime attendees wondered what came next. Enter new owners Rose Garcia and Bella Barkow.
Feature image: The Dinah 2025 Saturday Pool Party; photo by RADskillZ
Rose Garcia has been going to The Dinah for 25 years. She struggles to remember a time in her life before The Dinah. That seems to be a common refrain amongst Dinah-goers. “It was a lesbian utopia. I was like, ‘Where has this been my whole life?’ I never wanted to leave,” Garcia tells GO.
Folks who have been to The Dinah can probably relate, or can easily access their first time in the memory bank. The music hits you first. You can hear the DJ and the emcee before you even see the pool, the bass line carrying through the hotel lobby. But as soon as you’re out there, as soon as the warm sun and desert air make a home on your skin, you see it. Or maybe you see them, hundreds of lesbians, queer women, and nonbinary folks smiling, laughing, dancing, singing, playing games, striking up conversation, and above all, celebrating. It’s a party, that much you know, but there’s also a near-mythical energy in the air, like that of a queer pilgrimage. You hear someone let out a laugh in the same way they might let out a breath they’ve been holding for too long, and suddenly you’re smiling, too. The festival’s palpable, unshakeable energy is why Garcia’s business partner and friend, Bella Barkow, calls The Dinah a “queer mecca.”
Garcia’s first trip to the five-day bash in Palm Springs was in her early 20s. She quickly forged a relationship with the founder and former owner, Mariah Hanson. Back then, Garcia’s relationship with Hanson was “that of a customer, of someone who just really loved The Dinah and would go every year,” but years later, when Garcia found herself—and we found her—on Season 1 of The Real L Word, that customer-owner relationship developed into something else.
The Dinah 2025. Photo by RADskillZ.
“[Mariah] asked me to come and host, and the first time I emceed turned into a decades-long relationship of hosting pool parties and all the fun mayhem that goes with it,” Garcia smiles.
Those emcee days were when Garcia met Barkow, who joined The Dinah team back in 2018, where she started as a pool party stage manager before eventually becoming the operations manager. Barkow’s experience in the queer event scene is prolific. Her early days were in the nightlife scene in West Hollywood, and she went on to manage major events like LA Pride and the Outloud Festival. She’s had a hand in some of the most successful queer parties in the country, so she was a natural fit with the fabric of The Dinah. However, Barkow quickly realized that The Dinah wasn’t just work. It was a sort of return, a coming home. It was, and is, a family.
“A lot of the same team is coming back this year. It was important that we kept the family together,” Barkow says. “It’s not just about creating this viable business that operates and makes money. It’s about carrying on the legacy of a five-day utopia where queer people can go and feel safe.”
That sense of safety and familiarity has been The Dinah’s essence since its inception. Part of that is thanks to its location. Palm Springs, located in southern California’s Sonoran Desert, is pretty idyllic, in the way that desert-mountain terrain often is. The region became associated with glamour in the 1920s and ’30s, when Hollywood elites flocked there, bound by contracts to remain within a two-hour drive of major movie studios while seeking privacy that was antithetical to Hollywood.
Around the same time, Palm Springs became somewhat of a queer mecca, albeit a discreet one. In the late ’70s, following California’s decriminalization of homosexuality and a changing rhetoric, what was once shrouded began to unfurl, and by the mid ’80s and early ’90s, Palm Springs was cemented as a haven for the queer community. In 2025, the Human Rights Campaign gave Palm Springs a score of 100 for safety and protection of LGBTQ+ folks.
That history laid the groundwork for The Dinah, which officially launched in 1991. That first year was a raucous bash held at Palm Springs Art Museum; it was an immediate success that went on to become a Palm Springs staple for over 30 years. When Hanson announced that she was stepping down after last year’s events, it was a surprise. For some Dinah-goers, it was even a little nerve-wracking. What would happen to the music festival they know and love?
The decision to sell to Garcia and Barkow’s company, BellaRose Productions, was not one Hanson made lightly. She knew that The Dinah would be in good hands, especially given their history. “Rose and Bella are the perfect duo to take over The Dinah,” Mariah Hanson said in her announcement. “Through their big hearts, business acumen, and commitment to preserving what is most beloved about The Dinah, I am genuinely excited to watch them take The Dinah to new heights.”
With both women having deep-seated roots in the festival and with Hanson’s blessing, their partnership was a natural fit, but not one initially on Bella or Rose’s radar.
“When [Hanson] told us that she was going to step down and sell [The Dinah], I didn’t have any intention of buying it or even pursuing it until she told me that a couple of folks mentioned my name,” Garcia says. “Then I found out Bella was also going after it.”
Garcia noted how great it had been to work so closely with Barkow over the years, how well she worked under pressure, how kind she was, and how hard of a worker she was. Suddenly, what was once unconsidered became a no-brainer. Their prowess as business partners and friends is already apparent, partly because they know there’s a reason The Dinah has been successful for over three decades. They had a hand in it. “We’re not going to tear it down or strip it down and create a ‘new Dinah.’ That’s not what this is. This is the taking of the baton, it’s an elevation of the experience,” Garcia says.
When Hanson first announced she was stepping down, she said folks could expect The Dinah to be back in 2027, but to the great relief and excitement of lesbians and queer folks around the world, Garcia and Barkow had other plans. The Dinah is on. From September 30 to October 4, Dinah-goers will once again descend on Palm Springs for 5 days of pure bliss.
Comedian Cameron Esposito. Photo courtesy of The Dinah.
This year, tickets include access to a second hotel: Hotel Zoso. Barkow and Garcia’s intentions with Hotel Zoso are to create a space for patrons who want new energy with a slightly different pace than the infamous pool party at the Hilton. Picture this. It’s Saturday. You just woke up, still spinning from Friday’s activities: the Girl Spot Pool Party followed by partying until the wee hours of the morning at the Black and White Ball. You’re excited to get over to the Hilton for the L Word Pool Party, but you need to ease into the day a bit first. You head over to Zoso, where you might start your morning with yoga, ease into a pickup game of volleyball or dodgeball, or linger over a mocktail while a DJ plays old-school hip-hop. Then, when and if you’re ready, you head across the street and step into the pulse of the main pool party at the Hilton, getting your fill before you head to the glamorous Hollywood Party. Or maybe your day looks a little different. It’s really a choose-your-own-adventure sort of vibe.
If comedy is more your speed, good news! Queer comedian Cameron Esposito will be headlining the Saturday stage —you heard it here first. You can catch her on October 3 before Saturday night’s Hollywood Party. Or perhaps you want to check out Singles and Solos, an event designed for people who arrive alone but don’t want to stay that way. Barkow and Garcia received many messages, urging them to bring that activation back, and they listened. There are spaces to meet, to talk, to reset, to party, to play sports, and to lean in to what The Dinah has to offer.
There will also be ample mocktail and non-alcoholic drink options for the sober community, of which Barkow is a part, or for those who just need a break from imbibing. “Identity doesn’t determine personality traits,” she says. “I think that people associate [queerness] with partying all of the time, but that’s not the full picture. We come in all shapes and sizes and have different interests, and The Dinah seeks to create an experience for everybody.”
That awareness has helped ensure that The Dinah, which started as a celebration for cis lesbians, has been welcoming to people of all queer identities and gender expressions. Barkow and Garcia understand that inclusivity is nothing without safety and affirmation. In fact, in her last two years as Operations Manager, Barkow started a gender sensitivity program training, something that they’ll continue with their staff, vendors, and security team. “The goal [of the training] is to get people to recognize, accept, and use more gender-inclusive language when approaching our guests. People’s identities are not always obvious,” Barkow says. The training works to create sensitivity and awareness, so that all patrons are not only welcomed and encouraged to attend, but also celebrated and supported throughout the weekend.
We live in a world where safety is not guaranteed, and many Dinah-goers are coming from conditions where they’re not just unsafe but uncelebrated. The Dinah is a five-day celebration, a safety net in a world that tries to force the walls to close in around us. “It is such a gift to be able to provide that,” Garcia says. “It makes me feel like we’re providing some good, positive change in the world. It’s an honor to be a part of that.”
Get your tickets to The Dinah 2026 today at thedinah.com.
Liana DeMasi (they/them) is a writer and educator living in Brooklyn, NY. Their work can be found in Atmos, Rewire News Group, i-D, The Boston Globe, Autostraddle, Poynter, and others.
