The Velvet Clicquot Polo Classic

By, fancyn

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The Velvet Clicquot Polo Classic is an annual event held in different major cities. In Los Angeles, it happens on the 1st weekend of October at the stunning Will Rogers State Historic Park in the Pacific Palisades. Regularly attended by fashionable celebrities, polo aficionados, and champagne connoisseurs alike, the chic event is noted as a fun day in the sun featuring a thrilling polo match, beautiful backdrops, and of course, plenty of refreshing champagne.

Typically held twice a year (at the beginning of summer in New York City and in the fall in Los Angeles), the bubbly-fueled equine event has become a mainstay for the luxe champagne brand. In previous years, notable L.A. attendees have included the likes of Julia Roberts, Christina Hendricks, Rachel Zoe, Jason Sudekis, Mandy Moore, Kendall Jenner, Justin Hartley, Rosario Dawson, and Rebel Wilson, just to name a few.

It is a polo match but it’s also anything but! Let me explain: This event has evolved into a cross between a fashion show, high society, all out fabulousness display and champagne libations with some polo thrown in for good measure. As the name suggests, it is sponsored by the champagne brand Velvet Clicquot and they definitely have champagne for purchase flowing endlessly. It’s not unusual to see attendees drinking out of the beautiful bright yellow bottles.. 
To attend this event, you first need to secure  the highly sought after tickets which always sell out! To make sure you get yours, I suggest following @VC on Instagram so you know when tickets go on sale. This year there was a pre-sale window for Amex card members.

There were three separate admission offerings, The Picnic Lawn ($110 per ticket), The Rosé Garden ($500 per ticket), and La Grande Dame Cabanas ($1,900 per ticket). Any and all tickets are to be purchased through Universe prior to the event, as third-party tickets will not be honored and there will be not ticket sales on site.

To maximize on our girls-day-out and in line with the glitz and glam, we scheduled a make up artist @Kirsten on the morning of. Our party started right there as we got pampered and drank mimosas! We then got our chosen outfits on and headed out for a great day! 

As far as logistics go, you cannot drive or get dropped off at the venue. Parking, drop off and check in was at a hangar at the Santa Monica Airport and there were shuttles to transport attendees to the venue, parking cost $50!

For a hustle free experience, we opted to do a ride share service so we could enjoy our champagne without any worries! The shuttles were clean and luxurious which made the 30 min or so ride to the venue not just fancy but comfortable. It also took about 20 min for the check in process – proof of vaccination or negative Covid test within 72 hours was required – so one should factor this in when planning.

The first polo match was at 2pm but doors opened at 11am. To really get the most of your day, I suggest getting there by noon. Once there, depending on the type of ticket you have, you’ll pick your spot and enjoy the event: Watching the match, people watching, drinking champagne and being fabulous for a day! Be sure to bring a picnic blanket if you have general admission tickets. You can also bring a picnic basket or cooler with food but no alcohol or glass containers are allowed. 

The event ended at 5pm and there was shuttle service back to the hangar. The ride back was a lot more festive – maybe the champagne had something to do with it?? – but our shuttle was a mobile America’s got talent as the driver invited passengers to entertain! The VC Polo Classic is a truly unique and fun experience and should be added to everyone’s bucket list or in my case, annual tradition!