DH and I are attending a wedding in LA at the beginning of December and are thinking of adding a few days to our trip for a little getaway (and to delay our return to the cold of the east coast!). DH suggested Palm Springs (also going to Joshua Tree NP as part of the trip) as a possibility. I don't know very much about the area and am hoping for some thoughts on whether that would be a good getaway, things to do/see, places to eat, etc. Would also be open to hearing about other options (besides staying in LA-we've both been there multiple times and will have too much family there due to the wedding, so we wouldn't be able to do anything on our own if we stayed !). We are pretty low-key travelers, so any suggestions are welcome!
We spent a week in Palm Desert after Christmas last year. We had a lot of fun but we played golf everyday. I remember thinking, "What do you do here if you don't play golf?" Or tennis.
We spent a week in Palm Desert after Christmas last year. We had a lot of fun but we played golf everyday. I remember thinking, "What do you do here if you don't play golf?" Or tennis.
thanks!
we're definitely open to other areas around there as well, not just staying in palm springs the whole time.
Palm Springs is a great choice and the weather in December is pleasant.
As far as places to stay, The Parker is popular if you are looking for somewhere trendy and hip. Otherwise I would suggest the Westin Mission Hills.
Things to do - Living Desert Museum, Joshua Tree (as you mentioned), Palm Springs Aerial Tram, Indian Canyons hiking, shopping, golf, and gambling. The Living Desert does a special holiday light display in December.
Where to eat - Norma's at the Parker is a must for brunch. There are dozens of great restaurants in the Coachella Valley. You should have no issues here.
I just love Palm Springs. You might want to check out a place near by there called the 29 Palms Inn, located in 29 Palms, of course. It's very rustic but you get such a great sense of the desert there. The restaurant on site is great since much of the food is grown in the beautiful garden on the property. It's closer to JT so if you like to hike and explore, it's perfect.
There are also great mineral spas. I think you'll miss the Palm Springs film festival but check out what other events are happening. You can also drive up to Idylwild for a day trip from there.
bumping for others so as not to continue derailing the Disney thread. Not a ton of info here, but it may cause some local girls (I know there is at least one CCer in the PS area) to chime in.
Thanks for the bump Taurus. I have to say, the trip to PS was probably the easiest vacation I've planned since having kids because it appears that there is SO MUCH to do there and so very convenient for most of it. I'll see if that holds true when we go in a few weeks.
Things on our list
Lodging. We're staying at a 3 bedroom villa on the grounds of the Rancho Las Palmas resort. From my conversations with them, it's across one of the golf courses so about a mile from the main resort but we rented a golf cart for the week to give us easy access to the resort amenities (they are included with our villa). It loos to be very family friendly but also quite nice fro grown-ups. I'm very much looking forward to my morning at the spa DH has promised! http://www.rancholaspalmas.com/
They have this awesome on the internet looking 2 acre kids fun area called Splashtopia, with a lazy river, water slides, a "beach", a kid friendly hot tub and of course a poolside restaurant and bar. Since they also have an adults only area on the other side of the resort, I like that my kids can yell and splash and play without me worried about disrupting others so much. We also have a smaller community pool/hot tub with our villa (that is heated, so that's a plus).
For activites, we're planning to spend most mornings enjoying nature. Hiking at Indian Canyon, taking the tram up the mountains and spending some time there (we'll have cold weather gear since we're coming from OH), a day at Joshua Tree, Living Desert, the Children's Museum, some other hiking and biking recommendations I've found. I actually think we'll have a hard time deciding between options since there is so much if you're outdoorsy, which we are.
My DH's hobby is off-roading in his Jeeps, so we're going out there for the week of a big off road event (King of the Hammers). DH has a bunch of contacts through this, so we'll have access to a Jeep to do some off roading ourselves. And I did concede to joining him at the race one day. It's not in PS, but about 15 min past Joshua Tree.
I'd love any recommendations on good but toddler friendly restaurants. I saw there was a Matchbox, which we enjoyed in DC a few years back. Lately, we just prefer to order out from good places and eat at "home" where we don't have to deal with a 2 year old who doesn't sit still LOL. I see the breakfast place recommendation above. I also imagine we'll have a few meals at the resort.
Oh, and it looks like there is some street festival every Thursday night that could be a fun time as well.
I'm very much looking forward to it and will give a report when I get back.
Boiler, I think your trip sounds great. That hotel is the first one I thought of because my friend who does a local podcast on things to do with kids featured it a few years ago. She loved it. She also talks about restaurants in that podcast, I'll see if I can find a link.
When we went for a couple of days a few years ago, we regretted not staying in that area because the two things we did (Living Desert and Children's Museum) are actually in that area, not in downtown PS.
ETA: looks like they turned their podcast on PS into a full site: palmspringswithkids.com (I think my friend used to be on WC back in the day) There is a restaurant review and video of tram day under the "Videos" tab
Palm Springs
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Originally Posted by kd 9.21.02
