Page 119 - 2017 Travel Guide to California

GORD MCKENNA/CREATIVE COMMONS/FLICKR; VISITPALMSPRINGS.COM. OPPOSITE: VISITPALMSPRINGS.COM; VISITPALMSPRINGS.COM
PICNIC AT INDIAN CANYONS, opposite top; Palm Springs Art Museum,
opposite bottom; cocktail party in mid-century home, Palm Springs, right;
family hike in Indian Canyons, bottom.
thousand Mid-Century Modernist homes.
Many of the finest exemplars of Modernism
are boutique hotels—Arrive, L’Horizon, The
Monkey Tree and V Palm Springs, to name
a few—and almost all have played host to
the Hollywood A-list. “Sinatra slept here”
and “This was Angelina Jolie’s room” is no
idle chatter. By the way, many of the famous
personalities who’ve lived, loved and
played in Palm Springs—from Elvis Presley
to Elizabeth Taylor—are commemorated in
pink granite stars (the “Walk of Stars”)
embedded in downtown sidewalks.
Its population once surged in winter and
cleared out by May. No longer. Palm Springs
is now a trendy year-round destination, not
least as the weekend haven of choice for
sleek LA hipsters come to laze or party by
the pool with cocktail in hand. The “Tes-
loop” chauffeured rideshare between Los
Angeles and Palm Springs in Tesla electric
vehicles makes it easy. But Palm Springs
travel offers far more. Snowbirds, retirees,
art lovers, spa-goers and active vacationers
flock too to this amazingly cosmopolitan
city. And Palm Springs’ sizeable gay and les-
bian population translates into an uber
LGBT-friendly and fun destination, and
never more so than during the annual Gay
Pride Festival (November) and White Party
(May). At any time of year, Hunters night-
club keeps the LGBT party alive with its
nine-hour-long happy hour!
Cultural Attractions
To satisfy cultural yearnings, start at the
Palm Springs Art Museum. Considered one
of California’s finest regional museums,
this world-class venue is notable for its
contemporary art and astounding glass art
in the Denney Western American Art Wing.
Its Mesoamerican collection includes bas-
ketry, pottery and other artifacts by local
Amerindian tribes. A few blocks away,
the recently debuted Palm Springs Art
Museum Architecture & Design Center, in
a 1960s former bank building of classic
Mid-Century Modernist styling, houses the
museum’s growing collection of architec-
ture and design-related pieces.
Meanwhile, Palm Springs’ Native Amer-
ican heritage is honored at the downtown
Agua Caliente Cultural Museum, where bas-
ketry, pottery and other traditional skills
workshops are hosted. And aviation buffs
and WWII aficionados will exult to the war-
birds on display at the Palm Springs Air
Museum. It’s one of the world’s foremost
museums dedicated to WWII aircraft, dis-
played in two hangars replicating the
European and Pacific theaters. Flying demos
are occasionally offered, as are Warbird
Rides in a P-51 Mustang and C-47 Skytrain.
To truly appreciate Palm Springs’ beauty
and scale from on high, lace up your hiking
shoes. The Bogert Trail complex rewards
hikers with sensational views over the city, as
does the Desert View Trail in Mount San Jac-
into State Park. The latter is reached via a
sensational ride on the Palm Springs Aerial
Tram. Talk about saving the best for last!
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