Palm Springs, California

Amber Young
Mar 22
2 min read

Palm Springs is a carefree, brightly colored, vintage Hollywood, mid-century modern, pet-friendly place to be! It is hard to keep a smile off your face here.

Here are just a few of the highlights ...

Cabezon Dinosaurs

I mean, what could be better than gigantic neon dinosaurs that love you? This was just a quick stop, but a fun one!

Palm Springs Aerial Tram

This tram whisks you between two entire worlds in just minutes. It's incredible to be on the valley floor, basking in the warm sunshine with the palm trees, then take a ride so steep that it seems structurally impossible to find yourself in cold, crisp air in a pine forest at the top of jagged San Jacinto Peak.

The hikes at the top are gorgeous. There is even a bar and cafe, so you could easily spend a half day or longer up there. The best part is that no matter where you stand on the tram, you are guaranteed a great view thanks to the rotating tram car. You will see it all.

Ponderosa forest at the top of San Jacinto Peak. — Walking in the ponderosa forest at the top of San Jacinto Peak

Moorten Botanical Garden

The cutest little botanical garden and cactarium ever, And you can bring dogs there! By the way, according to Google, the Moorten's coined the term cactarium and created the first one. I love it. And now I want my own. Who doesn't need a room in which to display cactus treasures?

Downtown

Palm-tree-lined streets filled with shops, restaurants, and people who smile at your dogs. It's a great place to walk and explore. The best place to eat hands down is the Rooster and the Pig, a great Vietnamese restaurant (thanks Alyssa)! You'll know it by the line out the door. We also heard great things about Farm,

Saguaro Hotel

This hotel is a funky, candy-colored dream sequence. We spent some time in the hot tub chatting up a fabulously gay birthday boy who was getting calls from Hollywood about the screenplay he had written about diet culture and medications. Or so he said. :) We had great drinks at the bar, where we pulled off some last-minute Valentine's Day dinner plans at an old-school, renovated hotel with a hidden, candlelit restaurant in its courtyard. When the Uber dropped us off, we had no idea what we were getting into, but ended up loving it! We enjoyed oysters and steak frites and banana splits on the cinderblock patio near the pool and outdoor firepit. The next morning we woke to beautiful sunshine on our orange-crush balcony and saw a roadrunner on our morning dog walk! This is supposed to bring good luck, which has stuck with us on our adventures so far!