This past Christmas our family decided we wanted to do something different to celebrate the holidays. Hawaii was at the top of the list, but it is so expensive to go there at Christmas time. After some discussion we settled on Palm Springs, California. None of us had spent any time there, and we thought we would enjoy some warm, sunny weather over Christmas rather than the typical cold, wet, gray skies of Seattle.
While we did stay in Palm Springs, the truth is we didn’t actually do much there. We arrived Monday, and the kids left Friday. Tuesday everyone but me went over to Disneyland. We spent Christmas Day at Joshua Tree National Park. That left only one day for all of us to be in Palm Springs together, and on that day it rained, hard. Yes we had more rain in Palm Springs in one day than we might typically get in Seattle in a week. So much for sunny weather. So this post isn’t so much about things to do in Palm Springs as thoughts and impressions about this town.
First off Palm Springs is one of a number of cities in this area called the Coachella Valley. While we did spend most of our time actually in Palm Springs, there are other places around such as Palm Desert, Cathedral City, and La Quinta among others. Each has a bit of their own personality, but tourism is definitely a major element in all of the areas. Anyone for golf?
Our arrival at the Palm Springs airport made a positive impression. It was dark, but part of the airport is open air covered by a large awning. It reminded me of airports in Hawaii that are open air. There are inside areas which I am sure are appreciated in the heat of the summer.
Canopy Over Palm Springs Airport
The morning after our arrival when I could finally see the area around me, my main impression was how close the San Jacinto Mountains were to the city. They are hard to ignore as they tower over the city. They are not green tree covered mountains since it is in a more desert environment, but they do have their own unique beauty.
San Jacinto Mountains
The main drag of Palm Springs, Palm Canyon Drive, definitely focuses on tourists. Every other business seems to be a restaurant. They run the gamut of food types from Mexican to Asian and everything in between. However, what you won’t find in the downtown area is a fast food place. All these restaurants are pretty pricey. Some coffee shops or ice cream places and one pizza place are in the lower price range. Otherwise expect your restaurant bill to add up pretty quickly. There are, of course, cheaper restaurants and fast food places further off the main drag, but you will probably have to drive rather than walk to get there.
There are a lot of different shops along Palm Canyon Drive which makes shopping a fun experience here. While you do encounter some chain stores, there seem to be a number of local shops offering unusual items for the shopping crowd.
Among the most interesting shops are those that sell mid-century modern objects which Palm Springs is known for. You can find a number of stores that offer housewares, furniture, art and decor that fit the modern look. If you are into this style, you will love shopping here. I found many of the shops walking north on Palm Canyon Drive to the area known as the Uptown area.
While mid-century architecture is popular here, finding it is not always so easy. There are guides that will help you find some of the more iconic buildings as well as homes of some of the towns more famous residents, but they aren’t particularly clustered together so not so much a walkable experience. If you keep your eyes open, however, you are sure to see some of the basic and common designs in the older neighborhoods just off Palm Canyon Drive.
Mid-century Stairs 
Mid-century condos
One of the fun things to do as you are walking the main strip is to check out the stars. The city talks about its walk of stars, but the truth is they are all over the place. The stars don’t just represent entertainment stars. They have stars to honor local leaders and philanthropists as well. The funny thing is that in some areas the names switch directions. So you read the name on one star, but the next one has the name upside down. I guess that means you can read names coming and going, but it is a little awkward.
Frank Sinatra’s Star
It didn’t rain all the time we were in Palm Springs, and when the sun is out, it is warm. Since this was December, I’m sure it gets pretty hot in the summer time. One shop owner told me that in a good year they have three days of rains. In a great year they have five to seven days of rain a year. During our visit it rained two of the days we were there, and one more was predicted the following week. Lucky us. However, the rain in the valley produced snow in the mountains which made for unexpected scenery around us. We had not anticipated seeing palm trees and snow together.
Snow Covered Mountains
Speaking of palm trees, one of the experiences we did manage to enjoy was going out to the popular Shields Dates farm. The information I had read said it was free, but it does cost to go out among the date trees unless you have a meal at their restaurant. We did neither. However, we learned about date farming through a video that they show continuously. It was very educational. We also had a date shake. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was good. To me it had a vanilla flavor, but a little more intense. Shields Dates is not in Palm Springs, but in Palm Desert.
Date Trees 
Shield Dates Sign
One of the experiences we did not have was going up in the aerial tramway. The tram goes to the top of the mountain where there are trails to enjoy along with the views. We had hoped to do it on Saturday, but the wait time was around four hours, and we just didn’t think it was worth it. Since they have a limited number of trips a day, it is not unusual for there to be long waits, especially during a vacation season like Christmas. If this is high on your list of things to do there, I would suggest getting there as early as possible to avoid long lines.
Overall our experience in Palm Springs was positive. On the days it didn’t rain, we enjoyed the weather. It made us think this might be a good place to spend the winter, but we would not want to live there in the summer. We also enjoy the mid-century modern style, and liked seeing this type of architecture around.
Mid-century Building
There are plenty of things to do in Palm Springs that we didn’t have time to do. That means we may just have to go back to see all that the city has to offer.
What have your experiences in Palm Springs been? I’d love to have you share them below.
Awesome post! Keep up the great work! 🙂
Thank you for your encouragement. I’m glad you enjoyed it.