Nature lovers! This is a perfect spot for you!
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Palm Springs is a holiday destination in the Sonoran Desert, surrounded by four mountain ranges. The resort city is popular for weekend getaways because it is only a three-hour drive from San Diego and a two-hour drive from Los Angeles!
The city and other adjacent communities known as the Coachella Valley are popular winter resorts. It is famed for its mid-century modern architecture, abundant championship golf courses, warm weather, and a joyous and inviting culture. Apart from golf resorts and swimming pools, there are a variety of tourist attractions, activities, and places to visit. Shopping, dining, museum visits, and excursions to the neighbouring desert, mountains, and canyons!
Did you know Palm Springs‘ busy season lasts from November to March? Yes! When most of North America is chilly, the population grows with tourists and snowbirds. During the annual Palm Springs Film Festival in January, the city attracts many Hollywood luminaries, while Modernism Week in February draws architecture and design enthusiasts from around the world. The city becomes much busier during the Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals in Indio, some 30 minutes outside downtown.
Read more to find out more about Palm Springs!
Explore the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens
What began as an idea 50 years ago to preserve some pristine desert land as the region around it blossomed into a resort has evolved into a world-class zoo. The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in adjacent Palm Desert provide an opportunity to see desert plants and fauna and get insight into desert ecosystems worldwide.
The little zoo also houses horses, wolves, foxes, badgers, alpine lions, raptors, giraffes, zebras, hyenas, leopards, gazelles, and other creatures from North America and Africa.
The best time to visit is when the animals are still energetic before the day’s heat sets in. To learn about guided excursions to the outdoors, wildlife displays, and animal feeding times, consult the zoo’s daily schedule.
Participating in the daily giraffe feeding is a delight. Visitors can feed their giraffe herd from an observation deck. During the summer, it is done in the mornings, while during the other months, it is done all day. You can also mingle with the zoo’s horses and camels by helping keepers feed, nurture, and train them!
Palm Springs wind turbines
The San Gorgonio Pass, just west of Palm Springs, is one of the windiest spots on the planet, which is why it’s loaded with windmills! The pass, positioned on each side of the I-10 freeway as it approaches the Coachella Valley, provides strong and constant wind, which is required for power generation. Wind turbines cover acres of desert and hillsides, quietly creating electricity for the region.
The wind turbines can be seen by exiting the I-10 highway at the Indian Canyon exit or taking a guided tour. Palm Springs Windmill Tours is the only approved tour allowing you to go “behind the fence” and get up and personal with these massive machines! If you want the chilliest and rare experience, don’t miss out on this spot!
Palm Springs Art Museum
The Palm Springs Art Museum exhibits works of art, natural history, and the performing arts. The museum has been open since the late 1930s and used to focus nearly entirely on desert subjects and artists. Still, over time, the focus has evolved to a well-curated collection that includes contemporary and modern art, including Native American art! History lovers! Pay attention! This spot will blow your mind!
The museum features a vast collection of Native American arts, crafts and artefacts and great art. The museum also has a natural science collection that displays creatures and fossils, making it a terrific destination for kids and families to visit!
On the grounds, there are additionally two outdoor sculpture gardens. Paintings, photography, glass, ceramics, architecture, and design are among the museum’s permanent holdings, emphasising American Western art and artists. There are also short-term exhibitions and shows that change from season to season.
The museum’s massive Annenberg Theater hosts various music, dance, and dramatic productions and performances throughout the year that is extremely enjoyable! Schedule your trip according to the specific dates of your preferred show!
Get a taste of the date palms
Did you know Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley have a long agricultural heritage? Yes! You read it right! Dates are an important crop in the area, producing more than 90% of the dates farmed in the United States! This Middle Eastern fruit was initially cultivated in the desert in the early twentieth century, and it is one of the few crops that can be grown year-round in the region’s harsh climate.
The Shields Date Garden is located near Indio, roughly 30 minutes from Palm Springs. The nearly 20-acre date farm has a cafe, an informative tour of the date groves, and even a theatre screening a 1940s film about date farming. They also sell date shakes, a must-have date milkshake-like smoothie that every visitor to Palm Springs should experience!
Moorten Botanical Gardens and Cactarium’s barrel cactus
On the southern end of Palm Canyon Drive, just outside Palm Springs, are the Moorten Botanical Gardens and Cactarium. The extraordinary natural area features an amazing display of cacti and other desert flora, ranging from mature trees to newly sprouting plants. The gardens are at their best in the spring when the desert begins to blossom, and the trees are turning green again.
Although Moorten is open all year round, you can receive a free guided tour of the facilities from fall through spring as part of your admission.
In addition to being a botanical garden, the grounds also function as a business nursery where you can buy some plants to take home with you!
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