Hot Hotels, Spas And Dining For 2024

Surrounded by four mountain ranges, Palm Springs is one of Southern California’s most popular weekend destinations and the ultimate desert resort oasis. The area comprises nine cities—Palm Springs, Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta, Indio and Coachella—each with its unique style and attraction for legions of followers.

Much like famed photographer Slim Aarons’ images from the past, Palm Springs has a stuck-in-time, mid-century atmosphere, complete with poolside martinis, brightly colored retro clothing and plenty of old-school vibes. Some of the most famous bars and lounges are still hosting the ghosts of legendary locals like Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope and Elvis.

While the area’s history is glorified with legendary celebrity residents, the future is equally bright, with numerous hotels and resorts opening, remodeling and developing for more growth than ever. According to Visit Greater Palm Springs, 60% of the Coachella Valley’s tourist demographic historically came from within the drive market. Now visitors come from greater distances and a younger demographic than 10 years ago.

Colleen Pace, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Visit Greater Palm Springs, shared the anticipation for the upcoming year: “We are looking forward to new hotel and attraction openings in 2024 in Greater Palm Springs, including the highly anticipated Thompson Palm Springs and the exciting Palm Springs Surf Club.” Ms. Pace continued, “Additionally, we’re particularly thrilled about the unveiling of the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum, an attraction that beautifully intertwines the rich cultural tapestry of our region through the voice of the tribe. These new additions, further enhance our array of world-class accommodations and offer enriching experiences for our visitors.”

Accommodations And Retreats

Thompson Palm Springs

Thompson Palm Springs opens early 2024 (replacing the former Andaz property) with bungalow-styled accommodations, some with private pools. It will have 168 guest rooms and suites, 35,000 square feet of dining and retail spaces, a gym, a ballroom and a spa.

The property will also offer up a 3,400-square-foot wine tasting room, Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant Lola Rose, Grand Mezze and a Mediterranean small plate concept restaurant.

Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort & Spa

Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort & Spa in Indian Wells will debut in November 2023 following an extensive renovation and redesign that pairs island living with desert luxury. The first resort concept for the lifestyle brand, the property will offer up 215 redesigned guestrooms and villas with the signature laid-back Tommy Bahama design aesthetic. There will be three saltwater swimming pools, a new restaurant, Grapefruit Basil, and a renovated 12,000-square-foot spa.

The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage

The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage reveals 244 newly remodeled guest rooms and suites, redesigned corridors and an updated main lobby; the property also includes my favorite Ritz-Carlton Spa with 16 treatment rooms, including private terraces. Dining is high-end here with State Fare Bar & Kitchen and the famed cliffside The Edge Steakhouse.

Life House Palm Springs

Life House Palm Springs is a modernist hotel that blends the beauty of the Coachella Valley with Old Hollywood glamor. Each of the 66 guest rooms brims with the vibrancy of California’s natural terrain. It was inspired by starlets who fled from the extravagance of Old Hollywood for a more minimalist lifestyle, surrounded by sun-soaked rooms. The property will feature two dining options: Minerva’s Pool House and Minerva’s Indoor Apothecary.

Villa Royale

Villa Royale, the historic hideaway in Palm Springs’ Deepwell neighborhood, is completing a $1 million refresh to enhance the property, including grounds, guest rooms and menu updates at Del Rey from local chef Gabriel Woo.

Ingleside Estate Hotel & Bungalows

Ingleside Estate Hotel & Bungalows has rebranded while staying true to its original identity as a social club on a former private estate. One of my all-time favorites is Melvyn’s & The Casablanca Lounge, which remain a focal point for the property as a natural extension of the private social club—reviving its original Hollywood decadence for a younger, contemporary audience. The iconic, historic property features 30 rooms and bungalows.

Drift Palm Springs

Drift Palm Springs recently opened in downtown Palm Springs, featuring a variety of room types ranging from studios to four-bedroom suites. Maleza, its Baja-inspired restaurant, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. A sun-drenched pool area with a poolside bar and cabanas, a lawn space with fire pits and a space great for weekly yoga classes are among the amenities.

Blackhaus Hotel Palm Springs

Blackhaus Hotel Palm Springs is a dramatic new addition to downtown Palm Springs. The one-story hybrid hotel consists of four 1,655-square-foot buildings built around a central pool area and can combine up to four rooms into a single bungalow. Designed by Chris Pardo, who also designed Fleur Noire and the Arrive Hotel, Blackhaus operates more like an Airbnb, as there is no onsite registration. All guests must be over 25 years of age.

The Velvet Rope

This newly opened boutique hotel in Palm Springs is a fabulous mix of old Hollywood and modern delights. With nine uniquely themed suites, including a Presidential Suite with poolside entry, a Rat Pack-styled suite, and a Lucille Ball and Ricky Ricardo Suite, you would expect to be rubbing shoulders with the old Hollywood stars in the hotel’s speakeasy-style Bar Valerie rather than current hipsters who flock to the place.

The Velvet Rope is located in the super posh Old Las Palmas area and was built by architectural designer Herbert W. Burns in the 1950s. It is described as a “lavish Palm Springs oasis that pays homage to its Hollywood roots.”

Sensei At Porcupine Creek

Sensei at Porcupine Creek opened less than a year ago and embraced its billionaire owner Larry Ellison’s focus on sustainable living powered by science and technology. The elegant, airy accommodations are set on 230 acres, including 10 Estate Rooms, four Casitas, and eight standalone two- and four-bedroom Villas. All wellness retreats are tailored to the individual guest, ranging from the five-day “Rest & Recovery Program” to the month-long “Sabbatical Experience.”

Talus

Talus is a vast 525-acre site in La Quinta and the future home of Pendry Hotel & Montage La Quinta—a joint project on an 18-hole Arnold Palmer classic golf course set against the Santa Rosa Mountains. The 134-room Montage and the 200-room Pendry are expected to debut at the end of 2024.

Palm Springs Surf Club

Palm Springs Surf Club opens January 2024. Sitting on 21 acres of the former location of a Wet n’ Wild water park, the reimagined surf park will feature a state-of-the-art wave pool, lazy river and family-friendly amenities.

Though crowds will come out to surf and watch the waves, guests visiting the facility will also have access to a lazy river, waterslide attractions (opening later in 2024), cabana rentals, and more. Amala restaurant will provide sustainable eating options that will fuel a day of surfing and play. Three full bars with custom cocktails and beers on draft will round out the beverage offerings on-site.

Disney Cotino

Disney Cotino is being developed in Rancho Mirage. There will be a hotel, entertainment, shopping and dining alongside private homes. It’s all planned to surround a 24-acre lagoon. There will even be a neighborhood specially designed for adults 55 and older.

Cotino Bay will be the jewel of the Cotino community and feature the clearest turquoise waters with Crystal Lagoons technology. It will be enhanced by a promenade with striking views of the oasis and the mountains beyond, while the beach, with its inviting white sands, offers a variety of activities.

Desert Island Boutique Hotel, Rancho Mirage

A 34-room hotel is coming to the Desert Island Country Club in Rancho Mirage. The plans call for repurposing roughly 17 acres of the club’s golf course. The project will also include a yoga pavilion, a cafe, a tennis court, a pool and cabanas.

We Care Spa

Since 1986, the celebrity-studded wellness retreat, We Care Spa, has been my favorite escape when visiting the Palm Springs area. Twenty new spacious suites open onto private terraces overlooking the desert, a dedicated juice bar serves the heated pool and its cabanas, custom Circadian light fixtures reset your internal clock…and more.

Days are spent with some of the best therapists you will ever encounter: experts at colonics, unusual treatments and even psychic meditation counseling. The plan here is to drink liquids only, supplemented with delicious soups and teas that never make you feel hungry. Couple that with swimming in the stunning new swimming pool and resting in the large private villa-style accommodations, and this health retreat feels like a five-star vacation as you get red-carpet ready.

Dining

When the California Michelin Guide recommendations were announced, eight restaurants became the first ever included for Palm Springs. Here are their picks for the best.

4 Saints At The Rowan Hotel

Set on the seventh-floor rooftop of the Rowan Hotel, this is the highest dining venue downtown. The sweeping views of the San Jacinto Mountains compliment the cuisine of Chef Richard Crespin. Shareable menus include seasonal produce, such as grilled purple sweet potatoes with creamy Alabama white barbecue sauce and pickled red chiles.

Bar Cecil

Reservations here book weeks in advance, so if you’re seeking a last-minute meal, you should arrive early to snag an in-demand bar seat. Enjoy items such as a Duroc pork chop, bucatini with black truffles, and a fancy Beaton burger with melted Comté. Add on the exclusive $50 martini for the ultimate buzz.

Boozehounds

This new location is where people can bring their pups in VIP style. The stylish dining room and lounge faces the San Jacinto mountains, where you dine in the dog-friendly open-air atrium or enjoy the cabana bar and patio. Executive Chef Aric Ianni incorporates his global influences with seasonally-inspired Southern California cuisine through lots of shared plates. Dogs can only enter the property through the VIP patio doggy door.

Cheeky’s

Here you’ll find quirky comfort food and a sampling of five deliciously flavored strips of bacon. This very popular venue often sees long queues for a table, but is worth the wait for its classic brunch with chilaquiles, piña colada waffles and eggs Benedict.

Colony Club – Colony Palms Hotel

This Moroccan-style oasis at the Palms Hotel was once the hideout for stars like Clark Gable and Humphrey Bogart. The menu is a combination of American continental and classic European cuisine. Hearty fare from classic chicken schnitzel to sea bass served with artichokes a la barigoule inspires the dedicated fan following here.

Tac/Quila

This hacienda-inspired restaurant is named for its combination of gourmet Jalisco-style cuisine with specialty tequilas and mezcals, in an effort to transport guests south of the border. The large selection of street tacos and ceviches join a strong menu filled with fajitas, lobster tail tacos, grilled salmon and vegan options.

The Barn Kitchen at Sparrows Lodge

Once an exclusive getaway for celebrities, this venue offers a refined take on rustic American cuisine. The Barn Kitchen brings small local farms and the unique aspects of the desert to classic American favorites in a communal dining atmosphere. As Michelin describes it, “matching with the general wellness retreat aesthetic, the ingredient-driven cooking tends towards wholesome Cali-style simplicity—think fresh salads, grilled cauliflower steak with sauce vierge and the requisite avocado toast at lunch.”

Workshop Kitchen & Bar

Farm-to-table menus, curated by owner and executive chef Michael Beckman, offers up dishes that are not only visually stunning but also filled with seasonal ingredients, including classic American fare with international influences. Flannery beef burger with fries, roasted duck breast, halibut with cilantro cream or steak au poivre all provide for a culinary feast.