From Desert Oasis to Multifaceted City: Palm Springs

Victor Block on Jul 6, 2025

In the mid-1800s, people traveling through a desert landscape in present-day California stopped at an oasis to rest and refill their canteens. Soon afterward, a way station along a stagecoach route was built there.

Fast-forward to 1915. The producer of a silent motion picture chose the place to film "Peer Gynt," a fantasy adapted from a drama written by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. Soon the locale attracted other moviemakers along with Hollywood stars who acted for them since they could easily get back to Los Angeles if the studios needed them. Today, the resort towns of the greater Palm Springs area retain their connection with motion-picture luminaries and other celebrities.

Add a strong arts and cultural scene and long list of recreational activities, and it's easy to understand why Hollywood types, well-to-do business people, retirees and others choose to visit or live there -- and why some, like me, go to check out what makes the location so popular.

The movie star connection becomes obvious in the names of several streets. Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope and Jack Benny are among those so honored. Other thoroughfares evoke the Agua Caliente Natives who inhabited the region for thousands of years and who retain an important presence. Indian Canyon, part of their ancestral home, serves as a reminder of their lasting influence. It contains displays of rock art, irrigation ditches and food preparation areas.

The Agua Caliente Cultural Museum recalls the time when the people for whom it is named lived close to the natural hot mineral-rich springs that proliferated in the region. It is home to art, artifacts and other memorabilia that represent that tribe's history and culture. These include woven baskets, pottery and textiles.

Before visiting the Palm Springs Air Museum, I wondered what a collection of vintage and newer planes has to do with its desert location. Then I learned that Bob Pond, a man who bought and restored World War II aircraft, moved them to their present location. They're scattered around a 17-acre campus adjacent to an indoor display area. Before entering, I was greeted by a statue of the Tuskegee Airmen, Black fighter and bomber pilots and others who had their own designated group before President Harry S. Truman ended segregation in the armed forces.

Indoors, a dramatic diorama realistically re-creates the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Flight simulators replicate airplane rides and demonstrations. Volunteer experts, many of them veterans, describe the displays and share their experiences. A personal favorite was a collection of videos of Bob Hope performing for troops during World War II and beyond. Beginning in 1941 and continuing for nearly 50 years, Hope visited military camps and war zones, using comedy, song, dance and attractive female entertainers to bring a bit of joy into otherwise drab -- and often dangerous -- lives.

Speaking of taking to the air, another high point of my trip -- both figuratively and literally -- was a ride on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. That cable car transports passengers from the floor of Chino Canyon to the mountain station 8,516 feet above it. Along the way are breathtaking views of rugged cliffs, the valley floor and the peak of Mount San Jacinto that looms overhead. In terms of biodiversity, the ride passes through five distinct climate zones, mimicking a journey from Mexico to Canada.

A very different setting greeted me at the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens. While the wildlife there represents more than 150 species from around the world, I have seen many of them elsewhere. What attracted my greatest interest was the term "living desert" itself, with its implication that a barren locale with little precipitation can support a great variety of life. Boy, is that correct!

This botanical garden contains a tapestry of plants, many of them rare, which represent the diverse flora of arid regions throughout the globe. They include thorn forests that grow in East Africa, Joshua trees from the Mojave Desert in California and Nevada, and other foliage that usually is at home in far-flung locales.

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WHEN YOU GO

If you're in the mood for splurging on a hotel room, the Palm Springs area offers a long list of choices. The Ritz-Carlton Rancho Mirage luxury hotel combines elegance and stunning valley views with holistic spa rituals.

Opened in the 1930s, the Colony Palms has a colorful history that involves mobsters, athletes, politicians and movie stars. This Spanish colonial gem blends Hollywood glamour with touches of art deco design.

At the budget-stretching end of the range, the Vagabond Motor Hotel is located near a number of attractions. Furnishings in guest rooms at the Skylark Hotel recall the mid-20th-century era.

At dinnertime I was impressed by the food and decor at Porta Via even before I learned that it supports sustainable farming and serves organic and locally grown produce. The menu includes several entree salads ($18-$23) and pasta dishes ($26-$30).

For more information: visitgreaterpalmsprings.com or 800-967-3767.

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Victor Block is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.