Palm Springs 3

Unwind in midcentury mecca reborn as a hip haven of winter warmth and natural wonders

BY JACKIE BURRELL

The glossy white blades of more than 4,000 wind turbines spin a hypnotic spell on the approach to Palm Springs, a desert oasis where even the road signs whisper memories of a glittering past. Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope and Dinah Shore are streets. Singing cowboy Gene Autry is a trail, of course — despite the trail’s boulevard appearance.

This glitzy city, with its distinctive architecture and glamorous clubs, has long been a magnet for celebrities and politicians. Crooners, starlets, even presidents have cavorted here since the 1950s and ‘60s. They still do, wooed by the desert landscape, the buzzy dining scene and the midcentury-modern marvels, designed by architectural luminaries such as Richard Neutra, Donald Wexler and Albert Frey.

That it’s a balmy 80 degrees in the depths of winter certainly helps.

In fact, between its Frank Sinatra past and its modernist present, Palm Springs is simply sublime in March. It may be chilly and damp back home, but here in the desert, wildflowers are blooming and business is booming. The crowds that came for February’s fabulous midcentury-modern culture and design festival have abated a bit, and the desert air is perfumed by orange blossoms.

Just west of Palm Springs, a rainbow forms a backdrop to an array of wind turbines.

So where to start? Head for the distinctive soaring profile of the city’s visitors center, housed in the Tramway Gas Station which is unlike any gas station, former or present, you’ll ever see. Designed by Albert Frey and Robson Chambers, the building’s extravagant kite-shaped roof alone is an Instagram magnet. The center stands at the gateway to Mount San Jacinto State Park, where slowly revolving tram cars take visitors more than 8,500 feet up the mountain for spectacular views.

Once you’ve gotten the view from the top, head back to the city streets where you can see examples of midcentury architecture just driving around. Among the highlights are Wexler’s iconic accordion-folded steel houses and E. Stewart Williams’ savings-andloan building, which now houses the Palm Springs Art Museum’s Architecture and Design Center.

Of course, one of the big attractions of February’s Modernism Week is the chance to tour some of these buildings — by double-decker bus, no less. But you can take an architecture tour any time of year, and some tour guides, including Trevor O’Donnell who leads PS Architecture Tours, offer them with a side of celebrity history.

Not the touring type? Anyone can visit Sunnylands, philanthropists Walter and Leonore Annenberg’s 200-acre estate and historic home in nearby Rancho Mirage, simply by making reservations. Publishing magnate Walter Annenberg’s estate was known as the West Coast’s Camp David, a place where presidents and royals — from the Bushes, Reagans and Clintons to Queen Elizabeth — gathered to relax and talk politics.

But the easiest way to get in a mod mood is by staying in one of these midcentury marvels, such as the Monkey Tree Hotel, designed by Frey in 1960 and host to such guests as Lucille Ball, Bob Hope and Marilyn Monroe. Renovated now to its full midcentury glory, it’s a blast from the retro past, right down to the huge plastic flamingo floating in a pool surrounded by bright yellow umbrellas.

With surroundings like this, you’ll be crooning Sinatra in no time at all.

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Onlyinpalmspringsexperiences

1 The rotating tram

At the top of Mount San Jacinto, the temperatures are chilly and the vibe is nothing but cool. The starkly beautiful cliffs of Chino Canyon tower over Palm Springs, but you can get from the desert level to the top — the Mountain Station stop is perched at 8,516 feet — in 10 minutes flat. The ride? The world’s largest rotating tram car, which slowly spins as it ascends to maximize the glorious views. And at the top you’ll find three sipping and noshing spots — including the swanky Peaks, the casual Pines Cafe and the cocktail-centric Lookout Lounge — as well as a museum, theater, gift shop and 50 miles of hiking trails. But be sure to bundle up: It may be warm at the base but it can be snowy at the top. Details: 1 Tram Way, Palm Springs; www.pstramway.com.

2 Date shakes

There’s a reason every Hollywood depiction of an oasis scene has actors nibbling dates under the palms. Turns out there are many different kinds of palm trees, and date palms bear dates, not — ahem — coconuts. You’ll encounter palm trees by the thousand — and sweet date ice cream by the scoop — at hot spots throughout the

Coachella Valley. One favorite is Palm Springs’ new wave Ice Cream & Shop(pe), where the rotating flavors include Cappuccino Crunch, Pink Ginger and Coachella Valley Date ice creams. Or go retro at Indio’s classic Shields Date Garden, where the cafe menu includes date pancakes, date-topped burgers and sweet date milkshakes.

Details: Ice Cream & Shop(pe), 1551 N. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs; www.icecreamandshop.com. The cafe at Shields, 80225 Highway 111, Indio; www. shieldsdategarden.com

3 Moorten Botanical Garden

Who could possibly resist anything involving a contortionist, an original Keystone Cop and a Cactarium?

Actor Chester Moorten and his botanist wife Patricia created this desert arboretum in 1938, gathering 3,000 specimens of desert plants. There are all the agaves, cacti and aloes you might expect, plus cardon and boojum trees, a soaring Pachypodium, a thorned Caesalpinia and more. That the duo designed Walt Disney’s Frontierland should come as no surprise.

Details: 1701 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs; moortenbotanicalgarden.com.

A hallway at the Riviera Palm Springs luxury resort highlights Palm Springs’ history as a retreat for Hollywood’s elite.

DESERT FORAYS DON’T MISS

1 The 49 Palms Oasis

Joshua Tree National Park is famous, of course, for its spiky trees and desert vistas. But this oasis is no mirage. A 3-mile roundtrip trail to 49 Palms winds along ancient Native American pathways, past barrel cacti and flowering brittlebush to a green oasis of soaring fan palms and burbling, spring-fed pools. It’s sheer magic.

Details: This moderately strenuous hike takes two to three hours, most of it spent on unshaded trails. Carry plenty of water. Find trail maps and more information at www.nps. gov/jotr/.

2 Salton Sea

A lavender haze rises from this enormous — and immensely saline — inland sea an hour’s drive southeast of Palm Springs. It’s difficult to imagine that this spot, the result of a 1905 Colorado River flood that filled California’s deep Salton Trough some 227 feet below sea level, was once a hot resort destination. Today, it’s an eerie, apocalyptic vision with a strange, savage beauty and a blindingly white beach made from the crushed skeletons of sea creatures.

Details: Open daily; day use fee is $5-$7. Learn more at www.parks.ca.gov.

A fan palm oasis lies at the bottom of Palm Canyon, which is part of the Agua Caliente Indian Canyons near Palm Springs.

BNP Paribas Open

The BNP Paribas Open held each March is the fifth largest tennis event in the world. And how Oracle founder Larry Ellison and swanky Nobu landed on the business end of a tennis racket is a tale in itself. It’s a story best told, actually, in this town near Palm Springs, where the magnificent Indian Wells Tennis Garden sits atop 88 acres of what was once just sand. Ellison, a tennis enthusiast, bought the place in 2009 and has been upgrading it ever since. Today, the gleaming property holds 29 tennis courts and two stadiums. With more than 16,000 seats and 44 suites, Stadium 1 is the second largest tennis-specific stadium in the world. Head for Stadium 2, which holds 8,000, and you can dine at Nobu, chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s famous restaurant.

Details: The BNP Paribas Open is March 5-18 in Indian Wells; www.bnpparibasopen.com.