Travel Blog

The Agua Caliente Resort Casino is located at the corner of Ramon Road and Bob Hope drive. I10 also intersects at this point as well with Bob Hope drive. This provides easy access to the casino and of course Ramon road. Most consider it to be part of Palm Springs although it is actually in Rancho Mirage. The Spa in down town Palm Springs is also part of this casino group and patrons can use the same slot card at both locations.  This is the better of the two casinos in terms of size, convention space, entertainment space and also a first class hotel attached to the property. There is ample parking as well with both surface as well as above ground parking garage for many customers.

Agua Caliente Resort Casino – Restaurants

They also have several restaurants to dine in from the standard coffee shop to high end steak restaurants. They also have a buffet which is very good and priced about average for any buffet that you might go to.  We enjoy a restaurant that leads to the pool. You can dine inside or out on the patio. We particularly enjoy sitting on the patio and having our lunch while gazing at the pool and the tropical setting that is before us. If you want a nice relaxing lunch while sitting outside, this is the place to go. It is also shaded and very comfortable.

The casino itself is quite large and has all of the standard casinos slot machines and tables. There are over 2000 machines to choose from with lots of space. They do allow smoking in the casino and there is a small non smoking section as well for those people who are looking for non smoking areas. The Agua Caliente Resort Casino also sponsors a variety of entertainment from time to time. If you are interested in seeing one of these concerts check the main casino web site.

The Spa Resort Casino Palm Springs is located in downtown Palm Springs, two blocks from the main street which is Palm Canyon Road.  The Spa Resort Casino up until last year also had a hotel on the property that patrons could stay at. Apparently the owners felt that it was getting quite dated and needed to be torn down. It closed in late 2014 and is in the process of being gutted. The owners have yet to announce what will be built in its place. It is owned by the local Indian group. They are as usual quite secretive about their plans for properties in and around Palm Springs.

Spa Resort Casino Palm Springs

As a casino, the Spa Resort Casino Palm Springs is an excellent yet small casino. Patrons in the Palm Springs area can enjoy. Many people who live downtown or within several blocks of the casino can easily walk to the casino. They can enjoy an evening out for a few drinks, dinner and gambling. It is a modern building built-in desert tones. They have lots of the popular slot machines that most patrons like. They also have a number of table games that will appeal to the black jack, roulette and craps players.

There are lots of free surface parking and many people also take advantage of the valet parking available at the entrance. We have also seen movie shoots for advertisements as well as movies set up at the entrance and the parking lots. These are very interesting to watch. It is amazing given the attention to detail and the number of people who are involved. We have not had a chance to be in the background of one of these movies yet, but are looking forward to it. You never know which stars you will see in one of these.

Visit the Spa Resort Casino Palm Springs and also spend some time in downtown Palm Springs. There are many restaurants that you can enjoy and many also provide happy hours with reduced drink and food prices.

The Agua Caliente Casino is a great place to spend a few hours. Patrons can even stay over night. There is something for everyone including several very nice restaurants. There is a beautiful pool area. Shows with many big-name stars and of course the casino. There is a very nice hotel situated on the property. It is attached to the casino and the pool.  There is lots of surface parking right off the road. There is a parking garage as well which takes overflow cars or if you just want to get your car out of the hot sun.

Getting to the Agua Caliente Casino

The location of the Agua Caliente Casino could not be easier to get to. If you are coming from Palm springs just go straight out Ramon street towards I10 until you see the casino. Visitors from other desert cities can take either Bob Hope drive or I10 to get to the casino. If you are coming from Banning or other points west, take I10 and take the Bob Hope exit.

The Agua Caliente Casino

The casino itself is large and well laid out. Second-hand smoke, which is a big issue for many casinos is not too bad due to the high ceilings and good air circulation. Customers smoke cigars in the casino. But they have not gone this route yet. There are lots of machines to try. They have all of the popular machines that everyone is looking for these days.

They have four restaurants. There is a buffet restaurant, a deli where you can get something quick, a coffee shop, a small restaurant with outdoor dining if you prefer and a steakhouse. All are very clean and very acceptable as restaurants. The coffee shop is pricey.

The Spa Casino Palm Springs is located within two blocks of downtown Palm Springs on Amado road. There is ample parking for both valets and for people who wish to park their own cars. It is all surface parking. There is also a hotel located next door and there are many smaller hotels and motels in the immediate area along with condos for rent within walking distance. The Spa Casino Palm Springs is not really a  great spot to go for dinner, it is mainly for gambling at both tables and slots. They also run outdoor concerts once a month in one of the parking lots.

They charge $30 to get in and they block off anyone from the street from seeing the performance, although you can hear the music. It does not really build loyalty and many tourists refuse to spend their money in the casino as a result. They just are not building brand loyalty with this approach.

Spa Casino Palm Springs Sister Casino

The same slot card can be used at the Agua Caliente casino located on Bob Hope Drive and Ramon Road at I10. This hotel and casino require a car to get to and patrons can rack up points on their slot card regardless of which casino they frequent. We happen to like the Spa Casino Palm Springs because it is so convenient to get to. Patrons can go for dinner at one of the many restaurants in downtown Palm Springs and then head over to the casino for a drink after dinner and also a little gambling.

The smell of smoke can be pretty heavy at times. They recently opened a nonsmoking area. However, it is actually pretty small. They have a deli where you can order basic meals such as hamburgers and hot dogs, salads. Customers can also order breakfast. They also have a buffet, however, it does not seem to have a good reputation for the food and also for the service. Recently a group of people went for breakfast. They were charged 18% gratuity because they were part of a large group. The service was much less than normal.

The only service they received was their coffee was brought to them, so we are unclear why there should be a tip at all for this poor level of service let alone 18%. We think that this is pretty cheap on the part of the casino and will not be spending any money at their restaurants as a result. There are much better places to go to where you get better food and much more service.

Comp’s Not as Lucrative as Las Vegas

Since they have limited competition, the comps are not as good as locations where there is a lot more competition.  They still have some comps for food, free play, etc, but you can do much better at other casinos. Of course you must travel much further to get to them. It really comes down to how you want to spend your money.

The Tortoise Rock casino 29 Palms just opened for business in April 2014. We decided to visit it and see if it measured up to the advertising they were doing on TV.  We are staying in Palm Springs. Going to the Tortoise Rock Casino 29 Palms takes about an hour to drive there. We left temperatures in Palm Springs at 80 degrees and found the temps much lower in the high desert, down around 60 degrees. This is just something you need to get used to when you head into the high desert around 29 Palms.

General comments about Tortoise Rock Casino 29 Palms

They have a really nice bar area at this casino that is bright and lots of room to sit and enjoy a drink. You can also play the slots at the bar as well.

One problem or at least a surprise was that the slot machines at the Tortoise Rock Casino 29 Palms are all old machines. We could see where they were marked and worn due to lot’s of previous use. They were not paying very well on the day we were there. We did not hit any jackpot and we did not see anyone else hitting any jackpot’s.

Patrons and have free non alcoholic drinks from two stations in the casino including coffee. You can also have an attendant bring you your drinks as well.

The ceilings are high giving a nice airy feeling to the casino and also there was lot’s of air movement which also helped deal with anyone that was smoking. Some casinos are really bad for not dealing with smokers and their smoke, but this one was quite good.

The View is Great

There is a great view from the front of the casino looking out over the valley and although the landscaping is not completed yet, we are sure it will look great in another few months.

This is a relatively small casino, however it has everything that you might look for. On busy evenings it may be difficult to obtain your favorite machine. They also have a small deli which was unremarkable.

Believe it or not but beer costs more than a glass of wine. A glass of wine costs $3.50 while a draft beer costs $4.00. Usually it is the other way around.

The Tortoise rock Casino 29 Palms is a local casino which will be attractive to locals in the high desert. We do not think it is worth the drive from Coachella valley to visit this casino.

For more posts about the casinos in the Palm Springs area, click here.

This is a cute little casino on highway 86 on the road on the way to Borego springs. You cannot miss it, it is right along the highway with lots of parking for both cars and RV’s.

When you’re heading south along Highway 86, you will see the casino and then you will see aU-haul truck that is no longer running with a big sign on it, this is a road that you turn into. You can easily miss the road if it were not for the U-Haul truck sitting at the entrance.

Red Earth casino Salton Sea California

This is a great place to stop for a drink, something to eat or gas up. Many RV vans, trucks etc. stop here and overnight in the parking lot. This seems to be a popular place for RVs to overnight. You can also go dune buggy riding in the desert from this location.

The casino itself is a small casino with a good selection of slot machines. They unfortunately allow smoking in the casino and it is not large enough to have a non smoking area. There is regular bar and drink service from the staff, as well as a serve yourself area for soft drinks. Attached to the casino there is a Subway shop and a small store with lots of snacks and drinks. This is one of our favorite places to stop at least once a year when we are in the area.

You can also see the Salton Sea from the parking lot which stretches south from this area. There are a number of small towns and villages around the area, however many of these have seen much better times. The Red Earth casino Salton Sea California has lots of penny machines to play as well.

The Fantasy Springs Hotel and the casino is located on I10 near highway 86 in the Coachella Valley east of Palm Springs in California. The Fantasy Springs Hotel is a first class hotel with everything that every customer would appreciate. It is probably is a class 4 hotel compared to hotels such as the Wynn or Bellagio in Las Vegas. Which are class 5 hotels in our opinion. They also have a nice buffet and a great casino floor. They have all of the modern games that many people look for.

We also enjoyed the Fantasy Springs Casino and the buffet at the Fantasy Springs Hotel. We enjoyed both very much, and will go back to there in the near future. The casino has been upgraded in recent years and looks very nice. This was not a winning day for us at the casino, so from that perspective we are not as enamored with the place. However we will definitely be going back to this location in the near future.

Fantasy Springs Hotel – Rooms

We have not stayed at the Fantasy Springs Hotel and would appreciate any comments on what the rooms at the Fantasy Springs Hotel are like. The rooms are supposed to be very nice. They also are rumored to have a very nice pool area were you can relax and enjoy the sun. On our next visit, we will do some more snooping. We will try to get some pictures to show readers more of this property.

If anyone reading this post has stayed at this hotel, and would like to leave a comment about the rooms, we would appreciate it. It will help our readers get a complete idea of what the Fantasy Springs Hotel is like to stay at. Sorry still no comments or room pictures when we updated this post about the Fantasy Springs hotel in Palm Springs California.

Fantasy Springs Casino, located in Palm Desert near Palm Springs just off  I10 where it intersects with highway 86. As a result it is easy to get to from all points in the valley and also from riverside.  The Fantasy Springs Casino has been upgraded since we last visited and has all of the latest slot machines that everyone is looking for. We ate at the buffet which was very nice and reasonably priced.

Fantasy Springs Casino – Competition

The Fantasy Springs Casino is competing with several other local casinos in the area. These include the Aqua Calientie casino located at Ramon road, Bob Hope drive and I10. Depending on where you are staying in the valley, these casinos can be a bit of a drive. However they are easy to get to as long as you have easy access to I10. We will be going back to both of these casinos again in the future.

We are staying in the Palm Springs area. It was about a 30 minute drive to get to this particular hotel and casino. We headed out Ramon Road to I10 and then east on I 10 until we got to the exit near I10 and 86 junctions.

Casinos in the Valley

There are between 10 and 15 casinos in the Coachella Valley. It is about midway down the valley along I10. Depending on where you’re living or vacationing in the Coachella Valley you can usually get to all of these casinos within about 30 minutes by car. Some casinos are full service casinos with restaurants and hotels while others provide gaming services only. check before you go in case you are looking for a full service casino. Fantasy Springs is a full service casino, with restaurants and a hotel for patrons to enjoy.

The Red Earth Casino California is at the south end of the Coachella valley in Southern California on route 86 about midway as you pass the Salton Sea. We like to visit this casino every year at least once to enjoy and afternoon or evening playing the penny slots. There is also a travel center here were you can buy gas, grab a sub from Subway and other drinks and fast food items as well as snacks. Lot’s of room for RV’s to gas up or just park for awhile  as well. They may even allow over night parking in their parking lot, since there really is an overly large parking lot that is perfect for RV’s.

This is a small casino with maybe 200 machines, free soft drinks, a subway, a gas station and not much more. We had a nice time here one afternoon and won a small amount of money.

Red Earth Casino California – Salton Sea

The second picture shows highway 86 and the Salton sea beyond. For more information about the Salton Sea, Click here.

This picture was taken from the Casino parking lot facing east towards the Salton Sea. There are no motels or hotels in the area, so if you decide to visit do not plan on staying the night. You should head back to one of the valley cities or to points south, although it will be a long drive. There are also hotels in Borego Springs about 45 minutes away.

It has never been very busy when we visited this casino usually during the day time. We are not sure about the evening hours. It is a bit out of the way with not a lot in the area. The clientele during the day are a bit rough looking. I can only imagine what it is like during the evening. It is not a place I would want to be during the evening.

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We recently visited the Soboba Casino near  Hemet California and frankly had mixed feelings about the place. It has an advertisement at the front that suggests they have the loosest slots and have won awards for this.  What a joke that is! Based on our personal experience.

Now I know you are all thinking that this is just a marketing ploy and it is, but when you win absolutely nothing and then friends visit the same casino and do the same thing, you have to wonder. We did see people winning a little bit. But the Soboba Casino  certainly did not treat us well at all.

We tried a number of different slot games to no avail and as a result we will not be going back to this particular casino. We are in the Palm Springs area and it is a 45 minute drive to Hemet and it is just not worth the trip. Now for a short description of the casino.

Location

It is located just outside of Hemet, California at 23333 Soboba Rd. San Jacinto, CA. 92583. They run a golf course as well and what looks like a rodeo  or something similar.

They have 2020 slot machines, bingo and a poker room with 14 tables. All of the popular slot machines are in place and they have one of the largest non smoking rooms we have seen. In fact the casino is made up of three large rooms each filled with slot machines and the last room is a non smoking room which is excellent for those of us who like non smoking. Many Indian Casinos have not caught on to the non smoking craze, so the Soboba casino is definitely ahead of it’s competitors.

There are also three small coffee shops that serve a variety of food. They do not have a buffet and the coffee shops are small and located either between the rooms or along a wall in the casino.

Soboba Casino Hemet – Parking

There is a tremendous amount of surface parking available and they also have valet service if you would like this service. The people were courteous and friendly and even though they allow smoking in two of the big rooms we did not really notice the smoke like you do in some other casinos in the area.

There are really two tents and one building. However when you are inside, you really are not aware that you are in a tent. They have built ceilings that make it feel as if you are in a building and not really a tent. although we did not win at this particular casino, it is a nice place to visit and try your luck.

We probably just had a bad day as did our friends. Their payouts are probably the same as everywhere.  If you have been there and would like to leave your comments please feel free to do so. We will approve links back to your site, if you leave a worthwhile comment about the Soboba Casino.

There are only a couple of casino hotels in the Palm Springs area of California. There is the Fantasy Springs Casino and the Agua Caliente casino hotel. Neither of these hotels is actually in Palm Springs since they are located in cities nearby in the valley. The only casino hotel in Palm Springs California is the Spa casino hotel. It is located in downtown Palm Springs on Amado Road. This is two blocks from Palm Canyon Drive which is the main road through Palm Springs. It is in the middle of downtown Palm Springs surrounded by many restaurants of all types. All are within walking distance of the casino. There is also lots of parking for patrons available as well.

Spa Casino Hotels Palm Springs California

The Spa Casino Hotel in Palm Springs California has been reviewed on this website and we have visited it several times in the past 10 years. It has evolved from being in a tent attached to the hotel to a full-fledged casino in an elegant building with very pretty gardens and palm trees surrounding it.

The Spa Casino has a deli restaurant, a buffet, and several other restaurants that are higher-end. There are many restaurants within blocks of the casino and it is very safe to walk the streets in the area of the casino as well. With a combination of restaurants and condos surrounding this casino, it is a safe environment to park your car or walk from your condo to the Spa Casino.

In terms of gaming, there are all of the latest and popular slot machines along with a variety of table games as well. They have a small nonsmoking area, which is usually quiet since they did not put the best games in this area. the casino can get pretty smoky so if this bothers you, you may want to stay clear of it on business evenings or on the weekends.

They also have events at the casino. Slot tournaments, draws etc so if you do play a lot make sure you get a slot card and use it. You will be invited to various events that they host for their slot players and table players.

Palm Springs Convention Center

The Palm Springs Convention Center is also within one block of the Spa Casino Hotel in Palm Springs California. this convention center is a state-of-the-art center hosting many events over the year. Patrons and convention goers often go to the Spa Casino Hotel which is within walking distance. It is just one block away. There is ample parking for both the convention center and the casino. Of course, you can also use valet parking at the casino.

Restaurants in the Area

If you walk up to Palm Canyon Drive and turn left in the direction of the traffic (it is a one-way street), you will pass by all of the restaurants. There are quite a few, most with outdoor patios where you can enjoy a meal any time of the day. We are reviewing a number of these restaurants on another website that we operate.  If you are interested, click here, and select the category Palm Springs Restaurants. There are over 1000 restaurants in the area and of course, we will not review all of these, but the ones we have are the restaurants we have visited in the area and also enjoy.

That’s about it for this post on casino hotels in the Palms Springs area of California. If you have been there and would like to leave a comment, please do. We like to hear from other writers who can contribute and help out our readers.

Dinner at the Spa Casino Palm Springs was not up to par as far as we are concerned. We recently had dinner at the buffet at the  Spa Casino in Palm Springs. We wanted to pass our thoughts on this buffet to our readers. For the original review of the casino in Palm Springs, click here.

The buffet on Saturday night is billed as a seafood buffet, costing $23.99 plus tax. Now if you have a slot card, they will reduce the cost of the buffet by 10%. As a result, two people save you almost $5.00. We were very disappointed with the buffet, especially the seafood part of it. There were several reasons for this disappointment. We will list them a bit later in this post. We had heard good things about the buffet at the Spa Casino. However, what people think of various restaurants is a matter of personal taste. I can tell you that we have tried many buffets at various casinos. Consequently, this one rates as one of the worst for us.

Spa Casino Buffet Palm Springs

Here is our list of reasons; you make your assessment or opinion on these items:

• No service for drinks; you pick up your own
• Limited seafood – crab legs, salmon, calamari, and shrimp
• Crab legs were very small, and the legs were filled with water and smelled very fishy
• Calamari was breaded and overcooked, so it wasn’t easy to chew
• Shrimp were very small
• Salmon was ok
• There was a large selection of standard items
• These food items were ok
• Desserts were very small

The bottom line was that we paid extra for a seafood buffet. Hence we were very disappointed in the items that were provided.

Now we should have caught on early before we paid. The time we entered the buffet was around 6 pm. Which was the typical time that many people would go for dinner. First of all, there was no line up to get in and no line up any time to get into the buffet. It was very slow, which for us was nice because there were not many people around. However, it means that people are voting with their feet and going elsewhere.

Not only was the food less than great, but the price was also high. There are many restaurants in Palm Springs, many with happy hour menus. Consequently, for $50, you can enjoy a lovely meal. As a result, we think the combination of high prices and poor food quality drives potential customers away in droves.

We would like to hear comments from readers about your experience at the Spa Casino in Palm Springs and what you think of the Spa Casino buffet.

The Palm Springs Spa Casino and Hotel is located in downtown Palm Springs within walking distance of many hotels and motels, as well as restaurants and the main shopping area in Palm Springs. There is lots of street parking as well as surface parking in casino parking lots.

Whether you want to play the slots, play the tables or play a little poker, the Spa Casino has it all. It is actually a very nice size as compared to the many gigantic casinos in Las Vegas and other areas. It is a nice way to spend an evening having a drink, gambling a little, having dinner or taking in one of the live shows that are offered from time to time.

For those of you who may have visited the former SPA Casino, which was under a tent attached to the hotel, you will notice a huge improvement when you visit the new casino. It is now a separate modern building with multiple restaurants, several bar areas and many slot machines. It is decorated in desert tones on the outside with lots of shrubs and colorful flowers that are well maintained.

Palm Springs Spa Casino

This casino is now a high quality site for playing the slots. There are 860 slots and 22 table games with 3 lounges, buffet, deli and 1 restaurant at the SPA Casino. There are several areas were you can enjoy a drink and relax or play the slots away from the main casino. In addition there is also a great nightclub as well. Their cafe is reasonably priced as is their buffet dinner and the buffet will feature different foods throughout the week at reasonable prices.

Slot Machines

There are over 860 slot machines of various types from penny machines to dollar machines and above for the high rollers. Their slot machines built into the center bar were you can sit, watch the action, enjoy a drink and play one of your favorite games. The sports bar is one of the quieter places in the casino with approximately 20 machines also built into the bar. YOu can have something to eat here, watch the sports on a variety of televisions and play a little on one of the machines.

While they do not advertise this, you can ask the bar tender for free tortilla chips with salsa sauce. The service is friendly and the place is clean. The only negative is that sometimes you have to sit beside someone who is smoking!

There is also a high roller slot area which we have not been into. It is behind closed doors so we cannot even describe it.

Table Games

There are approximately 22 table games in the center of the casino with all of the popular games to play.

Restaurants

There is a deli beside the poker room were you can get a quick bite, there is a buffet which offers a great venue at reasonable prices with a combination of seafood, Mexican and standard American fare.  There is a steak house restaurant, a noodle bar and a small bar for drinks and munchies available for patrons.

What We Liked

• Variety of slot machines
• Very nice casino, very clean and a nice place to spend an evening
• Free entertainment at the sports bar area on some evenings
• Great Buffet at reasonable prices
• Pool area and spa free to hotel guests.
• Hotel rates are very reasonable
• Lots of nearby surface parking
• Safe environment in the casino, hotel and parking areas

Other things to do in the area include:

• Pool area
• Surrounding Golf Courses
• Palm Spring Shops and restaurants
• Near by outlet shops
• Desert Museum
• Desert Zoo
• Indian Canyons
• Tramway
• City Tours and history of Palm Springs

What We Did Not Like

There are no real complaints about the Spa hotel & casino, however you should be aware that  drinks are not free while gambling

It is a 3 star hotel in our estimation and quite adequate for our needs, however the casino is much more recent and is a first class casino, although smaller when compared to Vegas style casinos.

The only thing we do not care for is the smoking which many of the Indian casinos all over the US allow. Sometimes it can get pretty bad, so if this bothers you , it is best to stay away from the casino all together.

Slot Player Card

They are part of the Agua Caliente slot players card system. Slot members can take advantage of benefits at several Palm Springs area hotels.

If you have not taken advantage of slot player cards, there are a number of benefits that many slot players should consider. Free or discounted rooms, email mailing list of promotions, free or discounted meals, access to entertainment, and a tax report outlining your losses and wins for tax claim purposes.

Parking

There is ample parking at the Spa hotel & casino in a large  surface parking lot across from the hotel as well as across from the main casino entrance. You can access the hotel from the parking area as well as a street entrance on the south west side. The surface parking is also patrolled on a regular basis with officers on bike patrols on a regular basis.

Directions:

The Spa casino is located at 301 East Amado road in down town Palm Springs. It is easy to get to and in most cases just follow the signs, however if you have trouble finding it, just ask someone along the street. This is a safe town, very friendly and easy to park in. They cater to the tourists which is their main business.

There are so many casinos across America and also in Canada, that we know we will not finish our reviews for some time. However we like to break it up a bit and inject a post about places we really like and also have Casinos nearby or even in these areas. One of our favorite places to stay is Palm Springs, California. If you have not spent  some time there you really should. Palm Springs has a little bit of everything for almost everyone.

From many fine restaurants, to over 115 golf courses, some of the best shopping ever, to many farmers markets throughout the area to some of the best hiking available in California. All of this with scenery that encompasses snow covered mountains, desert vistas and a hot temperate climate. They get over 340 days of sun! With so much to offer we could not resist on doing a post about Palm Springs California and also talk a little bit about the 5 or 6 casinos in the area as well.

Palm Springs California – Farmers Market

Every thursday night, they close the main street in Palm Springs for about 6 or 7 blocks and folks from all over the valley come to sell their products. You purchase of course just about every kind of vegetable and fruit, all fresh and often just picked that day. There are also preserved foods available and many of the vendors will offer samples to try before you buy.

Purchase corn on the cob, hamburgs from the barbecue, and many more varieties of foods virtually from all over the world. Forget supper at home, come and try some of the fresh foods at the Palm Springs Thursday night farmers market. There are also many artisans selling their products.  You can purchase paintings of the desert, sunsets and the native flours and plants of the desert. Others will carve carvings from the trunks of trees. You can purchase colored stones in singles or part of a necklace. There are so many different products at this market, many people make this a part of their weekly schedule because there is always something new!

Shopping in Palm Springs

If you stay downtown or a few blocks away in one of the many motels or condo properties you can walk easily to the downtown area and take advantage of the many small shops. We particularly like going to either Starbucks or across the street at the Coffee Bean for a coffee, sit outside and enjoy the sunshine and watch people as they stroll along. The shops in the downtown area of Palm Springs have suffered from high taxes over the past few years and many of the old shops that have been there for many years have closed.

Many people now go out to the outlets to shop with over 200 stores to chose from and excellent prices and quality. You can also go the high end stores at El Paseo further south in one of the other desert cities.

There are so many restaurants to chose from, you will never be bored or run out of places to try. Many will offer happy hour deals from 4pm to 6pm or some as late as 7pm. These usually include half price on drinks and appetizers.  During the summer months, happy hour is really a good deal , while during peak season, some locations will not offer happy hour at all. If you like champagne, try all you can drink brunch deals on Sundays. Some places will charge an additional $2 over your breakfast and you can drink all you want. One couple we know has a record of 5 bottles during brunch on Sunday!

Hiking and Biking around Palm Springs

There are bike routes around Palm Springs with well marked signs for you to follow which will take you around some of the main areas of the city and sites that you may want to stop to look at.

Hiking is also a great pass time in the mountains around Palm Springs. There are many well marked trails for beginners and also for hikers who like more of a challenge. You can even link up with the Pacific Coast Trail which runs from the Mexican Border all of the way to the Canadian Border. Go out to the White Water conservation area and speak to the ranger on duty. You can obtain a map which shows the trails you need to take t hike in the general area as well as join up with the pacific coast trail.

You can also take the gondola up to one of the local mountains and hike around the mountains at the 8000 foot level. With the elevation, the temperature drops so make sure you go prepared for snow even in June and tougher trails. Take a compass with you since you are now really out in the wild and far from easily accessible rescue sites.

Gambling around Palm Springs

The Spa Casino is right down town in Palm Springs. If you live or rent a motel or condo in the area, it is an easy walk to the casino. They offer all of the standard slots and table games, a great buffet and also entertainment every weekend. This is a very attractive casino to visit, however like many Indian run casinos it can be very smoky at times so if this bothers you, at least you know what you are getting into.

There are at least 5 other casinos in the area that we are aware of all within easy driving distance of Palm Springs. The Agua Caliente casino at the intersection Ramon road and Interstate 10 is a really nice spot to spend some time. Lots of parking, large casino, nice rooms in the hotel and an excellent pool area with a tropical environment. If you are looking for a nice spot to spend the weekend this one should definitely be on the list.

Feel free to leave comments about your experiences in Palm Springs.