Sight Seeing
Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park sits at the meeting point of two desert ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado, which is why the landscape changes so dramatically as you drive through it. Plan on a half-day minimum, longer if you want to climb at Hidden Valley, hike Barker Dam, or stay for the dark-sky stargazing the park is famous for. About 45 minutes from our Indio properties via the Cottonwood entrance. Buy your entrance pass online before you go to skip the gate line.
Pappy & Harriet's
A roadhouse, restaurant, and live music venue in Pioneertown, about an hour and 15 minutes from Indio. The BBQ is the draw at lunch and dinner, but Pappy's is really known for its stage: Paul McCartney, Robert Plant, Vampire Weekend, and Patti Smith have all played the small room. No reservations for parties of eight or fewer, and the wait gets long on weekends. Bar open until 11pm, last dinner seating at 9:30pm. Worth the drive if you're combining it with a Joshua Tree day.
Salvation Mountain
Leonard Knight's hand-painted 50-foot adobe-clay mountain in the desert near the Salton Sea, covered in biblical scripture, flowers, and bright folk-art color. It's a roughly 90-minute drive south from Indio and there's no admission, but donations keep the site preserved. Go early or late: there's no shade, the desert sun is brutal in the middle of the day, and the colors photograph best with softer light. Open dawn to dusk, year-round.
The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens
A 1,200-acre zoo and botanical garden in Palm Desert showcasing desert ecosystems from North America, Australia, and Africa, with giraffes you can hand-feed, cheetahs, rhinos, zebras, and Mexican gray wolves. Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Roughly 20 minutes from our Indio properties. Hours shift seasonally: 8am to 5pm October through May, 7am to 1:30pm in summer to beat the heat. Closed Christmas Day. Buy tickets online before you go since walk-up tickets aren't sold at the gate.
Fantasy Springs Resort Casino
A full resort casino in Indio, about 10 minutes from most of our properties, with 1,800 slots, table games, and a 250-room hotel. Beyond the gaming floor, it's worth knowing about for three things: Fantasy Lanes bowling alley (great for group nights and kids), the Special Events Center which hosts touring acts like Frankie Valli, Lady A, and major comedy headliners, and the Rock Yard, an outdoor concert venue that runs free tribute-band shows throughout the warmer months. Also has Eagle Falls Golf Course on property.
