NETrainfan
Lead Service Attendant
You can get to Palm Springs, CA from Amtrak- on a bus from the Fullerton, CA stop. However, if you want to rent a car and drive an hour -the Riverside stop is convenient.
(If one opts to go to Palm Springs on the Amtrak bus it takes 2 hours.)
A suggestion would be to stay a night in Riverside (from the Southwest Chief). We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott near UC Riverside and then took a taxi to the
beautiful Mission Inn for lunch the next day. This inn is quite amazing with gardens, patios, large ornate buildings, and several restaurants. It is near a promenade, so is a good place for walking.
Family picked us up at the inn and we drove the hour to Palm Springs.
Palm Springs is a smallish (45,000 pop.) desert resort town which is fun and funky. It is a good place to visit in the Fall. We were there in November when the
morning coolness turned into noon warmth of 70 degrees. Of course, this is not a place to go in the summer.
We stayed at the Casa Cody-reasonable and pleasant with pools, flowers, a continental breakfast and more. There are many little inns and hotels in Palm Springs within walking distance of town. This is a walking town, so if someone opted to take the Amtrak bus, they could have a fine little vacation without a car.
On the other hand, we were glad to have a car so that we could drive to The Living Desert- a large place with many seemingly contented desert animals from North America
and Africa.
The main attraction of Palm Springs, to us, is the warmth and desert climate. The second appeal is that it is a happening place in a quiet way with lots of restaurants,
galleries, special events, and spas. As a playground for Hollywood, it has plenty of golf courses and sports activities-hiking trails etc.
Take a look at a Palm Springs website to see what is offered. Oh- the 26 foot high statue of Marilyn Monroe is now in the center of town-don't know how long it will be there
but it is a funky statue in a fun place.
(If one opts to go to Palm Springs on the Amtrak bus it takes 2 hours.)
A suggestion would be to stay a night in Riverside (from the Southwest Chief). We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott near UC Riverside and then took a taxi to the
beautiful Mission Inn for lunch the next day. This inn is quite amazing with gardens, patios, large ornate buildings, and several restaurants. It is near a promenade, so is a good place for walking.
Family picked us up at the inn and we drove the hour to Palm Springs.
Palm Springs is a smallish (45,000 pop.) desert resort town which is fun and funky. It is a good place to visit in the Fall. We were there in November when the
morning coolness turned into noon warmth of 70 degrees. Of course, this is not a place to go in the summer.
We stayed at the Casa Cody-reasonable and pleasant with pools, flowers, a continental breakfast and more. There are many little inns and hotels in Palm Springs within walking distance of town. This is a walking town, so if someone opted to take the Amtrak bus, they could have a fine little vacation without a car.
On the other hand, we were glad to have a car so that we could drive to The Living Desert- a large place with many seemingly contented desert animals from North America
and Africa.
The main attraction of Palm Springs, to us, is the warmth and desert climate. The second appeal is that it is a happening place in a quiet way with lots of restaurants,
galleries, special events, and spas. As a playground for Hollywood, it has plenty of golf courses and sports activities-hiking trails etc.
Take a look at a Palm Springs website to see what is offered. Oh- the 26 foot high statue of Marilyn Monroe is now in the center of town-don't know how long it will be there
but it is a funky statue in a fun place.
