Palm Springs sightseeing in between championship tennis

The primary highlight for the team was of course playing the tennis matches at the Riviera and Desert Princess.

The team played great but just missed out in advancing to the semis. (And the eventual champion was the winner of their division) So we like to say, they missed being the champions by four points!

When not playing tennis, the team continued to stay together as a team --- most of the time. They relaxed at the Riviera (where they stayed) and there the main highlight was the hot tub conversations. There were several times the team eat together especially the USTA dinner at the Riviera. They also saw a few popular sights as a team. The two sights that were the "best" were the Tram and Joshua Tree. One person on the team arrived several days before the tournament was to begin and Ed and Tina managed to do lots of sightseeing including among others: Indian Canyons, Salton Sea, the Living Desert, and the jeep tour, in addition to seeing Joshua Tree and going on the Tram (twice)!

Quick Tips:

There are several timeshares that are very conveniently located so you are just off the main drag yet very close. We stayed at the Palm Springs Tennis Club and it was great. See my other journal entries regarding the review of that condo.

Best Way To Get Around:

I think you need a car to really get around.

The Riviera was the host hotel for the tennis players. The first comment I would say about this hotel is it is HUGE! Several times I got lost in going from point to point. But on the other hand, the set-up was a series of wings so you did have a feeling of some "intimacy" within the grandness of the place.

The team members spent a fair amount of time in the hot tub, while on hotel property but not in the rooms nor on the courts. Besides having a large bunch of tennis players in the hot tub with beers, and other beverages, conversing with each other, players IN the hot tub had conversations with hotel guests (mostly tennis players) NOT IN the hot tub but on the balconies of their rooms! This weekend was not the time to be staying at the Riviera if you wanted peace and quiet!

The hotel had lots and lots of tennis courts for all of the matches of the tournament. I believe some of the courts were held out for the guests who were not associated with the tournament so they also had a chance to play. The grounds in general were very pretty and restful.

Other features of this hotel were:
Great location – Yes you did have to drive to get to the restaurants and other sightseeing sites but you were relatively close to downtown so it wasn’t a long drive (or you could walk if you had lots of time and energy).
Great restaurant/pub on site --- One couple told me that she had special dietary requests that were always handled very politely and professionally
Large banquet facilities --- On Saturday evening, approximately 700 – 900 tennis players were assembled for food and drinks, entertainment and dancing, and other fun.
At least two large swimming pools where I was able to water jog without bumping into lots of other swimmers.
Computer access (though there was a charge to use the facilities)
Health Club.

One of the restaurants the team dined at was the Village Pub. This restaurant is on the corner of Palm Canyon (the main drag) and Baristo. I have been there many times, and each time I order a burger selected from the long list of pub favorites.

This time I ordered a burger with bacon and cheese. I had a special request about the bacon - it had to be well done since I cannot stand bacon unless it is crisp. I was very happy with my burger. It was huge and cooked just the way I liked it, and the bacon was crisp as requested. My husband and another teammate ordered the Southern Chicken. My husband had no complaints, but the portions were a little smaller than might be expected. There was only one dinner that was not acceptable: one person ordered salmon and it was small, not cooked properly, and overpriced.

This restaurant is very large and has several floors. While we were along a back wall, there was plenty of activity going on around us. There is also some entertainment, but we were talking too much to really listen.

Since there is NOT a cover charge for the entertainment, I think the prices of the menu selections are a little higher than other places. Still, this is a great place for groups or for having fun.

I do not know how many people get to see the Indian Canyons, but it always seems like it is a sightseeing sight overlooked by many. It is off the beaten path so many may not take the drive to the end of Indian Canyon Drive where the entrance booth is. The price of admission is very cheap - $6 an adult. At the booth you are given a brochure, which describes the three major canyons you can choose to explore. There is the Palm Canyons, Andreas Canyons, and Murray Canyons. You can choose just one or all depending upon the time and energy that you have.

We decided upon the Palm Canyons first. At the top of the descent is a trading post, which you can browse through for unique gifts or to delay the hike if you are so inclined. At some point, you check your water supply and if your camera is set, off you go. I usually take a picture of the start (when I am fresh and excited about hiking) and one at the end (when I am barely moving and asking myself why I ever thought I was in shape to do a hike of this difficulty)!

The good news about Palm Canyons is that the first descent is down steep "stairs", and then you can choose to take only the easy (pretty straight) trails rather than steeper trails within the "network" of trails. There are several picture-taking items of note: of course the miles of palm trees, the waterfalls, and other vegetation. You can hike as long as you want, but as I get older, I turn around sooner than later (I think it is billed as 15 miles long, but we have NEVER made it to the end).

After the Palm Canyons we returned to our car and then drove to the fork for the Andreas Canyon and Murray Canyon. However, in looking at the maps and all of the rock ledges (that I remember climbing in the past), we decided to reminisce about the beauty of those canyons and skip the actual hiking.

There is another canyon, the Tahquitz Canyon that has just opened to the public, which we might try next time. See info about the canyons by visiting the following web site: palmsprings.com (has map and other info).

The tram is probably Palm Springs' most popular sight and most breathtaking. I have taken the tram ride many times including in the 80s when it was very similar to a typical gondola. Now it is a huge glass sided structure that rotates as you ascend the mountain (2 ½ miles). Each time I have taken the tram I have the same feelings of:
amazement on how the tram was built piece by piece and brought up the mountain;
sense of how beautiful nature is, and
boy does the climate change (from super hot to snow on the top).

At the top of the mountain you get absolutely wonderful views. Palm Springs is definitely a study of contrasts between mountain and sea level, snow and desert, lush vegetation and sparseness, etc. When you get off the tram, there are trails where you can do a fair amount of hiking. In colder months, I have heard that people actually cross-country ski and snowshoe. Apparently some people even camp in the winter months! As you can see from the pictures, the team had a lot of fun with the trees and rocks! In the past I have also eaten at the restaurant at the top (you can purchase a ride and dine ticket).

For more information on the tram, see the web site at: pstramway.com.