Palm Springs is a resort city in the Santa Rosa Mountains, just south of Interstate 10 at the foot of 10,000-foot Mt. San Jacinto on the westernmost edge of the Sonoran Desert. The city is named for the palm trees that line its streets and for its natural hot springs. These features along with a warm climate, fashionable hotels and private homes, golf courses, parks, and swimming pools, make Palm Springs a major, upscale tourist attraction.

Art galleries, antique stores, and many specialty shops line Palm Canyon Drive. There is an abundant supply of gourmet restaurants. Among the most popular attractions are the Aerial Tramway, Oasis Water Resort, Moorten Botanical Gardens, and the spectacular Indian canyons. The southwestern-style Mercado Plaza in downtown Palm Springs features upscale galleries, boutiques and restaurants. Nightlife in the city includes fine dining and an assortment of bars and nightclubs, as well as gambling at nearby Native American-owned casinos.

While in the Palm Springs area, consider a side trip to eastern California's Joshua Tree National Park where the Sonoran and Mojave deserts meet. The Nature Conservancy's Coachella Valley Preserve in Thousand Palms includes 13,000 acres of palm oases and high desert bisected by California's San Andreas Fault.