COACHELLA VALLEY OVERVIEW
As you may know, when folks say "Palm Springs" they usually mean the Palm Springs Reagion or the entire valley, which is named the "Coachella Valley", nor do they mean the one city of Palm Springs, but the whole valley in general. The valley is about 45 miles long and 15 miles wide. Our mountains top out at 11,000 feet and surround and protect our valley from the rains that hit the Los Angeles basin. Storm clouds get caught at the top of these mountains which limits the amount of rain that hits the valley floor, but the rain becomes snow that covers the San Jacinto and San Gorgornio mountaintops and creates a beauty to behold. In the mentime, you're playng golf, tennis, and swimming all winter in the warm sunshine of the valley desert, viewing those snow-capped mountains from sea level.
The desert isn't barren. Instead, it's lush fairways and gorgeous flora with spectgacular scenery. How is this possible in a desert? Water and sunshine is the answer. We have a 200 year supply of water below us in a large aquifer. It's constantly filled with the melting snow, water from the Colorado River, and it naturally recycles itself. As water is used for all your landscaping and golf course watering, it goes onto the grass, filers through the sand right back into the aquifer. Very little is actually lost.
Hollywood Finds The Desert
Hollywood stars first stayed at the Racket Clubs in Palm Springs after discovering what a wonderful playground the was was for swimming, tennis, and golf. Then they started to build their own homes. The first communities started in Palm Springs and La Quinta. Bing Crosby created a trailer park where he and friends stayed and played. Today, the valley is still made up of Resorts, private homes and mobile home parks. Many of our country clubs were started by these Hollywood stars.
The valley consists of Palm Springs, Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Thousand Palms, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, Bermuda Dunes, Indio, LaQuinta, and Coachella, a total of 11 cities. Each city is unique, with special characteristics and culture. When doing a home search, some cities or areas may be more desirable because they're out of the "wind belt" (tucked in a cove or close to the mountains) and of course, those areas will be more costly. Other factors to consider: city culture, language, socio-economic factors, 55+ active adult communities, Country Club and gated communities, school districts, water districts, potential resale value, just to name a few. Some cites are now in a rebuilding and transformation era that is truly amazing and may represent excellent values with higher appreciation than others.....all things to consider when moving to our valley.
Known worldwide as a golfing paradise with over 90 courses from lush championship courses to tricky par 3's, challenging duffer and pro alike. It is also the western polo capital with the Eldorado and Empire Polo clubs, plus some 600 tennis courts and 30,000 sparkling swimming pools at last count.
World-class golf and tennis charity events with stellar celebrity names. Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Dinah Shore and Don Drysdale, to name a few, bring scores of visitors, as do The Living Desert, the Palm Springs Desert Museum, the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, the Palm Springs Air Museum, the Nortel Palm Springs International Film Festival, the National Date Festival, the McCallum Theater, the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, the historic Indian Canyons, Oasis Waterpark, the Indio Desert Circuit Horse Shows and so many more attractions.
From its beginning, more than 2,000 years ago as the ancestral home of the Agua Calientes with their ancient "miracle healing mineral waters" to a sleepy village to its aura as the "playground of the stars" to its fame as an international destination resort, the desert offers an unrivaled ambiance.
Shopping excursions here provide the ultimate store trek, from Palm Canyon Drive and the Desert Fashion Plaza to El Paseo to the Palm Desert Town Center and other enclaves with fine department stores, designer boutiques and specialty shops. And, after a shop-till-you-drop day, you can relax by the pool before you choose a spot for dinner and a show.
Desert restaurants run the gamut from chic bistros to exclusive, French-service restaurants to family-style eateries, presenting a myriad of cuisine's prepared by both homegrown and world-class chefs.
Art lovers can enjoy stunning galleries exhibiting works by renowned artists in every media, for both the connoisseur and novice collector. For the dedicated outdoor enthusiast, our picturesque hiking, biking and equestrian trails are pure pleasure.
Attire in the desert reflects the casual but elegant atmosphere, from running shorts and designer sweat suits to haute couture, lightweight for daytime, with a warm wrap for those famous cool desert evenings. Accessories? Your choice.
The warm, dry climate of the beauteous desert attracts many conventions and vacation visitors to its more than 300 hotels. The state-of-the-art Palm Springs Convention Center provides unparalleled corporate and group meeting services and, whether drawn to this sand-spangled paradise for a business meeting or a holiday, visitors to the Coachella Valley are treated to a unique experience that brings them back again and again, many times for good.
