40th birthday trip to Palm Springs
I went all out for my 40th birthday! A girls’ trip felt like a lot to ask for, but I’m so grateful we made it happen!
PALM SPRINGS
I had a list of priorities when choosing the location for the trip, and Palm Springs checked all the boxes:
Somewhere I had never been
Warm weather
Quiet and relaxing
Yummy food
Nature
Palm Springs just felt right! And the end of October was a great time to go. The weather was perfect for hiking in the morning and sitting by the pool in the afternoon. I don’t know what it’s like at other times of the year, but there was also no traffic and no wait at restaurants. Seriously perfect!
AIRBNB
Finding the right place to stay was very important to me. There are tons of cute hotels in Palm Springs, but I knew I wanted a private home with a pool and three bedrooms. We found the cutest Airbnb in a great location with mountain views! The backyard was so quiet and lovely. We slept in, sat by the pool, read books, and sat in the hot tub after the sun went down. I would definitely stay here again! My kids would absolutely love the backyard.
You will likely want a car when visiting Palm Springs. This was my first experience renting a car on Turo. It was fantastic and much cheaper than other options.
RESTAURANTS
I did extensive research before we went on the best places to eat. None of these will disappoint!
If making a reservation on OpenTable was an option, I did it, even though it didn’t really seem necessary during the week we were there.
We ate outside for nearly every meal — just can’t beat it!
Tac/Quila: This was definitely the best meal I had the entire trip. I can see why it’s a Michelin restaurant!
Birba: Such a cute patio with yummy pizza! It’s fairly small so I suggest hopping on OpenTable and reserving a table before you go, just in case.
Koffi: A great spot for coffee and a light breakfast before a hike!
Lulu California Bistro: A large modern eatery located on Palm Canyon Drive
King’s Highway: Located in the Ace Hotel, which is such a vibe! We sat outside by the pool. Highly recommend slipping into the photo booth, too!
El Patron: Great, casual spot with yummy Mexican food (my favorite)
Giuseppes: On our last night, I just wanted to order pizza and have a chill evening. This place was recommended by our Airbnb host. The Pizza Bianco hit the spot!
Cheeky’s: Open for breakfast and lunch. The perfect spot for our last meal before heading to the airport.
Brandini Toffee: Such a cute little novelty shop. If you’re a fan of toffee, I recommend the ice cream bar!
HIKING
Half our time in Palm Springs was spent relaxing by the pool and the other half was spent exploring nature. Just call me “Little Miss Makes Her Friends Hike for Her Birthday.”
Indian Canyons: Can you even believe these photos? Andreas Canyon was our favorite hike of the entire trip! It’s an easy trail and so beautiful. The fan palm oases are incredible. Palm Canyon was neat as well (we just went down into the valley to hang out for a bit and then walked back up). It does cost money to get in, but it’s so worth it!
Joshua Tree National Park is just a one-hour drive from Palm Springs, yet feels like another planet. We did some easy hikes and just took in the cool views!
If you want to do additional hiking, I have heard good things about Tahquitz Canyon, too!
SIGHT-SEEING
Palm Springs Aerial Tramway: We did this, but I’m not sure I can wholeheartedly recommend it. The elevation change made me feel really dizzy, and that sort of spoiled the experience for me. Someone even fainted on our ride up. Ride at your own risk!
Forever Marilyn: The Marilyn Monroe statue outside the Palm Springs Art Museum is iconic. We did a quick walk over there just to say we did!
A couple other things that were on our list but got bumped: Palm Springs VillageFest and Moorten Botanical Garden. Maybe next time!
Thank you to my sweet friends for saying yes and to our husbands for handling the kids for a week. The warm sunshine, beautiful hikes, hours relaxing by the pool, hot tub stories and photo booth shenanigans (I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time) were exactly what I wanted.
Have you been to Palm Springs? I’d love to hear your favorite things to do!