At one point, most part-time residents of the Valley came after Christmas and left by the beginning of March. With the arrival of air conditioning in the 1950s, some people managed to stretch their stay from Thanksgiving to Easter. Gradually, they found that the temperature in mid-October was bearable, and they actually liked the heat of May. These days, it’s fairly common to meet year-round residents – those wizened, nut-brown desert rats who actually enjoy toughing it out in August.
How do they do it? There are tricks. You can adjust your internal clock – dine al fresco after 10:00 at night and swim and party until well after midnight. Get up an hour before dawn and exercise outdoors before the sun rises. Catch up on sleep mid-day in air-conditioned comfort when stepping outside your front door for a few minutes can knock you down like a mallet to the head.
However, if you need to go about life during normal business hours, you’re going to need to cool off. Listed below are some suggestions.
Berger Foundation Iceplex, Acrisure Arena
Imagine that it’s 115 degrees outside and you’re carrying a down jacket to the entrance of the Berger Foundation Iceplex – the public ice-skating wing of the Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert. Of course, everyone in the Valley is familiar with the arena, which opened as a multi-venue space in December 2022 with an 11,000-seat capacity. But, most importantly for many locals, it’s the home rink for the Coachella Valley Firebirds, an AHL team. However, it’s not widely known that the wing on the back side of the arena houses the Berger Foundation Iceplex.
The venue is open seven days each week, often from 6:30 a.m. until after 10 p.m. The Iceplex offers ice skating, figure skating, and ice hockey lessons to the general public. As the father of a figure skater whose coaching and practice sessions often last a couple of hours, I can attest that I have never been so cold – except maybe in the freezer section at Trader Joe’s. The Iceplex features excellent coaches who are as good with absolute beginners as they are with budding Olympians. Even if you’ve never been on ice skates, roller skates, or inline skates, the coaches can teach you to skate with confidence in just a few lessons. You don’t need to set your sights on executing a double Axel. You can sign up for a beginner program now (or, even better, a few private lessons) and by mid-summer, you’ll be gliding around the rink, freezing your keister off.
The Palm Springs Surf Club
Many waterslide enthusiasts regret that the Wet ’n’ Wild waterpark in southeast Palm Springs was shuttered long ago. Though it always seemed to be closed, it was a lifeline for families trying to survive the summer when it was open.
In its place, though, is the long-anticipated Palm Springs Surf Club – a wave-making wonderland that churns out 112 different wave profiles in a 60,000-square-foot pool for up to 12 surfers per hour. And you don’t have to be a surfer to partake; Boogie boarders and body surfers are also welcome. It features a gorgeous indoor/outdoor restaurant that overlooks the action, 17 private cabanas, and a pool with a lazy river to keep kids occupied. So, visiting the Surf Club is like taking a trip to Laguna Beach, but you’re just a few minutes from home.
The technology behind the operation is amazing. As described by Desert Magazine writer Judd Spicer in our April issue, “From a computerized command center and control tower above the pool, wave operators signal motors behind the pool’s V-shaped reef sections to power valves and blowers (running at 3,700 RPMs). This creates a combination of pressure and vacuum that fills the club’s 16 caissons. These chambers create energy that propagates outward as swells and forms wave pulses.”
The result is tailor-made waves for every taste and skill level. Beginners and pros alike can order waves (off a menu) that will give them a consistent ride every time they take off. And the water is cold enough to necessitate a wetsuit.
Go to the Movies
Do you want to get out of the house, but you’re not in the mood for exertion? In these days of agoraphobia-inducing in-demand TV, you have to ask yourself, “When is the last time I treated myself to a film on the big screen?”
I don’t care how big your Samsung picture frame TV is; it can’t beat the sight and sound of a huge cinema screen. And your home air conditioning can’t create near-freezing conditions that make it necessary to bring a sweater when the outside temp is in the triple digits. Sure, you can throw a bag of popcorn in the microwave, but it’s not theater popcorn – salty and greasy with some butter-like substance. Don’t get me started on Junior Mints, Reese’s Pieces, and M&Ms. Sometime over the last couple of decades, while you watched “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy in your basement for the umpteenth time, several movie theaters added bar areas with wine and craft beers and menus that offer actual, delectable adult food. Listed below are a few faves.
Mary Pickford is D’Place, Cathedral City: I don’t think Mary herself ever saw a movie there, but this multiplex theater has deserved the title of Movie Palace for many years. First, there is the immense scale of the place – all done in a kind of movie fantasy version of Spanish Revival architecture. And the entrance lobby and the snack bar are huge – so there’s rarely a line that keeps you from getting to your film on time. The theater makes its own ice cream, which is an excellent complement to a bag of popcorn. The screens in the 14 theaters are immense and the reclining seats never get old.
Cinemark Century at the River, Rancho Mirage: One of the things I like most about this theater is the ability to receive a delivery from Grubhub while watching a movie – or better yet, two movies back-to-back. The theater has great concessions, as well as wine, beer, and cocktails. But, the experience at this Cinemark theater with 14 screens helps satisfy one of my most enduring fantasies – having a hot In-N-Out burger delivered to me while I sit in the theater.
Festival Theaters, Palm Springs: This venue was known as the Courtyard 10 when I first visited Palm Springs. A new owner took over last year, and the theater underwent a thorough remodel that added new seats and an awesome new concession stand. Sure, it’s a bit small, but the intimacy and location are part of this theater’s charm. It’s located within walking distance from downtown, so it’s possible (and thoroughly advisable) to stop by Sherman’s Deli & Bakery to pick up a pastrami sandwich on marble rye and then head to the Palm Springs International Film Festival for a flick.
Hotel Pools
If you own a pool or there’s a pool in your condo complex, you’re probably wondering why you would leave the privacy and sanctity of your own water feature to share one with a bunch of scantily clad strangers. You might do that because it’s mid-July and you haven’t gone anywhere in two weeks except for a two-hour splurge at the Ralphs store in Smoketree Village.
Also, you don’t have a lazy river in your backyard. They were designed for kids, but I think they are an all-ages treat. You can roll along on an inflatable raft and – every once a while – dive into the river to cool off, then get back on the raft for another spin.
The Omni Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa offers one of the best lazy rivers in the Valley. It features a sandy beach and two waterslides at the Splashtopia water park. Adult day passes cost $50 and kids get in for $35. Though a five-person cabana is priced at $399, the perks are considerable. Poolside service from the Splash Grill can provide a great lunch, and an adult pool is available when you need a break from your kids.
The Ace Hotel’s Swim Club is adult-only, and the price of admission is $49. But, this is the place where you can kick your socializing skills into high gear as a DJ spins tunes in the Amigo Room. A pass includes access to the pool and jacuzzi, lounge chairs, towel service, the locker room, a fitness center, and Wi-Fi. You can swim and lounge during the day and stay through the evening.
One of the best deals in the Valley is the Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort & Spa in Indian Wells. Admission costs $25 for adults and $15 for kids. The 11-acre grounds are lush and filled with trees for shade, so you can wander away from the two pools and take a little stroll.
Oases
“Oasis” can mean a couple of different things during a Coachella Valley summer. It can be a natural setting or completely man-made.
One of the best kept secrets in the Valley is the Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve, also known as the Coachella Valley Preserve. Located off Thousand Palms Canyon Road at the northern edge of Indio Hills, this 880-acre preserve is located in a wide canyon that sweeps down from the Little San Bernardino Mountains. It’s open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day and there is no entrance fee, though donations are welcome. Visitors can walk among palm trees that shade large ponds (swimming is not allowed) and luxuriate in the cool environment of one of the Valley’s true, natural oases.
Also, there are plenty of options for man-made oases – namely, spas. Sure, it seems counterintuitive to go somewhere in ultra-hot weather and sweat in a sauna or soak in hot water. But, it’s one of the best ways to relax your body when the heat stresses it. The Spa at Séc-he is located in a controlled, interior environment where the room temperatures are cool. Soaking in one of the 22 private mineral baths there will loosen up your muscles so you can respond to one of the amazing massages offered at The Spa. There is also a eucalyptus steam room, a menthol inhalation sauna with a cold-experience shower, a full fitness center, acoustic zero-gravity vibration chairs, salt caves, and men’s and women’s locker rooms. A full-day pass costs $125.
