From me to you: our Palm Springs itinerary

Honeymoon trips.

I live and swear by our annual trips, and if you remember, I shared the secret to saving up for these yearly excursions last year. Now that we’re back home and it’s fresh in my mind, I figured I’d share our itinerary from this year’s trip with you!

First things first: Costco Travel.

After our trip to Italy last year, which we booked through Costco Travel, we knew we wanted to go somewhere new but within our saved budget for 2025. We did a deep dive into their West Coast offerings, eventually coming across Palm Springs as a destination including a car rental and a stay at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa.

A stay at another JW but this time stateside? Trip booked immediately.

Saturday

We booked our flights separately (Gabe is our personal travel agent and a wizard when it comes to finding good flights) and arrived to Palm Springs International Airport right around 2PM.

Our first stop was to In-N-Out (of course) followed by an afternoon at the pool and some appetizers at the hotel bar with a side of cribbage (and a huge loss on my part). Side note: this JW was amazing! Spacious, multiple pools, Starbucks on-site and great staff (not to mention an array of ammenities that we enjoyed).

Sunday

Sunday was a toasty 104° so we opted for a full day at the pool, following our early morning wake up (thanks to the time change).

We always book at least one activity per day when we travel, and Sunday’s was our anniversary dinner at Wally’s Desert Turtle, a spot recommended by one of my best friend’s mom, Tina! This spot was luxurious and the food amazing. Valet parking, fresh-baked bread delivered straight to my plate the second I finished the previous roll, and some of the best scallops I’ve ever had. This place was a treat and highly recommended! Just make sure to set aside some funds for it as their entrees ranged from $38-78 per person.

Monday

After so much time at the pool it was time to get some exercise in so we made our way out of the resort and to the mountains. The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, constructed in the Chino Canyon, has rotating tramcars that take you on a 2.5-mile ride beginning at the Valley Station (elevation 2,643 feet) and ending at the Mountain Station (elevation 8,516 feet). At the Mountain Station there’s a restaurant, cafe, and best of all, hiking trails! Gabe and I had a ball exploring the hiking trails (and getting lost) while taking in some pretty incredible views.

If you’re looking to go to the area and want a day away from the heat, this is the place to go! This was one of my favorite days the whole trip and I can’t wait to go back.

Need some shopping? After the aerial tramway we explored the Desert Hills Premium Outlets for a bit and, as luck would have it, purchased a winter coat in the heat of the desert for later this year. Prime shopping.

Tuesday

Tuesday was our last full day in the area so we did what we do best, a food tour! You may recall that food tours are some of our favorite ways to learn about the history of a town we’re visiting from Let’s Talk About: Food Tours. Shortly after booking our flights to Palm Springs we researched if the area had a food tour and came across Desert Tasty Tours. I’ll just go ahead and tell you what you need to know: this tour is worth booking.

With it being a middle of the week tour, Gabe and I ended up with a private tour alongside our guide, Tod. Tod was incredible! Not only did he take us to fantastic spots in Palm Springs, but he gave us an true look at the history of the area and what makes it so special (like the Forever Marilyn statue). Tod was also a great storyteller and basically a celebrity with credits as a contestant on both Jeopardy and Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

If you’re not interested in a 3-hour tour but you are interested in some local spots in Palm Springs, we stopped at (and would recommend) the Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar, Maracas Mexican Cantina & Grill, Tutti Frutti, Brandini Toffee, Bill’s Pizza, and LuLu California Bistro.

Following the tour we explored the shops in downtown and then made our way to the Rodeo Drive of the desert, El Paseo Shopping District. It was great! I did zero shopping but lots of perusing, which was absolutely needed after our food tour.

To wrap it up…

We will, without a doubt, visit the area again in the future and check off a couple more things we didn’t get a chance to do like visiting the Living Desert Zoo & Gardens or the nearby Joshua Tree National Park.

Until then, we’ll see what the travel bug brings our way next!