Escape to the Desert.

 

Del Marcos Hotel

225 West Baristo Road

Palm Springs, CA 92262

Tyler's

149 S Indian Canyon Dr 

Palm Springs, CA 92262

Grind Brgr Bar

262 S Palm Canyon Dr  

Palm Springs, CA 92262

Cheeky's 

622 N Palm Canyon Dr

Palm Springs 92262

Copley's 

621 N Palm Canyon Dr

Palm Springs, CA 92262

Maracas

155 S Palm Canyon Dr  

Palm Springs, CA 92262

Woody's

317 N Indian Canyon Dr

Palm Springs, CA 92262

This past weekend Josiah and I escaped to the desert to relax and celebrate our 4 year anniversary. We chose to stay at Del Marcos Hotel which is a smaller, retro style hotel built in 1947. The view was beautiful! The San Jacinto Mountains are the backdrop of this newly remodeled gem. There are a handful of cool hotels to stay at with much larger pool areas but they are also packed and loud. We loved how simple and laid back Del Marcos was and the salt water pool was heavenly. We stayed in the Julius Shulman room and I loved looking through the coffee table book about this talented American architectural photographer. His photos of mid-century modern design reminded me so much of Jonathan Segal's work. Jonathan Segal is an amazing architect in San Diego and we currently rent one of his unit's. We loved the feel and decor of the Del Marco Hotel! The staff was friendly, attentive to any needs, and gave off a family vibe. It's also a pet friendly hotel so we may have to bring Stella some day. :)

We spent most of our weekend by the pool just relaxing, floating in the salt water and soaking up the sun. We don't get outside nearly enough so anytime we getaway we try to be outside as much as possible. I was very excited about dining since we don't get out as much now that we have Stella, our pomeranian puppy. The dining was a bit disappointing but we did have a couple great experiences. Our favorite places were by far Cheeky's for breakfast and Copley's for dinner. Cheeky's had amazing huevos rancheros and the flight of bacon was delish!! You have to get there early as it is the spot to be for breakfast. We got there at 8am when they opened which was perfect. Copley's was our favorite dinner spot. I had been looking forward to it ever since hearing that is was part of the former Cary Grant's estate. It was gorgeous! From the street it looks like the tiniest spot.Then you walk in through the little doorway and find yourself in a beautiful garden patio area. There are benches for enjoying a cocktail, a fireplace and outdoor dining areas. Keep walking forward and you enter the restaurant. It is a long and narrow horizontal set up. The tiny bar is in the middle. We chose to sit indoors since it was so hot and were seated at a perfect back corner table by a window. The service was excellent and the food was delightful. 

Something about being by the pool makes you crave a cheeseburger and we tried two burger spots. Tyler's was very plain but very good. Everything was fresh and for being a small burger spot they had great service and it was clear they took pride in their food and presentation. We stopped at Woody's before we hit the road to head back to San Diego. It is a true small town diner experience. We sat on the little stools at the counter and could basically watch the cooks prepare our food. I had to get the sliders since I couldn't decide on one burger. They were all amazing! Not a place you go for the ambiance but if you want a killer burger I recommend it. 

Next time we are in Palm Springs I want to try Maracas for dinner. We stopped by and sat on the patio for a quick snack and they the best salsa and guacamole! For some reason we felt like a beer which is rare for us so we didn't try the margarita's. They looked amazing so next time for sure! Our worst experience was at Lulu's. I do not recommend it. It's on the corner, has an all day happy hour and looks good so naturally everyone goes in. It's a trap! The food was awful, service was not great, atmosphere felt like a cafeteria. It was loud, poorly designed and we just wanted to get out quickly.

As far as shopping goes there is a large selection of home interior stores, but disappointingly no great clothing or accessory boutiques besides Trina Turk. I've heard Palm Desert has great shopping but we wanted to stay in Palm Springs, close to the hotel and be able to walk. Since we were there purely to relax and enjoy quality time together it didn't bother us too much, but it's nice to have options. Palm Springs is a great getaway if you want to relax by the pool, casually dine and just soak up the sun. Now that we've stayed there I have a better idea for next time and will plan accordingly. I didn't purchase anything new for this weekend away. Everything I brought with me was fairly old and I made it work. I am dying to travel and take more mini vacations so I've decided that I have to save and be wise with every purchase I make from here on out. It's a challenge I am ready to take on! 

Have you stayed in Palm Springs?? Tell me about your favorite spots to dine, stay and play! I'd love to hear so I can check them out next time.

xoxo,

Erica