Palm Springs: Staying in Desert Modernism

Wake up in a mid-century house in Palm Springs, then tour the homes of Albert Frey and Richard Neutra with an architecture guide.

A Desert Town Built in Glass and Steel

Palm Springs sits in the Coachella Valley, around two hours east of Los Angeles, with the San Jacinto Mountains rising behind it. In the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, architects such as Albert Frey, Richard Neutra, and E. Stewart Williams turned it into one of the great showcases of mid-century modern design.

It was also a place where Hollywood came to relax away from the studios and where gay men and women found a degree of freedom long before it was accepted elsewhere.

Staying in a modernist house, rather than simply looking at one, is the best way to understand what makes the town special.

Your Own Mid-Century House

Many of the town’s best homes are now available to rent, from Alexander houses in neighbourhoods such as Vista Las Palmas to restored estates in the Movie Colony. Floor-to-ceiling glass, flat roofs, and pools set against the mountains are the standard here.

Mornings are best by the pool, before the heat builds. In the evening, the light on the mountains turns pink and gold.

An Architecture Tour

With a specialist guide, you can see the landmarks of desert modernism. The Kaufmann House, designed by Richard Neutra in 1946, is one of the most important houses of its era, and Twin Palms, built by E. Stewart Williams for Frank Sinatra, has a pool shaped like a grand piano.

Frey House II, the home Albert Frey built for himself on the mountainside in the early 1960s, is now cared for by the Palm Springs Art Museum. The Architecture and Design Center downtown, in a former bank designed by Williams, is a good place to start.

Modernism Week

Each February, Modernism Week brings tours, talks, and parties to the town, with access to homes that are usually closed to the public. Seasonal architecture tours also run from fall through spring.

If you visit at other times of year, your guide can arrange private tours and suggest the best routes past the exteriors.

A Town That Welcomed LGBTQ+ People Early

Palm Springs drew gay visitors long before it was safe to be open about it. Greta Garbo is said to have visited Mercedes de Acosta here, and the town has more gay men’s resorts than almost anywhere on earth.

In 2017, Palm Springs elected a city council made up entirely of LGBTQ+ members, the first in the United States. Palm Springs Pride, held in November, is one of the last on the annual calendar.

Planning Your Palm Springs Experience

The best months to visit are from October to May, when days are warm and evenings are cool. Summer is very hot. Palm Springs International Airport has flights from across the United States, and Los Angeles is about two hours by car.

Out Of Office can find you a mid-century home or a gay men’s resort, arrange a private architecture guide, and reserve dinner at the town’s best tables. Your LGBTQ+ travel specialist can also pair Palm Springs with Los Angeles as part of a longer trip through the USA, or plan a honeymoon in the desert.