This past week my parents invited us on a mini getaway to Palm Springs. It was a great time of relaxing and slowing down, the perfect way to start the new year. With all of our busy schedules, it’s rare we get to take a trip with my parents so this was really such a treat!

We stayed at The Parker and omgoodness, it is such a cool hotel! It felt like something out of The Great Gatsby, mysterious and magical.

I was so intrigued by the hotel, I decided to dedicate an afternoon just exploring the grounds. From the lobby to our hotel building, there was what seems like a maze in-between. Tall trees and bushes lined the dirt paths, each path leading to something exciting and fun. One led to a lemonade stand with a ping pong table and a giant chess set, and another brought us to a croquet field with white lawn chairs and yellow umbrellas. There was also a grassy area with hammocks hanging off of palm trees and we spent some time there swinging under the trees and reading. But the one we enjoyed most was where we learned how to play Pétanque (yea, we had no idea what it was either until we looked it up). I challenged Benny to a game and I totally won! hehe. Tennis courts, swimming pools, a fire-pit and a spa- there was so much to do inside The Parker!

The day after we arrived, we drove out to Joshua Tree National Park. This was my first time! Joshua Tree was beautiful and so so big! We enjoyed driving around the park, going on a few hikes, and making stops when we saw something interesting…like people rock climbing on those HUGE rocks (these are only pictures of the smaller rocks, too. There were much larger ones!). We were so impressed!

Another highlight of our trip was discovering Sunnylands, the former Annenberg Estate. The space is beautiful and inspiring and we loved learning about how it was and is still being used today as a getaway and meeting space for leaders around the world. The tours were all sold out, but we’ll definitely be back for it next time!

Thank you Palms Springs, we had a wonderful time!

Some other activities and places we visited:
The Moorton Botanical Garden, A boat ride inside of the JW Marriott Hotel, the Palm Springs Art Museum with free admissions on Thursdays from 4-8pm, and Villagefest, a street fair with live music, food, and other vendors.