Hotels in Palm Springs

Mcdonna1980_IHB

New member
I'm planning a weekend (May 16th) getaway for my husband's birthday. I want to stay in the Palm Springs area. My only plans so far are to take him on the tram up to San Jacinto. Any other suggestions? We will be bringing our two kids (9&11;). My husband enjoys nature and outdoor activities. However, the children and I are really not up to par with his idea of a good outside activity which would be some 50 mile death hike up a mountain. So we need to find something to do somewhere in the middle.



I'm also not sure where to stay. I'm a 4 star and up kind of gal but I don't want to stay in a hotel that is not kid-friendly.
 
<a href="http://www.rancholaspalmas.com/">http://www.rancholaspalmas.com/</a>



I'll be staying here in a few weekends. The rates have dropped. Check out the pool and see if it's something the kiddos would be interested in.
 
the renaissance esmeralda is another resort with a great pool. time i was there i ended up just lounging there all day afternoon. it's in indian wells though.



<a href="http://www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com/images/userimages/Esmeralda.jpg">http://www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com/images/userimages/Esmeralda.jpg</a>
 
[quote author="roundcorners" date=1240631873]Look into the <a href="http://travel.yahoo.com/p-hotel-374522-jw_desert_springs_marriott_resort_and_spa-i">JW Marriott</a></blockquote>


I second the J Dub. Its awesome.
 
I enjoyed my stay at <a href="http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/photos/index.html?propertyID=1008#photo_section_0Link">The Westin Rancho Mirage</a>. It was beautiful and very relaxing.
 
I just booked the Las Palmas Resort in Rancho Mirage for $289 for a Friday and Saturday in MAy. Each day comes with a $100 resort credit, too. I called and spoke with Ken. He gave me a much better rates than what I found online.
 
I am just curious did you get that rate in (Rancho las Palmas) inclusive the taxes and the resort fee? I am also assuming it was for one room for two days . I was quoted pretty much double rate for thursdayand friday .It took me by surprise because I thought summer months are off season in Palm springs.



Did you like your stay there ? I Have read not so good reviews about spashtopia crowding on tripadvisor.
 
[quote author="acpme" date=1240618763]the renaissance esmeralda is another resort with a great pool. time i was there i ended up just lounging there all day afternoon. it's in indian wells though.



<a href="http://www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com/images/userimages/Esmeralda.jpg">http://www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com/images/userimages/Esmeralda.jpg</a></blockquote>


We also had a wonderful time at the Esmeralda. They have movies outside at night. You can actually be in the pool and watch the movie at the same time!
 
[quote author="lass="spellchecked_word">irvinewestpark</SPAN>" date=1247293753]I am just curious did you get that rate in (lass="spellchecked_word">Rancho</SPAN> las Palmas) inclusive the taxes and the resort fee? I am also assuming it was for one room for two days . I was quoted pretty much double rate for thursdayand friday .It took me by surprise because I thought summer months are off season in Palm springs.



Did you like your stay there ? I Have read not so good reviews about spashtopia crowding on tripadvisor.</blockquote>


The $289 was before tax and fees. We stayed in May on a Friday and Saturday.



Splashtopia was the best part of the hotel. It was not crowded when we went. Parents lounge in the lazy river while the kids play on the water slides in the middle island. (well most parents. my husband and I couldn't get enough of the slides :) ). They have a nice sandy beach along the pool which was good for toddlersand babies.



The cheap rooms are the best. They charge extra to be near the pool or on the golf course but the noise & lack of privacy is a big negative in my mind. Near the pool you have the noise of kids at splashtopia. The rooms over looking the golf course have a high traffic walkway right in front of them. I could see into everyones rooms when we would walk to the pool or lobby. The cheaper rooms border the perimeter of the hotel grounds and overlook a large green belt. The the location is very private and quite.



The buffet breakfast was pricey. $90.00 for the four of us. Had I not had the resort credit I would never paid that for breakfast. Plus, the buffet quality and selection was sub-par.



You can get food across the street at a really nice outdoor shopping center called The River. Kind of like the Spectrum but it has a lake and river running through it. There is a PF Changs and a Cheescake factory with seating on the lake where you can listen to live music. There are other restaurants but I can't recall.



We had a great time and the kids absolutely loved the splashtopia. Unfortunately we did have some negative experiences with the staff. The first night we had to move rooms because of a rowdy party upstairs. I thought it was in poor taste to move us and our two sleeping kids at 1am instead of telling the party goers to zip it. Plus, I think some sort of constellation would have been in order for the inconvenience but they did nothing but give us a different room.



I also had issues with the front desk when we check out as they tried over charge me by saying there was this and that restriction on the resort credit, blah blah blah. We resolved it after 30 minutes of arguing with a supervisor. I made the reservation over the phone and no restrictions were outline then or on my email confirmation. Plus, I called the front desk to confirm the day we arrived the the credit could be used for anything. I finally won the argument with the supervisor because she said all phone conversations were recorded and she was certain I was told of the restrictions. I insisted she produce the recordings or I wasn't paying. It was really unnecessary.



If you go now and want to get away from the heat, I highly recommend taking the tram up mount San Jacito. It's like a whole other world up there. Green forest and like 70 degrees vs the 100 plus temps on the ground. They have trails for every level from level walking paths to some serious climbs. We ate at the resturant at the top which was pretty good. They have a cafeteria too. Tickets for the tram are around $20, $15 for kids.
 
[quote author="Mcdonna1980" date=1247305645] Plus, I think some sort of <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/constellation"><strong>constellation</strong></a> would have been in order for the inconvenience but they did nothing but give us a different room.</blockquote>


Well... sheesh... no wonder they were not accommodating to you. You expect them to play gawd, whip up a bunch of stars out of thin air, and put them all together to form the new Mcdonna1980 constellation. Man... you expect a lot, a lot more than most people.



<blockquote>I also had issues with the front desk when we check out as they tried over charge me by saying there was this and that restriction on the resort credit, blah blah blah. We resolved it after 30 minutes of arguing with a supervisor. I made the reservation over the phone and no restrictions were outline then or on my email confirmation. Plus, I called the front desk to confirm the day we arrived the the credit could be used for anything. <strong>I finally won the argument with the supervisor because she said all phone conversations were recorded and she was certain I was told of the restrictions. I insisted she produce the recordings or I wasn't paying</strong>. It was really unnecessary.</blockquote>


IRCC, any conversation that is recorded has to be made known (blanket warning: that this call may be recorded for quality control purposes) to be recorded before said conversation happens. I could be wrong (correct me if I am wrong you attorneys out there), but if you didn't get that warning then the front desk person could be in a heap a trouble, whether it was that no warning happened and the conversation was recorded against your will, or they were full of sh*t and made the idle threat of a recording. Regardless, your review does not bode well for the place IMO. I think I would rather just rent a private condo instead. Well, I have to make sure it isn't one condo complex in particular, I might be blackballed from it, but that is a whole other story.
 
Thanks Mcdonna,



When making a reservation over the phone they usually do not explain well how the resort credit supposed to be used .I wonder if they provide something in written to explain that when u check in.If not they have the perfect plan to overcharge .Also I think it is not mentioned in the website abt resort credit.



I also inquired abt the inner tubes since i read in reviews that they charge extra for those and got to know it is 2 for $40.



In knotts soak city you can get 4 tickets for $80 for a day.
 
[quote author="irvinewestpark" date=1247362582]Thanks Mcdonna,



When making a reservation over the phone they usually do not explain well how the resort credit supposed to be used .I wonder if they provide something in written to explain that when u check in.If not they have the perfect plan to overcharge .Also I think it is not mentioned in the website abt resort credit.



I also inquired abt the inner tubes since i read in reviews that they charge extra for those and got to know it is 2 for $40.



In knotts soak city you can get 4 tickets for $80 for a day.</blockquote>


I recommend getting the cheapest room possible and forget the credits. I just saw a special on the website where each night came with a $50 US Savings Bond. That's orginal.



There is NO CHARGE for inner tubes for Splashtopia. There is an abundance of free inner tubes all around the facility. I know on the website one of the specials includes inner tubes for Splashtopia. That's misleading since they give you them for free. The inner tubes they give you are just to take home not for Splashtopia.



Ask away of you have anymore questions.



P.S. Graph, since when did you nominate yourself as the IHB spelling nazi. I guess if you can't beat'em join'em, huh?
 
I just really hope you weren't there on the same weekend in May that I was there. You wouldn't have missed me and the rest of the girls, and it could get embarrassing. However, we were downstairs so we were not the rowdy party from your experience. :)



I also have complaints about Rancho Las Palmas.



1) There is a bottle of wine in the room, but no corkscrew. I called to request one to open a bottle I had brought, and it never did come. My sister grabbed one from her house and she arrived an hour later and still beat the hotel staff.

2) We also said at check-in that we needed a fridge in the room. When we got to the room, we called to see when the fridge would arrive. "20 minutes." Okay, cool. My sister made it to the hotel, and we used her corkscrew to open some wine, and the freakin' fridge still hadn't shown up. We called several times, and kept getting told "coming soon". Lame.

3) You are right about the innertubes. Don't fall for it. You must use the hotel's tubes for the lazy river, and the innertubes you pay $20 each for just sit around and can be used in other pools I guess. Ours never even got blown up.
 
The last few times we have gone out to Palm Springs we have stayed at Korakia. It's a neat little place with a Moroccan theme. I just saw a Sunset Magazine article naming the top 10 relatively inexpensive resorts in the west and they named Korakia. I don't think it's really a kid place, but it is in PS proper and walking distance to the restaurants.
 
[quote author="Mcdonna1980" date=1247468567]P.S. Graph, since when did you nominate yourself as the IHB spelling nazi. I guess if you can't beat'em join'em, huh?</blockquote>


LOL, noooo... I failed the basic spell cop test years ago. When I point out a misspelling, it is rare occurrence for the fact that I even noticed. It usually is so off the wall that I have to try to make a funny about it. The whole reason why I use Firefox is for the spell check. It caught three so far since I started typing this. If it is any <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/consolation">consolation</a> to you... Cayci loves to make fun of me, and call me a Realturd, when I use quite when I meant quiet and vis versa. But demanding a constellation is pretty funny. I want a crackercakes constellation too, damn it!
 
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