La Quinta Resort & Club, Palm Springs

The style of the hotel is quite unique in the city of La Quinta and indeed throughout the Coachella Valley. Whitewashed, terracotta topped Spanish-style casita’s decorate the lush gardens and grounds, more in keeping with the style of accommodation you might find in cities such as Santa Barbara on the west coast than traditional Palm Springs. Each casita has garden or mountain views and the interiors are stylishly fitted with wooden furniture and neutral colours. The Starlight Casita’s are our favourite for couples, each of which has its own private terrace, outdoor living space and fireplace. For families there are interconnecting Casita’s or larger villas, many of which have private pools and are named after stars of a bygone era , who would leave the city and use the villas at La Qunita Resort as their very own desert hideaway.

Hotel guests have access to 7 different eateries whilst staying at La Quinta Resort & Club. The most famous of these, named after the resorts founder, is Morgan’s in the Desert. Fully booked almost every night of the week, farm-to-table movement pioneer and chef Jimmy Schmidt designs an ever changing menu inspired by the products of the surrounding valley and in season fruits and vegetables from the state of California. On a Saturday night the bar is positively jumping and the grand piano lies ready and waiting for all-night-long sing-a-longs! TWENTY6 is the main restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner serving a range of classic American dishes whereas the Adobe Grill is where you want to be for spicy Mexican fare. Next to the Adobe Grill is the hotels rooftop bar, Top of the Plaza, complete with star lit tables, glowing fire pits and live music at the weekends. The remaining four eateries can be found at the tennis centre and three of the five golf courses on offer to guests.

La Quinta Resort & Club is a playground for tennis players, golf addicts, spa saviours and food lovers. The 41 pools dotted around the property are all temperature regulated to cool you down in the summer and warm you up in the winter – not that it ever gets too cold in the Mojave Desert! Couples looking for some quiet time will love Plunge, the 21’s and over pool. Families flock to the fully serviced Main Pool area for inflatables fun by day and movie’s under the stars (Fridays and Saturdays during the summer) by night. The facilities on offer beyond golf, tennis and swimming are endless. Rent a bike and explore downtown La Qunita, hire a hiking guide for the day, enjoy a red jeep tour of the surrounding desert or simply check in to the La Quinta Spa for some much deserved pampering.