Palm Springs · With kids
WITH KIDS
A cable car to alpine air, a desert zoo and Joshua Tree — all planned around the heat.
Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
Rotating cars climb 2,500 metres in ten minutes to pine forest that runs 15 to 20°C cooler than the valley floor. Ages five upwards; take jumpers.
The Living Desert
A zoo and botanical garden in Palm Desert with giraffe feeding, a large model railway and a carousel. Ages two to ten; go at opening, not after eleven.
Children's Discovery Museum
In Rancho Mirage, indoors and air-conditioned, with a climbing structure and water play. Ages two to eight, and the reliable answer to a 43°C afternoon.
Joshua Tree National Park
Forty-five minutes north. Hidden Valley and Skull Rock are short flat loops, and the boulder piles are a natural climbing frame for ages four upwards.
Heat rules and adult hotels
In summer, outdoors before ten and after six, pool in between. Many Palm Springs hotels are adults-only, so check before booking anything.