As a current maid of honor struggling to put together the perfect weekend for my bride-to-be bestie, I get it. Mapping out an itinerary for a group of chicks is painstaking, especially when you’re unfamiliar with the destination. I recently spent a month out in the desert filming a movie (and staying through Coachella, obviously), so I naturally have been asked for my expertise on the best of Palm Springs quite frequently since. Next weekend, I’m headed to a bachelorette party in the desert and I couldn’t help but chime in with itinerary tweaks. I thought I’d just make my suggestions into a post since, to this day, my ‘Best bachelorette weekend in Cape Cod‘ tops my most read of all time posts!
|| WHERE TO STAY ||
Is your bride boujee? Stay at The Parker
Is she an influencer? Try out the Sands
Does she want to get down and dirty at a pool party? The new Arrival Hotel, the Saguaro, or the Riviera
Is she looking for a chill oasis? The L’Horizon
More hip? The Kimpton Rowan
Does she have some boho vibes and is looking mostly for a spa weekend? Two Bunch Palms
Is she definitely a straight up hippie? Then head to the Pioneer Motel in Joshua Tree
Is your bride relaxed & just looking to spend time with her best friends? Rent a house on airbnb (my personal choice!)
|| ITINERARY ||
Check into hotel/rental house, have champagne & snacks waiting, and play the panty game (brides love this – they get to leave with a bunch of new skivvies!) Both nights will follow a similar format – dinner, bar, post bar debauchery. Saturday during the day will be your pool party.
FRI & SAT NIGHT OPTIONS || MIX AND MATCH
option 1:
-Dinner reservation @ Eight4Nine (all white and girly, pretty perfect for chicks). Then walk across the street to Bootleggers Tiki Bar for fun cocktails and a tropical vibe.
option 2:
-Dinner reservations @ Workshop (long communal tables in a chic warehouse atmosphere) followed by drinks at Twigs & Twine across the street.
option 3:
-Dinner @ 4 Saints (new restaurant on the Kimpton’s rooftop with gorgeous views) followed by tiki drinks and live music at the Tonga Hut.
option 4:
-Dinner @ Pink Cabana (most perfectly curated photo op restaurant, maybe ever) followed by cocktails and dancing at The Nest.
option 5:
-Eat on the cheap with dinner @ Casuelas (fun casual Mexican restaurant). Stay for margaritas and live music on their patio.
option 6:
-Hire a chef or do a grocery run and whip up dinner at the rental house (taco bar or bbq is the easiest and least expensive option).
*End the nights with karaoke @ Retro Room, hit up the gay bars (like Trunks!), go dancing at The Nest, or stop by the Palm Springs casino Agua Caliente to throw some money in the penny slots and kick back a nightcap or two.
SATURDAY DAY
Getting your tan on is the most quintessential part of a Palm Springs Bachelorette party. If you’ve got a rental house, buy some basic bachelorette pool floats and float around drinking rosé. Otherwise, reserve a cabana or two at your hotel pool.
If you’re looking more for adventure, a group hike in Tahquitz Canyon is a lovely walk that leads to a waterfall. The Palm Springs Aerial Tram is a unique way to spend your Saturday as well. The views are breathtaking and there are tons of interesting walking paths atop the mountain. If you’re visiting in Spring or fall when the weather is more temperate, there are some cool guided bike tours you can take to see the best of the famous Palm Springs architecture. My favorite yoga classes in the desert are at Bikram Yoga Plus – they also offer soundbaths, reiki, and other spiritual activities. From museums to dune buggies to cooking classes activities are boundless if getting color poolside isn’t your brides thing. Here is an extended post with all my top tourist activities in the desert.
In the very unlikely event that you end up with bad weather, I suggest booking a spa day for your group at The Parker Spa or Two Bunch Palm.
Happy bachelorette-ing!
PS. Need help writing your maid of honor speech? I’ve got you covered 😉
PPS. Still deciding where to plan your bachelorette? Here is my guide to the perfect bach in wine country!
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NO hitting up the gay bars! There are only a handful of gay bars and tons of straight ones. Why ruin the vibe for gay people? The gay bars are meant to be safe spaces for gay and trans people – not safe spaces for entitled women. I’m sorry but bach parties totally kill the vibe at a gay bar and it’s just tacky
Hi Mike, in one respect, I understand. Some bachelorette groups can be rowdy and over the top. But I can’t help but feel that your comment is incredibly sexist. Living in West Hollywood for the past decade, I’d hate to think that I wasn’t welcome at the bars within walking distance to my house just because I am married to a man instead of a woman. The best bars in Palm Springs ARE gay bars, with the majority having live music and a place to dance. I would like to think the bars and clubs are supposed to promote equality and a safe space for EVERYONE, regardless of how you identify.
You can go to any straight bar/club. There are plenty of them and no reason to destroy gay people’s night out. Last time I was at Hunter’s, it was wall to wall bachelorette parties. Most of the gay patrons left b/c it was unbearable.
[…] Palm Springs Bachelorette Party […]
Just commented on your Provincetown piece. The same applies to P.S. and its even worse there. I have gone to Hunters on a Sat night only to see the place filled almost 60% w/ bachelorette parties. It was like a sweet sixteen party. What gay or lesbian patron wants to walk into that nightmare?? A gay bar is a refuge for gay people to escape from heteronormative society just like you want to escape from hetero men hitting on you. It is selfish and tacky for you to invade gay bars. I have some older friends who have been going to Hunters and other gay bars for years to socialize and now they no longer go b/c of the bach parties.
Anyway, there are plenty of straight bars downtown or at some of the nicer hotels in the area. Please let the gay patrons have their bars back and stop being so entitled.
Hey Warren, I find your comment pretty discriminatory. I live in West Hollywood and have a mix of straight and gay friends. If I abstained from going to ‘gay’ bars, then I wouldn’t be able to go to any bars that are in walking distance from my house. I offered a bunch of suggestions on this post, with hitting up the gay bars being just one.
Gay bars should NOT be a suggestion at all. Why would you think that it would be a good idea for a bunch of screaming bachelorette party women to barge into a gay bar? Obviously, you are clueless and uneducated. Gay bars are not meant to be a safe space for straight women but for lesbians and gay men. I have walked into several of gay bars in P.S. over the past few years only to see them filled – almost 70% – with bachelorette parties. What gay person – on this planet – wants to go to their local gay bar to find that it has become one huge bachelorette party? Who the F* wants to spend the night partying w/ these people?? Most gay people in the area are pissed off to see the gay bars that they have been going to for years and spending tons of $$ at are taken over by annoying hetero bach parties. There are HUNDREDS of straight bars in the Palm Springs metro area including some nice ones at a few of the hotels- Go there. It’s just rude and offensive. You go to gay bars b/c you want a “Girls night out”. Fine. But don’t you think that the gay residents in the area want a “Gay Night out”? Stop being so selfish. And to the author of this nonsense, airhead blog of sunshine and rainbows and “glamour shots” – WAKE THE F UP!!
Warren, I mentioned ‘hit up trunks’ as one option out of dozens in this blog for things to do. Your comments are derogatory and unnecessarily rude. I would never attack another human in the way you have attacked me. I’m not angry or offended, but I think it perfectly paints a picture of the type of person you are. I hope someone shows you some kindness soon, and your position evolves. Your life will improve tremendously if you start seeing the good in the world instead of the negative. Maybe next time I go to PS (where I stay with my married gay friends), I’ll run into you! I’d love to buy you a drink.
Any favorite brunch places with bottomless mimosas?