Resort at a Glance: Two Bunch Palms

Since the 1940s, Two Bunch Palms has operated as a welcoming oasis in the California desert. Once a haven for everyone from Hollywood celebrities to notorious gangsters, America’s oldest hot mineral spring resort continues to welcome guests of all stripes today. The peacefulness of its pools, spa, and treatment rooms extends to the resort’s guest rooms, whose uncluttered modern designs and easy access to the grotto allow for distraction-free decompression.

• The Grotto: The resort’s hot mineral waters cascade into the twin carved pools of its lush grotto, whose canopy of trees grants bathers privacy while also affording them clear views of the big desert sky.
• $50 credit: This deal includes a $50 credit towards a 60-minute (or longer) massage at the spa or meals at Essence, the onsite restaurant.
• Lose yourself in one of the spa’s 22 treatment rooms; they cover everything from mud baths to facials to shamanic healing and energy work.
• Eat well at Essence, the resort’s onsite restaurant, where specialties include sustainable, local, and organic dishes paired with well-curated wines and craft beers and cocktails.
• Stay fit during onsite movement classes led by the resort’s resident yogis and Tai Chi/Qigong Master.
• Save the planet: Two Bunch Palms is 100% carbon neutral.

Desert Hot Springs, California: Spa-Centric Oasis Minutes from Palm Springs

In 1913, settler Cabot Yerxa was digging a well in the San Bernardino foothills when he unearthed natural hot springs bubbling beneath the Californian desert. This area later became known as Desert Hot Springs, a town that’s thrived over the years as a spa-centric getaway thanks to Yerxa’s find. The mineral waters, which hover around 148 degrees and are said to have healing powers, now flow directly into several local spas. Desert Hot Springs’ location, just 12 miles north of Palm Springs and two hours east of Los Angeles, also makes it an easy destination to reach for those looking for a relaxing escape from the big city.

You can see more of Yerxa’s legacy at Cabot’s Pueblo Museum, which sits within a Hopi-influenced pueblo home he built using materials found throughout the desert. The four-story museum stays open year-round and offers guided tours of the property and historic artifacts detailing Yerxa’s life and travels.

After dark, take advantage of the area’s light-pollution ordinances by driving 40 miles east to Joshua Tree National Park to stargaze and spy the glowing eyes of resident coyotes during a night hike. The roughly 800,000-acre park stretches across parts of the Colorado and Mojave Deserts and plays host to some of the country’s most varied wildlife. The five fan-palm oases that are scattered throughout the park are the best spots to see native animals, such as snakes, bighorn sheep, and black-tailed jackrabbits.

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