New Group Options For Exploring History, Geography

In the midst of a historic preservation boom, the Palm Springs area offers a growing number of ways for groups to experience both the natural desert environment and its history as a playground for the rich and famous.

Among the most ambitious projects is the restoration of the O'Donnell House, a 1920s mansion perched on a rocky outcropping overlooking Palm Springs and the mountains. Now available for conferences, private dinners and receptions, the mansion is operated by the Willows Historic Palm Springs Inn just below it.

Offering both indoor and outdoor function space, the O'Donnell House features intricate tile work, redwood ceilings, antique furnishings, landscaped courtyards and gardens.

"It's a great example of early Palm Springs architecture and has spectacular views of the valley," said Bob Carey, president of PRA Destination Management, which has arranged dinners and cocktail receptions there for groups up to 100. "It's a little hard to reach because of the narrow road, but we take people up in golf carts."

Carey is equally enthusiastic about one of the region's oldest attractions, the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, which features expanded mountaintop meeting facilities and new 80-passenger circular tramcars that rotate 360 degrees as they make the 8,500-foot ascent from the desert floor to the top of the San Jacinto Mountains. Available at the summit are 54 miles of hiking trails, wilderness mule rides and cross-country skiing.

Banquet facilities at the top include the recently renovated Pacific Crest Room, which seats up to 136 people. Opening this month is a conference room with AV facilities seating up to 25.

Gaining ground as a popular event site is the San Andreas Fault, the famous earthquake fault line that runs through the desert outside Palm Springs. Event sites on the fault include an 860-acre palm oasis with a recreated Cuhilla Indian Village and an 1800s Wild West Mining Camp, which includes a covered dining pavilion, dance floor, campfire area, walk-in mine and a cowboy town with a saloon, bank and jail. Evening events for groups up to 1,000 can be arranged by local DMCs.

Desert hikes are also taking on new dimensions for groups, including Moonlight Hiking Expeditions offered by Desert Safari. Available on nights with a full moon, participants with hiking packs and flashlights walk through canyons and arroyos with guides who share knowledge of plants, animals and Indian lore.

Open to hikers for the first time in 30 years is Tahquitz Canyon, where the 1937 movie "Lost Horizon" was filmed. The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians gives guided two-hour hikes through the 60-foot waterfall, ancient rock art and natural desert flora and wildlife.