Tours in Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park

Desert Adventures takes to the wilds with two- to four-hour red Jeep tours ($69 to $159) on private land along the canyons and palm oases of the San Andreas earthquake fault. Their other public tours include Indian Cultural Adventure, Pioneer Adventure, and Joshua Tree National Park. Groups are small and guides are knowledgeable. Departures are from Palm Springs and La Quinta; hotel pickups are available. Elite Land Tours gives three- to five-hour luxurious treks via Hummer led by knowledgeable guides, who take you to the San Andreas Fault, Joshua Tree National Park, Indian Canyons, Pioneertown, Old Indian Pueblo in Desert Hot Springs, and the Salton Sea. Tours include hotel pickup, lunch, snacks, and beverages.

Three thousand windmills churn mightily on the slopes surrounding Palm Springs, generating electricity used by Southern California residents. Each windmill stands more than 150 feet high. EV Adventures conducts 1½-hour tours among the giant rotors, towers, and blades in what NASA declares is one of the most consistently windy places on earth. Palm Springs Celebrity Tours conducts 2½-hour tours that cover Palm Springs-area history, points of interest, and celebrity homes. Trail Discovery-Desert Safari Guides conducts tours of various lengths through the Indian Canyons, moonlight hiking in the Palm Springs area, and daytime excursions to Joshua Tree National Park. Transportation from most area hotels is included.

The city of Palm Desert offers four self-guided tours of its 150-piece Art in Public Places collection. Each tour is walkable or drivable: The El Paseo tour features sculptures installed along the grassy median strip that runs the length of the street; the Fred Waring Corridor Tour includes sculptures of bighorn sheep, komodo dragons, and mountain lions along the street named for the bandleader; the City Tour encompasses several large pieces of art ringing the Desert Willow Golf Resort; and the Civic Center Park walk includes a massive water feature and plantings of 68 varieties of roses. Maps are available at Palm Desert Visitor Center.

Palm Springs holds one of the largest collections of homes and public buildings designed by the famed Desert Moderne architects of the 1950s, Albert Frey, Richard Neutra, and William F. Cody. You can see many of these beauties on tours assembled by the cities of Palm Springs and Palm Desert; the Palm Springs Visitor Center also offers three-hour tours to these midcentury landmarks (you can also pick up a copy of Palm Springs: Brief History and Architectural Guide here. If you'd rather go it alone, pick up a map and guide to more than 40 distinctive midcentury buildings at the Palm Desert Visitor Center.

Contacts

Desert Adventures (74-794 Lennon Place, Suite A, Palm Desert. 760/340-2345. www.red-jeep.com). Desert Safari Guides (Box 8394, Palm Springs 92263. 760/325-4453 or 888/324-4453. www.palmspringshiking.com). Elite Land Tours (555 S. Sunrise Way, Suite 200, Palm Springs. 760/318-1200. www.elitelandtours.com). Eco-Adventure Tours (62-950 20th Ave., North Palm Springs. 760/251-1997. www.windmilltours.com). Palm Desert Visitor Center (72-567 Hwy. 111, Palm Desert. 760/568-5240. www.palm-desert.org). Palm Springs Celebrity Tours (4751 E. Palm Canyon Dr., Palm Springs. 760/770-2700. www.celebrity-tours.com). Palm Springs Visitor Center (2901 N. Palm Canyon Dr., Palm Springs. 760/318-6118. www.palm-springs.org).