Planning an amazing birthday outing for DH who will endure the big one this year.

3days 2 nights (can be extended if needed) in sunny Palm Springs Mid April.

Looking at Sundance Villas but would consider other nominations for luxury and romance (kids will be at home ).

Looking for great restaurants. NO Mexican or Thai (did I mention it was the big one? Think pepcid, hahhaha, gawd if he reads this I'm dead!) Went to Le St. Germaine and thought it was fabulous so I may take him there.

Fun things to do? Red jeep tour? Yes or no?

Couple massage would be a plus. Recommendations for in-home treatments would be welcome as well. (trying to get legit ideas on the internet led mostly to escort services)

Probably flying into Ontario and renting a car. Looking for something sporty. Convertible mustang is too small for him as we discovered on Maui. We have Hertz and National club cards but other ideas welcome. Thanks for all our help.

IMHO....

On a first visit to Palm Springs area the Aerial Tram is a must do. Depending on the rain this spring, mid April may be the middle of desert bloom. Get yourself out into the desert hiking areas and observe the beauty! Try Thousand Oaks oasis just to get started.

There are lots of restaurant choices, I am horrible with names, hopefully someone else will help. There is an area in Palm Desert that is referred to as the Rodeo Drive of the desert. Had lunch at a great casual restaurant overlooking that area that we enjoyed, name escapes me. Great people watching area.

I love your convertible idea. A Sebring is a bit bigger (if they still make those) or you could go for the Camaro...see what they have. Something in a BMW 5 series would be special.

Have Fun!

Palm Desert is a good place to look for upscale eateries. There's a Yardhouse in the area, if you want good grub and lots and lots of draught beer (over 100 at that location, over 250 at the Long Beach original).

In downtown PS, I like The Falls-- a martinis & prime rib joint with the old-school tableside Caesar salad show. Great steaks. There's a California Pizza Kitchen downtown for your upscale chain experience; hey, at least the grub is consistently good. Nice to have in your back pocket. Atlas Supper Club is a super-stylish joint, but I have no idea if the food's any good. I'm hoping some PS locals will chime in.

Palm Desert is a good place to look for upscale eateries. There's a Yardhouse in the area, if you want good grub and lots and lots of draught beer (over 100 at that location, over 250 at the Long Beach original).

In downtown PS, I like The Falls-- a martinis & prime rib joint with the old-school tableside Caesar salad show. Great steaks.

There's a California Pizza Kitchen downtown for your upscale chain experience; hey, at least the grub is consistently good. Nice to have in your back pocket.

Atlas Supper Club is a super-stylish joint, but I have no idea if the food's any good. I'm hoping some PS locals will chime in....

Didn't mean to post twice.... Stupid ISP is giving me no end of bandwidth problems!

Hi Suzie- Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly do you mean by the "big one?" Kate

I'd recommend the Ingleside Inn for romance and luxury. It's "old Palm Springs." Every room is different, some have 4-poster beds; there are villas, many private verandas and fireplaces in rooms. I've stayed there twice in the last month and enjoyed it each time. Wish I had more time.

Hi Suzie-Happy upcoming B-day! I just wanted to suggest for massage, facials, etc that you might want to look into the Spa Hotel in Desert Hot springs I wouldn't stay there necessairily but just go over and spend some time during the day. We went around 3PM and had a massage at 5pm and facial at 6PM and it was heaven. They have wonderful massage therapists and folks who do facials, manicures, etc. and meanwhile you can also sit in one of the 8 hot spring pools before or after. It is fairly old fashioned funky versus upscale but for the spa itself I think the therapists are better and it gives you an excuse to leave PS itself and go back to the desert that looks like it did in an earlier era-it is only about 10 miles from downtown PS itself. Here is the website:

www.dhsspa.com/

My husband and I stayed at The Willows and loved it. Very romantic. Very peaceful. Very lovely.

how about a balloon ride?

We have been going to Palm Springs for 24 years on Memorial Day weekend. We have a timeshare there, but we have stayed at the Marriott Desert Springs twice before. While it was 10 years ago, I remember it to be VERY nice. There is also The Givenchy off Hwy 111. I know lots of stars stay there. (an episode of "The Bachelor" was filmed there) Don't know the prices but I am sure it is POSH!

As for food, we always do Sunday brunch at Marie Callenders...trust me its GREAT. We did the bruch at the Marriott one time for kicks and it didn't match up...plus it was twice the price.
They also have a Kobe- japanese tepanyaki place. (similar to Bennihanna). I really like it, my husband thinks its so-so. There is a nice Charthouse and Ruth Chris's Stakehouse. I've also hear the japanese restaurant inside the Marriott is good ( boat picks you up and takes you to the restaurant).

Also...we frequently get fliers about doing a pre-view stay at the new Marriott Shadow Ridge timeshares. I knwo there is golf included in the package...hubby may like that?? You might be able to call and see if they can offer you the same deal? Just a thought.

HAVE a wonderful time!!!

Hey everybody THANK YOU! Sorry I was out for awhile and now I am just trying to catch up with all your recommendations!

Kate, Yikes it's so hard to say 5 this one out loud 0 so I'll just say it subliminally.

Oh just to clarify, it's not my birthday but I'll be sure to pass on the HB from jpie to my DH.

Depending on how adventurouos you are, if you really want to make a lasting impression on your DH, there are a some clothing optional resorts in Palm Springs.

LOL Dick, Not brave enough for that or just don't want to ruin the vacation of other guests!

The Sundance Villas have a private pool and spa with each unit. My DH has already mentioned that partuicular option.

Suzie,

If you don't go because you aren't brave enough...thats fine.

But don't worry about shocking the other guests...most are middle aged or older.

Hello Suzie.

My first recommendation for romance and luxury would not be Sundance. As someone else mentioned, the Willows is very cool. How many other opportunities are there to stay in the honeymoon suite of Clark Gable and Carole Lombard?

Another suggestion is Korakia or Villa Royale.

St. Germaine is fab. Other good spots: Europa at the Villa Royale, PS; Desert Sage, La Quinta; Azur at LQ Resort; Cuistot, Palm Desert; Sullivan's (steakhouse) PD; Pacifica, PD; Johannes, PS;

The Red Jeep Tours are pretty good and the naturalists are knowledgeable. The San Andreas Fault tour is interesting. We have had some recent rain, so we will probably have a very decent wildflower season. I highly recommend hiking the Lykken trail in palm Springs or maybe Murray Canyon in the Indian Canyons. One of my favorites is to go to Trader Joe's in Cathedral City, get some great bread, cheese, olives, dry salami, chocolate and wine and do a dayhike. You can eat next to waterfalls. What about a ride in a vintage warplane? Tandem skydiving? Hot air balloon ride at sunrise?

We used to use the day spa services at Spa de Jour in PS, but it has been sold so I can't vouch for how it is now. I do have a massage practitioner that used to work there that comes to our house now. He is incredible. Other than that, I think the spa services at Marriott Desert Springs are good as well as the spa at La Quinta Resort. That would be quite a drive if you stay in PS though.

Hope it is everything you are looking for.

PSL

Thanks so much PSL! The thing about Sundance is that it's private, more than just a room and most units have their own private pool and spa. Is there something I don't know that you can tell me? The three others that you mentioned are also on my short list. Thanks so much for restaurant and activity recommendations. I was hoping you'd respond!

Suzie, I love Palm Springs and can vouch for the Marriott Desert Springs Resort. Great place.

Here's another thought; I read somewhere that you can rent the house where Elvis spent his honeymoon! Now that would be a cool 5 you're-not-saying 0.

Thanks for all the recommendations. I'm looking at all the web sites to narrow down the choices. Those pics on the web sites better be true!!!

Travelmom3, we've received those timeshare flyers too. Your post reminded me of it. He's a fly fisherman/swimmer/water based vacationer, not a golfer. Thanks!