Why this Palm Springs hotel has become a haven for mid-century style fans

During Hollywood’s golden age, movie studios insisted on a ‘two-hour rule’ that kept stars within reach of Los Angeles during production. For those seeking to escape prying paparazzi, one destination emerged just inside that perimeter: the flourishing oasis of Palm Springs.

As the likes of Clark Gable and Marlene Dietrich descended, so did visionary architects charged with creating fitting homes. Between the 1920s and 1960s, Palm Springs saw the birth of an architectural style known as ‘desert modernism’. Clean lines accentuated the natural curves of the surrounding mountains, while courtyards and pools promoted indoor-outdoor living.

This glamorous ideal is still a way of life at Parker Palm Springs, a 13-acre estate with its own A-list backstory. Built in 1959 as California’s first Holiday Inn, it was bought two years later by Western star Gene Autry, who added his own exemplary mid-century modern home that’s now the hotel’s finest two-bedroom suite.

Hotelier Jack Parker took charge in 2003. He recruited designer Jonathan Adler, who added the striking 23ft sunshade and tangerine doors that have become the much-photographed face of the hotel.

Inside is a riot of whimsical maximalism. Bedrooms are full of personality thanks to statement furniture and Adler’s eccentric ceramics, while the lobby nods to Hollywood history. Film buffs will recognise the hexagon carpet from The Shining, but it’ll take a keen eye to identify a light fixture as a room divider from Soylent Green. Fortunately there are complimentary art tours to help uncover the hotel’s secrets. These extend into candle-lit, fine-dining restaurant Mister Parker’s, where works by Andy Warhol and Victor Vasarely hang beside a clown painting that appeared in An American in Paris.

A modernist landmark in its own right, the Parker is also ideally situated for exploring the other architectural treasures preserved around Palm Springs. Unlike at those private homes, here you won’t get in trouble for spending all day in the pool.

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Bike through an architectural paradise

Palm Springs is home to the world’s largest concentration of mid-century modern architecture, and the best way to explore these well-kept neighbourhoods is on a cycling tour. Guides from the Palm Springs Historical Society have plenty of stories to share about the architects who built these stunning homes, and the Hollywood stars who lived in them.

Shop vintage

Housed inside a repurposed 40,000sq ft department store, Market Market is an expansive emporium featuring a variety of vendors selling one-of-a-kind antiques including ceramics, glassware and furniture alongside vinyl records and vintage clothing. There’s also a grab-and-go charcuterie station, in case you need to pause to refuel mid-shopping spree.

Admire art

The Palm Springs Art Museum contains an impressive collection of modern art and sculpture, while the building itself is a prime example of desert modernism designed by E Stewart Williams, the architect behind Frank Sinatra’s Palm Springs home. On the grounds outside is the Aluminaire House, Albert Frey’s aluminium, steel and glass prototype ‘home of the future’ from 1931.

Catch a show

The Plaza Theatre opened with the 1936 premiere of Greta Garbo’s Camille and has been at the heart of downtown Palm Springs ever since. After a $34 million renovation, it operates today as both a cinema and a live concert venue. It’s worth getting inside just to gaze up at the thousands of lights dotted across the domed starfield ceiling.

Tour a sprawling desert estate

Sunnylands is the 200-acre former home of diplomats Walter and Leonore Annenberg, who hosted US presidents so often the property became known as the ‘Camp David of the West’. Their 25,000sq ft pink-roofed house is a mid-century modern masterpiece, and the entire estate is open to the public Wednesday to Sunday. Admission and parking free; tours of the estate are ticketed.