Location, Location, Location

If you want to get away from winter cold, but still see snow on the mountains in the winter, the desert area here in California is your best choice.  Mount San Jacinto and Mount San Gorgonio are both over 10,000 feet with alpine winters.  When it is over 100 degrees in the valley, it will be 70 degrees at the top of the Palm Spring Aerial Tramway, where there is a great restaurant with fabulous views, hiking trails, etc.  Full-time population in the Valley is about 450,000 and the fall, winter and spring populations can reach over a million on a busy weekend; that's full-time, seasonal and weekend owners, RV parks, weekend visitors and one day visitors.   High season is December through April and there is lots going on…everywhere.  Remember, winter along the beach cities is the off-season and you have access to everything a lower prices and with less crowds.

Two to three hours away from the Valley are Disneyland, Universal Studios, Knott’s Berry Farm, Hollywood, San Diego, Los Angeles, Lake Havasu on the Colorado River, Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear (snow and water skiing),  wine country, the Queen Mary, Catalina Island, beaches, sailing, boating, horseback riding, surfing, fishing, people watching, shopping, gaming, horse racing, stock car racing, grand prix racing, movies and TV shows being filmed, the new Disney Concert Hall, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Opera Company’s, Ballet, the Getty Museum, the Huntington Museum, the Norton Simon Museum, the Los Angeles Griffith Observatory, The Tournament of Roses Parade and on and on and on… and even Mexico.  All less than three hour away.  This is possibly the best location on the planet for having all the options available. 

Average Seasonal Temperatures

January: Daytime highs of 70 °F (21 °C), with overnight lows of 40 °F (4 °C)

April: Daytime highs of 87 °F (31 °C), with overnight lows of 52 °F (11 °C)

July: Daytime highs of 108 °F (42 °C), with overnight lows of 73 °F (23 °C)

October: Daytime highs of 91 °F (33 °C), with overnight lows of 57 °F (14 °C)

The highest temperature on record in Palm Springs is 123 °F (51 °C), recorded on July 10, 1979, and August 1, 1993. The lowest temperature on record is 19 °F (−7 °C), recorded on January 18, 1971. There are an average of 179.4 days with highs of 90 °F (32 °C) or higher and an average of 5.9 days with lows of 32 °F (0 °C) or lower.

Average annual precipitation is 5.47 inches (136.75 mm). There is an average of only 17 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year on record was 1983 with 13.72 inches (343 mm) and the driest year on record was 1996 with a mere .76 inch (19 mm).

The wettest month was January 1943 with 8.43 inches (210.75 mm), including a record 4.57 inches (118.75 mm) in 24 hours. Although snow is common in the winter on the mountains above Palm Springs, it has rarely fallen in the city, because of the low elevation [474ft]. But in January 1930 2.0 inches (50 mm) fell.

Water

Unlike Arizona and Nevada, the Coachella Valley has adequate water sources for the growth we are now experiencing...and for the next 2000 years.  There are two external sources of water: the Colorado River and the California Aqueduct.  These are used to replenish the huge aquifer that is deep under the Valley floor.  This giant underground lake has sufficient water to meet the needs of the Valley for the foreseeable future.  It takes more than 20 years for the snow melt from Mt San Gorgonio to get down into the aquifer. The water is not treated as it comes from so deep a location there are no micro-organisms that can live there.  So it flows out of the tap the way it has been for millenniums; and it makes great iced tea and coffee.

Golf in General

If you laid all the golf holes in the Coachella Valley end to end, they would extend to a point about 75 miles east of Phoenix (more than 300 miles).  The Palm Springs area has more holes per square mile than any comparable area in the US.  It’s estimated that in the Palm Springs area, 3.2 to 3.6 million rounds are played annually on nearly 150 golf courses which means some real values can be found for discounted golf on premier courses; This is truly the golfer’s paradise.

Golf in the 55+ Communities

All communities have golf available and Sun City Palm Desert has two 18-hole courses.  In the two Sun Cities and Heritage Palms the home owners associations own the courses.  In Trilogy the golf course is privately owned public course and the trilogy owners get about a 20% discount off the published rates.  In the other three, the courses are owned and manage for the best interest of the owners and are also open to public so they are considered semi-private; the owners get early selection of tee times up to two weeks in advance.  The costs vary between the communities but all are under $65 and with discounts for annual passes you can get it down to under $40.

Heritage Palms works out to be the least costly because they have an annual pass that costs $2500 per person per year.  So if you play four times a week, 200 times a year, it would work out to be under $15 per round.

All have well rated courses with Trilogy being the highest rated and it was for some years the home of the Skins Game.

Tennis

The valley is the home of the Indian Wells Tennis Garden which hosts one of Tennis’ largest and most prestigious tennis tournaments; the Pacific Life Open (http://www.iwtg.net/).  The Palm Springs Tennis Club and hundreds of resort and community facilities are available to the tennis player.  All of the 55+ communities have their own tennis facilities and clubs where you can play 7 days a week.

Casual Lifestyle

The desert casual lifestyle is very close to the Hawaiian lifestyle except we have more options of things to do just a few hours away.  People come from all over the world to enjoy our salubrious climate, fine dining and active adult amenities.  You can be just as active or just as laid back as you please.  Come and experience the warm winter sun and you will call the Coachella Valley...home.

Casinos

There are 6 Indian owned gambling casinos in the valley with restaurants, shows, dancing and games of chance. 

The Salton Sea

The largest lake in California is called the Salton Sea and it is just south of the Valley on the road to the Imperial Valley and Mexico.  It is the second lowest point in the United States and is below sea level.  The Salton Sea was formed when a break occurred in a Colorado River aqueduct that was allowed to run for almost two years.  Originally a salt marsh, the lake has been shrinking year by year since the day it was formed because there is no natural source of water to replenish what evaporates.  There are plans in process to rehabilitate the lake and turn it into a recreational center again.