The second hotel we stayed in was the newly refurbished Colony Palms Hotel, fabulously located close to the centre of downtown Palm Springs.
Again we’d been a little wary of booking here – a bit concerned that it would be a little too strait-laced and respectable for the Minx.
Again we needn’t have worried, the hotel was utterly different from the Ace, with a more glamorous and intimate vibe, but there were still plenty of other kids there, the Minx loved the pool and the staff could not have been friendlier or more welcoming.
The hotel was built in 1936 by a Palm Springs mobster and used to house both a speakeasy and a brothel. It has recently been extensively and expensively refurbished. The building is in a more traditional Spanish colonial style focused around a gorgeous swimming pool and restaurant area and surrounded by lovely gardens full of secluded nooks and crannies.
It’s not my favourite style of architecture – where is the reasonably priced funky modernist kid-friendly hotel in Palm Springs? – but it was certainly hugely comfortable and luxurious.
The interior is by Martyn Lawrence-Bullard. He’s used a lot of Spanish influences – coloured tiles, bright colours, spindly wrought iron – and mixed in some Turkish, Moroccan and Indian elements – with graphic embroideries, Indian statues and Moroccan tables tucked into the corners.
The hotel also has a pretty swanky poolside restaurant, the Purple Palm, attached, and the food was really good, the best we had in PS and that’s saying something.
Our room featured an incredibly comfortable bed, with padded embroidered headboard; big bottles of spirits in the mini-bar; an enormous bathroom with painted cement floor; embedded Spanish tiles (which I stupidly forgot to photograph) and a roll top bath. The cheesy photos of airbrushed models cavorting round the hotel were hilarious. I’m not sure if that was intentional.
The location was excellent, within walking distance of lots of great shops and restaurants and with the prettiest view we saw of the neighbouring San Jacinto mountains.
All in all it couldn’t be more different from the Ace and yet I’d recommend it just as much, and combining the two made for a really interesting Palm Springs overview.
See also
Ace Hotel & Swim Club, Palm Springs
This place looks like heaven to me. Very unique design. Oooh how I would love to go to Palm Springs right now. 🙂
I love that headboard!!! What a great place 🙂
FYI…after the speakeasy, the Colony Palms was a spa(The Palms) for women who would come for weeks at a time. That closed about 5 years ago and then they turned it into the CP. You did a GREAT job on all your postings…maybe you could work for our Chamber of Commerce!! Did you get to Tyler’s and Jake’s??
Sally, thanks for the insider goss. I could quite easily spend a few weeks spa-ing at the CP.
We didn’t get to either Tyler’s or Jake’s. For future reference what are they and why should we go to them?