Palm Springs was a place I had never been to. If I’m being honest, I thought Palm Springs was in Florida. Then once I found out it was in California, I thought it was in Northern California. So I pretty much know NOTHING about Palm Springs…or geography. I truly think going through school was pointless for me. My poor teachers. But when the opportunity of taking a little weekend trip to a place I had never been popped up, I couldn’t say no. So I booked a flight for my sister in law and myself and we jetted off to Palm Springs to check out the town and an absolutely adorable boutique hotel called The Monkey Tree Hotel.
My goal for the year was to travel as much as possible and I’ve definitely kept up with that. I went to Costa Rica, San Antonio, Vegas, Jamaica, Austin, Nebraska, Portland, and now Palm Springs. And I still have Phoenix, Kansas City, San Francisco, Idaho and Key West coming up! Still trying to talk my husband into more trips but he thinks saving money is more important. BLASPHEMY!!!
When we drove into Palm Springs, I fell in love with the miles and miles of modern mid century houses, hotels and businesses. The town is filled with that look and TONS of color. Everything is bright and full of energy. We pulled into The Monkey Tree Hotel and I instantly noticed the background. The streets are lined with palm trees, but then just a few miles away mountains are sky high and absolutely beautiful. At The Monkey Tree Hotel, you walk in and you’re greeted with bright blues, yellows, and greens. The whole hotel lights up with color and is absolutely jaw dropping with its views of the sky and mountains.
The doors are locked and you need a code to get in, so right away you feel safe and locked away from the outside world. When you walk in, you’re greeted by the owner Kathy (and homemade sangria that is to die for!!) who tells you a bit of background about the hotel before you settle in. Rumor there is that Kennedy and Marilyn may have hooked up years ago in one of the hotel rooms there that had an entrance from the parking lot. Another little interesting and slightly gross fact is all the rooms use to be connected. AND it use to be a nudist resort. Let that all sink in and just picture that for a minute.
But when Kathy and her husband Gary were ready to try something different from their big city lives they had created in New York, they found themselves in Palm Springs with their two sons, buying this hotel to create a spacious, quiet and calm getaway for vacationers. Not nudist vacationers, though. The hotel is locked away from the outside world, has only 16 rooms so even when the pool is full it still doesn’t feel overrun, and is a place you are happy to wake up in every day. 
We stayed in the Jungle Room which is super vintage and has it’s own little backyard area along with a GIANT bathroom with windows peering into the private yard. We woke up every day to coffee at the coffee bar outside our room and would drink our coffee in bed while we watched TV until we got hungry. Since Kathy and Gary both knew I was paleo, Gary made sure to come up with something in the kitchen that I could snack on in the mornings. Every morning they have a small breakfast bar full of fresh fruit, granola, yogurt and homemade pastries like scones and for me he made paleo muffins and savory tarts! And how amazing is this eating area?
They said they’ve accommodated other diets in the past like someone who was vegan and actually loved one of the recipes they made so they make it on rotation now! So when you stay there, just let them know if you have any allergies or restrictions and they will make sure you feel at home. Gary even made a strawberry rhubarb jam that we topped on our muffins. It was awesome!!
After breakfast, most of our days were spent at the beautiful salt water pool. Since temperatures were over 100 degrees every day, their pool floats were used almost the entire time. We would float away on a giant flamingo, or in a donut or in one of their super comfy chair-like floats. The pool was always quiet (especially since Palm Springs actual “season” doesn’t start until September – even tons of restaurants close down in the summers) with people reading by or in the pool, sipping on drinks or even dropping in the hot tub in the evening or taking a quick dip in their cold plunge pool. In the evening, they have happy hour sangria that is CRAZY delicious so we would load up on that and then take some tipsy dunks in the cold plunge pool then the hot tub. It was awesome and makes your skin sting like a motha, but it’s the best!
When we weren’t spending out time at the pool or doing a little bodyweight workout on the grounds, we ventured outside the hotel to check out the some stores, the tram up the mountain, and to eat at a few restaurants. I wasn’t overly impressed with any of the restaurants we tried EXCEPT for Eight4Nine which had a ton of gluten free options. I absolutely loved that restaurant. I had a good buzz going in after sipping on sangria poolside, then I got a watermelon cocktail that was amazing and excessively strong, so I was definitely feeling it all night. One and done. The interior was so feminine and had so many cool touches to it. It was made for a perfect bachelorette party restaurant…which made sense why there was probably 12 there. I had the marsala pork tenderloin and it was wonderful! We even had a server that told us our eyes were beautiful…while he was setting down the check. Convenient timing. We know your game plan, bro…and it worked.
Whenever I’ve traveled, I’ve usually stayed in all inclusive hotels or the normal hotels you can find in any city, but I’m so glad I was able to finally stay in a unique boutique (see what I did there) built around the true love and passion put into the facility. The owners are doing what they love by creating a space for people to get away, enjoy their stay, all while feeling at home. They put so much hard work into this hotel and it really does show. As soon as we were packing up our bags, I told my sister in law that I wanted to come back but this time with a huge group and rent out the entire facility for some sort of big party. It would be PERFECT for an event like that! Rarely do I want to go back to hotels, but this one is too amazing to say goodbye to. Because of Kathy and Gary at The Monkey Tree Hotel, I truly loved my experience in Palm Springs and can’t wait to head back just to see them and relax at the pool again. To see more about The Monkey Tree Hotel like their rooms, photos of the grounds and to read more about how they could make the perfect getaway for you and your friends, click here!
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What an adorable boutique! I never would have considered a trip to Palm Springs (umm, are you sure it isn’t in Florida? You’re not the only one!) but this place alone has me wanting to go. How fun!
the whole town looks like this hotel, too! it’s adorable all over!
Sounds like a great hotel. Nice to find a place where the owners try their best to accommodate guests AND have a saltwater pool!
it’s so cool! i’ve never experienced that before!
I actually thought when you said you were going to Palm Springs that you were going to Florida. Until you said something about the desert in a post. And I was like “oh duh, dumbass; California!” I thought my geography was better than that, but I fell for the whole Florida thing too! That hotel seems amazing, now I want to go too!
every person at my gym thought florida, too haha!!
Ah no, not every person. Some of us know Palm Springs as our homeland. 🙂
And effin haters, let them hate!
Well you were right actually…there is a Palm Springs in FL…probably not as cool as the Palm Springs in CA though!
I’m so smart!!
This hotel looks AMAZING! Where are you going in Idaho? I am trying to figure out which restaurants to go to when I am in the Boise area!
sadly not close to boise so i don’t have any recommendations 🙁
pahaha i had no idea there was a palm springs was in CA either. there is one in FL though.
LOVE Palm Springs! My boyfriend and I are planning a weekend getaway there next month and The Monkey Tree just sounds perfect. So glad you enjoyed your vacation!
it would be perfect for you and your boyfriend! definitely try out eight4nine and I’ve heard cheeky’s is awesome for brunch!
Respectfully, I’m not super into having a full page hotel ad come up in my RSS feed as content from a blogger who writes recipes and cookbooks. Not my fave.
thanks for your feedback, but if you’ve been following my blog for any sort of time, you’ve probably noticed that i’ve been expanding out into other sorts of things for a quite a while. i started with some workout posts, then fashion, then i even did a skincare post recently. i even just did a post about portland last week. and i will be traveling more in the future and sharing more of those kinds of posts. so if you aren’t interested in this sort of thing, no need to look at it! easy as that!
Ok, I get what you’re saying. I actually read your post on Portland and I liked it. It seemed like a real part of your life. I have a frustration, and it’s not just aimed at you, for sure, but I’m starting to feel like the blogs I read have become 30% sponsored posts. This post felt so weird, like you traveled to Palm Springs just to create this entry that was an ad for a hotel. Obviously, you can do what you like with your own site, I just wanted to voice this opinion, that too much sponsored content, especially sponsored content that feels off-brand or disingenuous, starts to erode your credibility. Of course, if you don’t like what I have to say, there’s no need to look at it. Easy as that.
EB, you have to understand that bloggers make a living off sponsored content. i do not have one company paying my salary, i never get paid the same amount, and i constantly have to look out for myself because there are no promises when it comes to making a living. sponsored posts make even running a blog possible. you have absolutely no idea how much it costs to run a blog, how much the hosting, the mail service, the writing, creating, the groceries, the traveling, and anything else costs. i ONLY promote things i love. you didn’t see me talking about a hotel in my Portland post because we stayed at a friends house. i am so lucky that amazing companies contact me. if it weren’t for this post, many people would have never known about this hotel, which is by far one of the cleanest, well kept, kindness hotels i’ve ever stayed at. because of my blog and sponsored content, other people are able to find out things they would have never known, like fall dresses or workout clothes or even a good deodorant. it may feel disingenuous to you, but i can say full heartedly that the love i put into this blog and the hard work behind it is not something of chance or something i pull out of my ass, it’s my true passion and i’m so lucky to share that all with the world, not just the food.
Shhhhhhhh.
Yup, I agree with EB, this reads like a total ad and screams that you stayed at the hotel for free. But then this is how you make a living and I would do the same thing if it were me. So it is what it is. I love the blog anyway.
if you check out my terms of use on my blog, I mention “I also do not promote products that I do not love and believe in.” this product is this hotel which is truly an amazing place with good people who run it and care about the people who stay there. i wouldn’t talk about them if i didn’t absolutely love my stay there and my experience.
I get it – this blog is not your hobby, it’s your job. I do want you to get paid! I guess for me, this post just seemed a little too disconnected from your brand. I don’t mean to be a troll, just a longtime reader providing feedback. Maybe this isn’t useful feedback, I don’t know. In any case, I actually really appreciate you taking the time to write that response.
thanks, EB. my goal for quite some time has been to expand out into other areas, so people who are interested in things other than just food can come to my site and be entertained. i’ve taken it slowly and some people like it and some don’t, but it’s so fun to able to talk about other things and explore other avenues, and really change my brand into more than just paleo food. i promise you that i wouldn’t have written this post if i didn’t thoroughly enjoy my experience and what this company is all about – taking care of their customers. i’m sorry if it read any differently (that could be the sleep deprivation from the past 2 weeks kicking in). thank you again for your feedback.
Looks like such a fun trip!! I love colorful/vibrant cities. Will add to my California list once we go there! Its nice to get your personal view on a city rather than reading through hundreds of tripadvisor comments and not knowing who is just crabby about everything or to really listen!
right?! it’s so hard reading those kinds of reviews because people can be crazy about the littlest things!