Mid-mod magic: the fabulous grandeur of Palm Springs

Before heading to Palm Springs in California, I've broken one of my rules. Normally I pack essentials only so I can travel with just a carry-on bag. I'm still travelling light to this mecca of mid-century modern (or mid-mod) design - but also planning to snap a few (extra-stylish) selfies. After all, it's not every day you end up swanning about such a photogenic place. So with that in mind, I throw in vintage sunglasses and a headscarf and I'm good to go.

Eventually, I find the right spot to use my props - but not before I've explored everything that's fun and fabulous throughout the nine adjoining cities that comprise Greater Palm Springs.

The one-time celebrity playground, where movie stars could cut loose while remaining relatively close to Hollywood studios, is about a two-hour drive east of Los Angeles in the Californian desert. After the glory Rat Pack days, when the likes of Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr swung around town, Palm Springs' fortunes slumped before its timeless modernist architecture attracted a nostalgic new generation in the 1990s. For an overview of the well-watered and artificially lush Greater Palm Springs sprawling along the Coachella Valley floor (it takes about 45 minutes to drive from one end to the other), board the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway before continuing into town.

It's a vertiginous experience as the world's largest rotating aerial tramway, complete with catchy music, hauls you up to the Mountain Station 2600 metres above sea level. From here, you can see across to Joshua Tree National Park. Between December and March, it's likely that snow will have frosted the Mt San Jacinto State Park landscape surrounding the station so dress warmly for the excursion.

While you can easily cruise the streets and admire the multitude of desert modernist homes, it's eye-opening to take a deep-dive with a local. Palm Springs Mod Squad offers separate exterior and interior home tours and a Rat Pack-inspired tour that includes celebrity homes before finishing with a cheeky martini. On an interior tour, during which we venture beyond the breezeblock walls (or brise soleil) that provide shade during the furnace-like summers, founder Kurt Cyr says: "Life in Palm Springs unfolds behind hedges and walls."

He points out signature mid-century elements, such as the cantilevered roof topping a "clear storey" of high narrow windows that allow in light but block heat and prying eyes. "Here in Palm Springs we lead a contradictory life - half the year we celebrate the sun, the other half we hide away from it," Cyr says.

What you can't see from the street is that many homes also boast swimming pools (there are 40,000-plus throughout Palm Springs). "Everybody has their own private resort in the backyard," Cyr says. "The hardest working people in this town are the gardeners and the pool guys because, for pools, they come twice a week and gardeners come once or twice a week - year-round." Lazing in and around the pool is such a focus of life here that John-Patrick Flynn, who transforms mid-century homes into luxury holiday rentals, took an unusual step during a recent renovation project. "I stood in the middle of the pool and looked at everything around me and designed it from that point of view," he says.

Want to make your visit all about the architecture? Then time it around Modernism Week (February 15-25, 2024), which has a program of more than 350 events, or take in the mini version (with 50-plus events) known as Modernism Week - October (October 19-22, 2023). These festivals usually offer tours of vintage neighbourhoods and drawcard homes such as the House of Tomorrow, also known as the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway.

Sunnylands Centre and Gardens (reopening after its summer hiatus on September 13) is another architectural drawcard. The modernist Rancho Mirage estate and its striking desert gardens, visited by several US presidents and world leaders and open to the public since 2012, is free to visit.

Another unmissable sight is Palm Springs City Hall, designed by the father of desert modernism, architect Albert Frey. Its scene-stealing feature is the portico's circular cut-out that allows a trio of palm trees to dramatically reach for the sky.

While influencers are mad for a certain pink door in an otherwise quiet Palm Springs residential street (despite the 'No Photography' sign on the lawn), there are other ways to score a colourful Palm Springs backdrop for your holiday snaps.

Drag superstar Trixie Mattel opened the candy-pink Trixie Motel last year (just around the corner from Liberace House). With Greta Gerwig's upcoming Barbie movie (in cinemas in July) inspiring a "Barbiecore" hot-pink fashion movement, Mattel's timing couldn't have been better. This pink fantasia comprises just seven rooms, including the Pink Flamingo Suite, and a communal lounge so unrelentingly pink, you might have to reach for your retro sunglasses.

Another vivid place to strike a pose is The Saguaro Palm Springs, once a drab Holiday Inn that's been transformed into a head-swivelling drawcard thanks to a 2011 decision (that was momentarily controversial) to paint it in 14 lurid colours echoing the Coachella Valley's wildflowers.

While you can simply snap The Saguaro's colourful balconies from the carpark, the only way you'll see the envy-inducing Parker Palm Springs is to be a guest. The boutique resort, tucked behind tall hedges and sprawled over an entire block, is Insta-famous thanks to its statement curved white brise soleil framing the tangerine front door. Once you've satisfied the security guards that you have every right to be there, you're free to explore magical gardens, secret paths, swimming pools with views of distant mountaintops, a nautical-themed spa, croquet lawn, lemonade stand, hammocks, sculptures and a fire-pit.

It's a refined take on the Palm Springs vernacular (and where I finally photograph myself wearing my special accessories while lying on the boldly patterned carpet). While in town, I meet Modernism Week CEO, Lisa Vossler Smith, and ask how she defines Palm Springs' look. She says: "If you were developing a Palm Springs palette, it would have a bright pink, a bright yellow, turquoise, orange - all those summer pool colours. But when we work with designers and talk with them about the mid-century colour palette, often it goes to discussions of the atomic colour range that was used in the '50s such as avocado green and some of those colours used in the '70s that were more autumn tones such as harvest gold."

In downtown Palm Springs, snap a picture of Seward Johnson's 7.9-metre-high Forever Marilyn statue, depicting the legendary actress in that billowing white dress. Monroe's connection to Palm Springs runs deep: she was reportedly "discovered" at the Racquet Club in 1949 when she was 22. Many photos show her poolside at the now defunct club.

Behind her statue is the Palm Springs Art Museum, the valley's largest cultural institution. Browse the latest exhibitions and explore the sculpture garden - as well as nearby sculptures such as Gonzalo Lebrija's work showing a 1968 Chevy Malibu suspended above a pool of liquid. The main museum's sister institution, the Architecture and Design Centre Edwards Harris Pavilion, is several blocks away. This classic mid-century building was formerly a bank (check out the drive-through teller's window that's been retained and the gift shop occupying the former vault).

Head to Desert Hot Springs, north-east of Palm Springs, to nose around a one-of-a-kind house-museum. Cabot's Pueblo Museum is a four-storey pueblo, made of adobe-style and sun-dried bricks, featuring 30 rooflines, 65 doors and 150 windows. Adventurer, architect and artist Cabot Yerxa conjured this improbable fantasia to display his collection of Native American art and artefacts.

To really channel the Rat Pack vibe, head to Palm Springs' Spanish-style Ingleside Inn. It's home to Melvyn's Restaurant - an elegant fine-diner where waiters still offer old-fashioned tableside cooking beneath the chandeliers. Make like Sinatra and order the $US60 steak Diane before taking a seat in the Casablanca Lounge to hear a few tunes - and hopefully a little sassy banter - from whoever's on the microphone that night.

Another dining institution is The Nest. Rumour has it this Indian Wells restaurant with an adjoining nightclub inspired the term "cougar". Arrive for dinner (the menu offers everything from bacon and date skewers to Australian rack of lamb, stuffed cabbage rolls and goulash) and stay for the dance-floor action to make up your own mind. Right behind The Nest is the Sands Hotel and Spa - home to the Pink Cabana. Channelling the cool aesthetic of the tennis and racquet clubs of 1950s and '60s Palm Springs, this chic eatery mashes pink ceilings and banquettes with a mint-and-white chessboard floor.

Cheap and cheerful retro deliciousness can be found at Palm Desert landmark Keedy's Fountain and Grill. Dating from 1957, this old-fashioned diner serves shakes, ice-cream sundaes, root beer floats and the "world's best pancakes". Keedy's is also planning to open two more outposts in Indio this year.

And if you can't afford to actually fly first-class, settle for the first-class seats at PS Air Bar - a plane-themed speakeasy located inside a liquor store in downtown Palm Springs. Regular events include the mile-high boozy brunch on Sundays and live music.

Greater Palm Springs' version of LA's Rodeo Drive is El Paseo - a 1.6 kilometre-long swanky shopping strip in Palm Desert. Browse glamorous boutiques at the two shopping centres - The Shops on El Paseo and The Gardens on El Paseo - or saunter its length while keeping watch for wacky customised golf carts that resemble Bentleys, Lamborghinis and vintage Ford Model Ts. Golfing is huge here, with more than 110 golf courses scattered throughout the valley. Some roads feature dedicated golf-cart lanes while some homes have a golf-cart sized slot in the garage.

For something less budget-busting, head to Destination PSP in downtown Palm Springs for mid-century themed souvenirs, swimwear and gifts such as tissue-box covers shaped like classic mid-century houses and patterned melamine and acrylic dinnerware. Mid-mod enthusiasts can also drool over the fun showroom set-ups at H3K Home + Design while serious homeware collectors can browse the goodies within Misty's Consignments in Rancho Mirage, Dragonette on El Paseo, Hedge in Cathedral City and Christopher Anthony in Palm Springs.

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Market Market - a vast treasure trove of vintage, repurposed and one-of-a-kind items ranging from fashion and furniture to stools and surfboards - opened earlier this year. Dazzles, a much-loved vintage store formerly in uptown Palm Springs, has reopened in a new space in Rancho Mirage. Pore over retro jewellery from the 1920s to 1970s in a corner nicknamed the Beauty Bar, grab a tiki mug, jaunty hat or contemplate whether that vintage lamp can be transported all the way home.

And if you happen to be visiting on the first Sunday of the month (October to May), you can also fossick through the riches at the Palm Springs Vintage Market at the Palm Springs Cultural Centre.

Palm Springs isn't only for grown-up design connoisseurs. The 530-room Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort and Spa is curled around an epic water park with a lazy river, duelling water slides and five other pools. The resort also cleverly merged two rooms to create the quirky Palm Springs Terrace Suite. With two queen beds, sleeper sofas and bathrooms, shag pile carpet, record player and outdoor terrace with fake lawn, you'll feel like you've stepped into Austin Powers' retro apartment. You can also take the kids to Palm Desert's Living Desert Zoo and Gardens to see native animals such as American badgers and bobcats.

Kyah Boutique Hotel, Blackheath, NSW

A formerly uninspiring 1970s motel in Blackheath in the Blue Mountains has been transformed into an oasis of cool. While the buildings' bones and functional park-outside-your-door layout remain, the 46-room property is frosted in white, softened with curves and decorated with pink accents and pots of cactus. Like the Parker Palm Springs, Kyah occupies expansive grounds and houses a destination restaurant. Blaq, with its timber beams and cedar cladding, adds a little alpine cosiness to the mix. Drop in for a cocktail or linger over an exceptional dinner.

The Berry View, Berry, NSW

When The Berry View's co-owner David Stubbs first spied the Bangalee Motel, in Berry in the Shoalhaven region south of Sydney, he saw enormous potential in the brown-brick building. "We didn't re-render or anything - we literally just painted over the old brick," he says. "Once you took out the weeds and everything of the original, it looked a bit Palm Springs-y. With [adding] the orange doors and mother-in-law's tongue, it now screams it. It just needed more make-up rather than a facelift." The 13-room property is now an Insta-dream of dazzling white walls and tangerine doors - with work underway on an infinity pool and additional rooms.

Kyneton Springs Motel, Kyneton, Victoria

This eye-popping motel makeover is a nod to the great American road-trip, which obviously took a detour via Palm Springs. The retro vibes start from the second you clap eyes on the property's neon road sign. Venture beyond the pastel-pink doors and you'll discover each room is oozing charm and character. Feature walls are covered in bold, graphic prints that might remind you of your parents' or grandparents' lounge-rooms. Finishing touches include retro and mid-century furniture and accessories such as rotary telephones and statement photography. Best of all? Breakfast arrives via the nostalgic hatch.

The Mysa Motel, Gold Coast, Queensland

Palm Beach's seven-room The Mysa Motel, formerly the Palm Trees Motel, features plenty of salvaged breezeblocks - a signature Palm Springs building material - along with a drawcard kidney-shaped magnesium mineral pool that's all over Instagram. Pick your pastel - pink, peach, yellow, lilac, mint, gold or blue - and make a beeline to the matching keyless front door. Each room comes with a courtyard but you can really spread out in the family-friendly, two-bedroom gold room that comes complete with a kitchenette.

Astor Hotel Motel, Albury, NSW

In 2021, the Astor Hotel Motel - a stone's throw from the Hume Highway - unveiled a radical mid-century revamp that perfectly channels the Palm Springs palette. A bold chequerboard of fairy-floss pink, teal and tangerine adorns the exterior of its 40 drive-up rooms - a choice that's made the motel a popular photographic backdrop. A huge neon sign echoes these colour choices. Add palm trees and breezeblocks and this is one Palm Springs-style makeover done right (although a little more pizazz could be added to room interiors).

Getting there: United and Alaska Airlines fly year-round from San Francisco to Palm Springs; from LAX in Los Angeles, United flies seasonally. Otherwise, rent a car at LAX for the two-hour drive, take FlixBus from several LA locations or an Amtrak train/bus service.

Staying there: The 144-room Parker Palm Springs, one of the most stylish hotels around town and located a 10-minute drive from downtown, has rooms from $US349 ($520) a night.

Explore more: visitgreaterpalmsprings.com