Some gay resorts are only crowded on weekends, but I visited Santiago in the middle of the week during the off-season and was pleasantly surprised to see a significant number of guests at breakfast and around the pool each day. Staff and ownership go out of their way to make guests as comfortable as possible, which sets Santiago apart from many of the other resorts and hotels in Palm Springs.
Santiago goes above and beyond for its visitors, providing free bicycle rentals, two-person hammocks under the palm trees, and not just free breakfast but also free catered lunches and all-day snacks. The grounds are beautifully landscaped, and the atmosphere is both opulent and personal. The facilities are excellent, with a hot tub and a large, heated pool that is the largest of any gay resort in Palm Springs. Santiago is widely regarded as one of Palm Springs' top clothing-optional gay resorts, and after spending a few days here, I wholeheartedly agree with that assessment. Visit the websites listed at the bottom of each blurb for further information. This is only a limited list of LGBT Palm Springs resorts further possibilities, such as the All Worlds Resort and Desert Paradise Resort Hotel, can be found on the Palm Springs Preferred Small Hotels page. But wouldn't that defeat the idea of vacationing in Palm Springs? If you're visiting the LGBT desert paradise, trust me when I say that staying with other gay men to meet new friends and enjoy the sun in the nude at a private resort is far more fun. Palm Springs has a large number of non-gay hotels, as well as private B&Bs and guest houses. When I went to a few of the town's men's resorts, I noted that more than half of the guests took advantage of the clothing-optional policy when swimming or lying in the sun, but many did not. The majority of these resorts don't require swimsuits and cater only to adult gay males.
Here's a rundown of some of my favorite picks for where to stay in town. The city becomes much busier during the winter months, when the weather is more pleasant. However, if you keep a cold drink in your hand, don't stray too far from the pool in the afternoon, and go out to party at night, you may still have a great time in the summer. The average high temperature in June through September exceeds 100 degrees F (and it can go much hotter! ), therefore those months are called the offseason. Is there a good time to visit Palm Springs? What you're looking for will determine this. Because the airport is so close to the city, it's a quick and painless travel into town. Weekdays in town are less hectic, but they can still be a lot of fun.
On weekends, the city becomes fairly bustling as people from Los Angeles and other nearby areas go to Palm Springs for a huge gay weekend escape.