Yes, and winter is the best time to go. From November through April the Coachella Valley trades its triple-digit summer for clear, warm afternoons and cold desert nights, which is the weather the mid-century houses, the mountain tram and the open roads around Palm Springs were made for. Leave Los Angeles on a Saturday morning and you can be eating lunch on Palm Canyon Drive before 1 pm.
Most people looking at car rentals in Riverside, CA are planning a day in Riverside city or Temecula wine country. This trip goes to the other end of the county, the desert end, and the car makes a bigger difference here than on a city errand. Monza Exotics covers the whole region from its Riverside County luxury car rental page, and below is how we’d plan the weekend.
Why Visit Palm Springs in Winter?
In summer, a Coachella Valley luxury drive mostly means running the air conditioning on high and hurrying from the car into the next building. In winter the pattern flips: days are dry and sunny, the San Jacinto Mountains often carry snow on top, and the valley floor is comfortable for walking architecture tours or eating outside. Evenings cool off fast once the sun drops behind the mountains, so a sweater in the trunk is part of the plan.
That climate is why the city’s calendar fills between November and April. Hotels price accordingly, especially on holiday weekends and during Modernism Week in February, so book rooms and the car together.
The Palm Springs Drive From Los Angeles on I-10
The Palm Springs drive from Los Angeles is simple: Interstate 10 east, past Ontario and Redlands, then up through the San Gorgonio Pass between Mount San Gorgonio and Mount San Jacinto. The pass is where the drive gets good. The valley narrows, both peaks rise on either side, and then the wind farms appear, rows of turbines turning along the hills near Cabazon and Whitewater. The pass funnels wind hard enough that you’ll feel gusts push a light car sideways, so keep both hands on the wheel through that stretch.
Without traffic, figure roughly two hours from central Los Angeles. On a Friday afternoon it can be closer to four, which is the best argument for leaving Saturday at 7 or 8 am. The Cabazon Dinosaurs make a quick photo stop right off the freeway, and from there it’s a short run down Highway 111 into Palm Springs.
Palm Springs Mid-Century Neighborhoods and Modernism Week
Palm Springs has one of the largest collections of mid-century modern architecture in the country, and much of it is best seen from a slow-moving car. Drive the streets of Vista Las Palmas, Twin Palms and the Movie Colony and you’ll see butterfly roofs, breeze-block walls and clerestory windows one after another, mostly private homes, so look from the street and respect the driveways.
If you can choose your dates, Modernism Week is the big one. The 2027 festival runs February 11 to 21, with home tours, architectural bus tours, walking tours and talks. The official site lists the schedule preview on October 25, 2026 and ticket sales starting November 1 at noon Pacific, and the popular home tours sell out, so buy early and book the car for the same weekend.
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is the best argument for a winter visit. Its rotating cars climb more than two and a half miles along the cliffs of Chino Canyon in about ten minutes, and the floor turns slowly so everyone gets the full view. At the top, the Mountain Station sits at 8,516 feet inside Mount San Jacinto State Park, with restaurants, observation decks and more than 50 miles of hiking trails.
In winter you can leave a valley in shirtsleeves and step out into snow. When there’s enough of it, the tram’s Winter Adventure Center rents snowshoes and cross-country skis on a first-come basis. Bring a real jacket and shoes with grip. The tramway’s winter schedule, which runs October 5, 2026 to May 27, 2027, has the first car up at 10 am on weekdays and 8 am on weekends and holidays, with the last car up at 8 pm. An afternoon ride timed for sunset over the valley, then dinner downtown, is a good Saturday.
An Optional Joshua Tree Drive Before Heading Home
Joshua Tree National Park is close enough for a Sunday morning Joshua Tree drive before heading home. From Palm Springs, take Highway 62 north to Yucca Valley; the National Park Service’s directions page puts the West Entrance five miles south of the junction of Highway 62 and Park Boulevard at Joshua Tree Village.
Plan on finding no services inside the park. The NPS plan-your-visit page says there are no gas stations, restaurants or grocery stores, no water in the park’s interior and very limited cell reception, and it warns that winter can be surprisingly chilly. Fill up in Yucca Valley, carry water and download your map before you lose signal.
The main park roads are paved, but they dip, and the turnouts are sand and gravel. A low-nosed supercar will scrape on some driveways and dips there, so a weekend that includes Joshua Tree suits an SUV. From Monza’s fleet, a Range Rover, Lamborghini Urus or Rolls-Royce Cullinan handles the turnouts without drama and still carries luggage for two.
Planning Car Rentals in Riverside, CA for the Round Trip
Mileage is the number to plan around. Monza’s car listings include 100 free miles per day, with a per-mile charge after that which varies by car and is shown on each listing. A round trip from the coast to Palm Springs runs well over 200 miles before you add a Joshua Tree loop, so a two-day rental can go past its allowance. Ask for a quote with the miles included before you book.
Fuel stations are easy to find along I-10 and in town, but fill up before any detour into the park. Bring sunglasses and sunscreen even in January; the desert sun is strong, and the low winter light shines straight into your eyes driving east in the morning and west in the late afternoon.
For a top-down weekend, look at Monza’s Riverside County convertible rentals. The Rolls-Royce Dawn seats four and suits couples who want comfort with the roof open. The McLaren 720S Spider and Lamborghini Huracan Evo Spyder are the sharper drives through the pass, but their luggage space is small, so pack soft bags. Put the roof up once the sun drops; desert evenings get cold quickly.
Book a Weekend Car for the Desert
If you’re flying in, pick up in Los Angeles and head straight east on I-10. If you live in Orange County or the Inland Empire, you’re even closer. Tell Monza your dates, your route and whether Joshua Tree is in the plan, and they can match the car and the miles to the trip. Browse the Riverside County rental page and reserve your weekend car before Modernism Week fills the calendar.
