Every Thursday morning at 10:00am during season, Kathy Leonard, a volunteer for The Palm Springs Historical Society, leads groups of people on a tour of downtown Palm Springs. A long term resident, Leonard points out buildings and points of interest to tourists and locals alike making sure to intersperse personal stories with historical facts. It's that detailed interest that Kathy Leonard puts into the tour that makes it enjoyable and informative.
The tour starts at The Village Green in downtown Palm Springs just one block north of Baristo Road. Tickets can be purchases at the time of the tour from the lobby in The McCallum Adobe. History of the buildings surrounding The Village Green courtyard area are discussed before the groups heads north up Palm Canyon Drive cutting through The La Plaza towards Indian Canyon Drive. Points of Interest include the no longer used underground parking of La Plaza, the intersection of Tahquitz Canyon Way and Palm Canyon Drive, Oasis Hotel Tower and a stop at Peabody's Café & Bar. Debby Alexander, proprietor of Peabody's, shares photos and memories of early Palm Springs with tour attendees.
On occasion the tour guide would relate personal memories with famed locations or tell stories of friends and family during their years in Palm Springs. The tour becomes an interesting history lesson of the origins of Palm Springs including relationships between the Native American tribes and early settlers. The Hollywood influence and why celebrities chose to frequent the desert are also covered.
Until more docents are trained the tours are currently only on Thursday mornings. Ticket prices are $10 per person and include entrance into the museums at The Village Green plus a bakery sampling from Espresso Cielo, a new addition to downtown Palm Springs.
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