Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
DETAILS:
Location: 1 Tram Way Palm Springs, CA 92262
Hours of Operation:
Thursday thru Monday: first tram up - 8AM / last tram up - 4:20PM (6PM after April 1st) / last tram DOWN - 6PM (8PM after April 1st)
Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
During Covid Safety Protocols, tram tickets and parking must be purchased in advance via their website (provided below under “resources”)
Parking: $10 parking lot.
Cost:
$26.95 adults / $16.95 children (3-10) / $24.95 seniors
Summer and Annual Passes available for purchase as well.
Time Commitment: 2-4 hours.
Miscellaneous:
Trams depart every 20 minutes and take approximately 10 minutes each way.
No dogs allowed.
Masks required indoors and on the tram. No gator-style masks are allowed.
Dining and drink options are available once you reach Mount San Jacinto.
Temperatures on Mount San Jacinto are approximately 30 degrees cooler than the desert floor. So dress accordingly.
Expect snow typically between November and April.
Multiple hiking trails available ranging from less than a mile to over 10 miles.
(free) hiking permits required for hiking beyond the ranger station.
Camping permits: $5 per person.
Please see their website below (under “resources”) for current information and pricing since all info above is during their Covid regulations.
Initially the vision of electrical engineer; Francis Crocker (all the way back in the 1930s), The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway officially broke ground in 1961 and was finally completed in 1963. It needed over 23,000 separate helicopter missions to transport crew and materials in order to construct its 4 tramway support towers and the massive 35,000 square foot Mountain Station above. This remarkable effort finally earned it the designation as a historical civil engineering landmark in the 1980s.
The 10-minute, 2.5 mile climb up Chino Canyon (with an elevation gain of 6,000 feet) used the original tramcars pictured above (with red trim) until an ambitious modernization program was completed in 2000 that saw an update to all facilities including 2 brand new rotating tramcars. To this day, they’re still the largest rotating tramcars in the world!
The ride up and down is a majestic sight to behold with the Coachella Valley sprawling below and the shear cliffs and peaks of Mount San Jacinto looming above. It’s also a little daunting with its big sways to & fro as it passes by each support tower, but that just adds to the fun. There’s no bad seat in the tramcar thanks to the rotating view which alone makes it worth the price of admission. That’s when you remember you have an entire state park to explore once you’ve reached the top!
The first thing you’ll notice when you step off the tramcar is the crispness in the air thanks to the mountain’s perched position some 8,500 feet above the desert floor. The 30 degree temperature drop makes it the perfect respite during the warm months of a Palm Springs summer and it’s typical to be covered in a thick layer of snow (as was the case during our visit) all the way into May. There’s hiking trails galore all throughout the forested wilderness of Mount San Jacinto (over 50 miles worth). If you’re short on time, Desert View Trail is the perfect choice. This 1.5 mile loop takes you to various lookout points right along the mountain’s edge (so watch your step), offering one magnificent vista after another. And when you’re done, a frosty beverage or cocktail at Mountain Station will help cap off a perfect day.
video is sped up 3x for sake of time. The actual tram ride isn’t this fast!
RESOURCES:
Palm Springs Aerial Tramway website.
