Urban Cool in the Desert – The Ace Hotel in Palm Springs

Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to spend a weekend at the Ace Hotel & Swim Club in Palm Springs. If you aren’t familiar with the Ace Hotels (there is one in Portland, Seattle, and most recently New York), they embody a unique philosophy: thoughtful design, cultural authenticity, and rich experience. You really need to visit it to understand why it’s so great, but I’m going to try my best to describe my experience. I was actually invited to a preview event party to check out their amazing event space which is so so perfect for a wedding weekend! All the photos I’m featuring are taken by the super talented – and super sweet – Sarah Yates unless noted. If you need a photographer, I highly recommend Sarah, you can check her work out on her blog.

A bit about the hotel. It was renovated from a 1965 Howard Johnson and Denny’s, although you would never know that from the hip decor in the rooms. When we got there and were checking in, they were playing Beth Orton on the stereo – I knew then that we were in for a great weekend. There was also a cool rope installation by Micheal Schmidt in the lobby. The old Denny’s is now the Roadside Cafe where the focus is on local and organic. The Amigo Room Bar, which was frequented by Sinatra and the Rat Pack back in the day, would be a cool space for a rehearsal dinner – and has an old photobooth right outside – so perfect!

palm springs ace hotel

I loved the decor of the rooms. Modern and hip with a bit of Palm Springs. My favorite parts of the room were the record player (which they provide a bunch of records also and discovered a new love for James Brown) and the private patio with an automatic fireplace (not all rooms have a fireplace, but highly recommend a room with one – my hubby and I stayed up late each night talking and drinking beers by the fireplace, a perfect evening).

palm springs ace hotel

palm springs ace hotel

They also have 3 suites with extra large patios and you can order a package where they will come and bring a bbq with all the fixings and play a movie outside on your wall! How perfect for a bachelor/bachelorette party or a post reception party. These suites are also plenty big for the bridal party to get ready – super large bathrooms – and even have a hammock! This is the suite pictured below (photos by the Ace Hotel).

 

Now for the event space. It is beautiful. They call it the Commune and it has 3000 square ft. where the walls open up to a circular pool, an intimate amphitheater, and stunning views of the mountains. Truly beautiful. They also offer delicious catering with local and organic food. A perfect spot for a beautiful outdoor ceremony (low chance of rain here!) and reception. The florals for the event were done by the talented team at cachet fiore – highly recommend their work if you are looking for someone in the Palm Springs area. You can do a lot with the space here – but you really don’t even need to. They have taken care of most of it by utilizing the amazing views and use of indoor/outdoor space. They also provide all the tables (great square tables) and linens.

palm springs ace hotel

palm springs ace hotel

palm springs ace hotel

palm springs ace hotel

ace hotel palm springs wedding
{photo above right provided by Ace Hotel, all the rest by Sarah Yates}

Sarah and her boyfriend Lou (also an amazing photographer – check his work out here) sent up a fun photobooth for us – this space has lots of black curtains that you could easily do the same – or bring in your own fabric to use as a background. We had a lot of fun with it. Oh, we are all wearing the robes they provide in the rooms – which you will see people wearing all around the property. That’s me in the group on the far right – and in the bottom photo with my hubby blowing bubbles in my face :) And the adorable puppy – yes, the hotel is dog friendly (they even have a dog park on the property!) – is River – so so cute!

palm springs ace hotel

Oh, and let’s not forget the main pool. It’s great. Awesome music, a DJ spinning on Sunday, adult sno cones :) – it’s heaven. Just make sure you don’t get there too late, it fills up fast! Oh, and they also have bikes you can borrow for the day and a bus to take you downtown. Thanks to An, Erin, and Jonathan for an awesome weekend and can’t wait to come back soon. Oh, and I’d love to help design the space for a wedding if someone is interested! :)

palm springs ace hotel

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