Dog-friendly Things to Do in Palm Springs

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Is the Palm Springs area generally dog-friendly?! Absolutely!

That is why we decided to embark on a quick 2-day road trip there in November 2021 with our sweet dog Forester.

This blog is for you if you desire to visit the greater Palm Springs / Palm Desert area with your pup(s), you’re adventurous, and you are a foodie.

In this blog we’re going to share the top things to do and the best places to eat in list format to keep it simple. Here’s a summary of what we’ll share about!

3 Dog-friendly Things to Do in the Greater Palm Springs area:

  • Hike Mission Creek Preserve Trail
  • Visit the Palm Springs Air Museum
  • Visit a Date Farm

3 Dog-friendly Places to Eat in the Greater Palm Springs area:

  • Shield’s Date Farm Cafe
  • FARM
  • RD RNNR Libations, Pints, & Plates
  • Keep reading as we share more details, pictures, & suggestions for each!

Hike Mission Creek Preserve Trail

The Mission Creek Preserve Trail is slightly north of Palm Springs near the hot springs area. It’s a 4.5/5 rated trail that is very easy. There’s a short dirt road drive to get to the fence and from there you’re essentially walking on an unpaved road.

It’s a fairly flat, straight, 3.2-mile out & back trail. This is perfect for those of you who are new to hiking…or maybe your puppy or dog is. We went on a Wednesday so it was empty, leaving the trail to just use to soak up. The trail runs alongside a creek the whole time (but the creek was completely dried up while we were there).

The highlight of the trail is seeing the old buildings that have been converted into picnic areas surrounded by palm trees. It would be a nice spot for a post-hike picnic. We were told there’s normally wildlife and birds to watch out for, but we didn’t see much of that.

Tip: If it’s a warm day, start early because it’s not a shaded trail.

Palm Springs Air Museum

The Palm Springs Air Museum is dog-friendly – surprise! Not many museums are, so we were quite delighted to hear that. It’s a museum established in 1996 that spans four hangers. It is open everyday from 10am-5pm and we spent about 2 hours there. Adult admission is $20 and kids (and dogs) are free!

It was rated by CNN as one of the top 14 aviation museums in the world. We’ve been to the Pima Air & Space Museum in Tucson, AZ and honestly we thought that one was larger and had a lot more to see, but both were great. The staff at Palm Springs Air museum were extremely friendly, helpful, and such dog lovers so we felt comfortable there.

At this museum, you can begin with a video and then tour each hangar on your own. See planes, gliders, artifacts, and exhibits about WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

PS- If you have someone who can stay behind with your dog, one of you could go up on a Warbird Ride! Starting at only $99 you can ride in an iconic war plane. Cool, huh?!

Visit a Date Farm

Palm Springs and Palm Desert are home to some amazing date farms! So if you’re a date lover (like Zach is) then we highly suggest you stop by one…or two or three.

If you’ve never had a date, it looks like a really large raisin. It’s a fruit grown from palm trees with a seed inside that is high in fiber and antioxidants.

Checkout this Yelp search to see the top date farms in the area. We opted to visit Shield’s Date Farm because it was top-rated and also because Zach’s family grew up visiting that one and ordered dates from there annually.

They have a free sidewalk path you can walk through in about 15-20 minutes to see the grounds, the palms growing the dates, and some sculptures. It was so cool to see the dates dangling from the palms so high above us! Can’t image how tough it is to climb those trees (on a ladder) to pick them.

PS- This date farm also has a cafe if you’re hungry. We’ll share more about it below – it was great.

Restaurant: Shield’s Date Farm Cafe

As mentioned above, if you choose to visit the Shield’s Date Farm, they have a lovely indoor/outdoor cafe there open during brunch times (8am-2pm). Sit outside under umbrellas possibly with live music (depending on the time) and indulge in some yummy dishes topped with dates!

Enjoy California style cuisine like omelets, pancakes, or biscuits and gravy. If you love dates, be sure to try a dish with dates on it for something unique.

Don’t forget to stop in at the gift shop afterwards for some trinkets or dates to-go.

Restaurant: FARM

In beautiful downtown Palm Springs is this enchanting French brunch spot called FARM. They also serve dinner, but they’re known for their amazing brunches. Sit inside or outside, but if you have a dog you’ll get to sit outside for sure. And that’s the place to be! It’s absolutely stunning sitting there surrounded by emaculate gardens, flowers, hummingbirds, and decor.

You’ll feel like you’re in the Secret Garden here while getting spoiled with the tastiest French American delights! Start off with a fresh cocktail and then splurge on a meal like eggs Benedict, Andouille, crepes, or baked brie.

We opted for more traditional dishes of an omelette and a sandwich since it was afternoon, but we weren’t disappointed. Next time, we’ll just need to save room for the crepes because we really missed out!

Restaurant: RD RNNR Libations, Pints, & Plates

RD RNNR (Road Runner) accepts reservations so we were fully onboard to enjoy a dinner there with Forester. They’re a super dog-friendly restaurant open daily from around 11am-9pm.

Known for their American fare and beers on tap, enjoy dishes like the fried chicken sandwich (which I adored), short ribs, deviled eggs (delish), adult Mac n’ cheese, & more.

Every dish we had was delightful! And we were surprised with a dog menu – yes! They have almost 1,000 5-star reviews on Yelp so you know it must be consistently good.