The valley extends for approximately 45 miles in Riverside County southeast from the San Bernardino Mountains to the Salton Sea.
With more than 350 days of sunshine per year and warm, mild winters – though summer can be quite hot – recreational hiking and horseback riding are popular in the many canyons in the mountains that surround the valley. The area has been a magnet for Hollywood stars since the 1930s when Bing Crosby, Charles Farrell and Ralph Bellamy founded the area’s first tennis club in Palm Springs. The desert is host to some of the finest restaurants and shopping in Southern California, anchored by El Paseo known as the Rodeo Drive of the desert.
The valley is the primary date-growing region in the United States. It is responsible for nearly 95 percent of the nation’s crop which is celebrated each year in Indio during the Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival. Indio is also known as the city of festivals, hosting some of the largest and well known music and art festivals in the country.
The popular resort community of Palm Springs sits at the northwest end of the valley. Other communities in the valley include Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Desert Hot Springs, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta and Indio. The Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, Twentynine Palms Band of Mission Indians, Agua Caliente Band of Mission Indians and the Torres-Martinez tribe each have reservations in the area.