Top Things to do in California Desert
Top Hotels in California Desert
- 1. Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa
- 2. Best Western Plus Las Brisas Hotel
- 3. Renaissance Palm Springs Hotel
- 4. Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa
- 5. Margaritaville Resort Palm Springs
- 6. Best Western Plus Frontier Motel
- 7. Palm Springs Rendezvous
- 8. Caliente Tropics Resort
- 9. JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa
- 10. La Quinta Resort & Club, Curio Collection by Hilton
Things to do in California Desert, California Desert: The Best Caverns & Caves
Discover the best top things to do in California Desert, United States including Carey's Castle, Tecopa Caverns, El Pakiva Cavern, Mitchell Caverns, Lava Tube.
Restaurants in California Desert
1. Carey's Castle
2. Tecopa Caverns
3. El Pakiva Cavern
4. Mitchell Caverns
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 8 reviews
Reviewed By taylor_bird1 - Lake Forest, United States
This place is incredible. First of all, the view from outside the caverns is beautiful. Overlooking the Mohave Desert at 4,300 feet elevation, you get a glimpse at where nature transitions between desert and mountain (with a little more desert than mountain). I could have sat and looked at the view for hours. The tour itself is amazing. The State Parks service and California Conservation Corps have maintained a safe, easy-to-navigate trail that curves around the mountain and into Mitchell Caverns. While outside, you learn about the history of the caverns and the animals and plants who live on the desert-like mountain. You enter the caverns through the "eyes" of the mountain (which is a stunning sight in itself), and once inside, the path is paved and lined with LED lights to show off the breathtaking cave formations. Our awesome tour guide, Will, kept us informed and entertained about how water works over millions of years to pick up and redeposit minerals, forming stalactites, stalagmites, and other unique structures that you'll only ever see in a place like this. We even saw a bat! $10 is a steal for a one-of-a-kind tour like this. The only "downside" is that the caverns are located far from civilization, so be prepared to drive at least several hours from wherever you are. But it's totally worth it! Highly recommended for families, solo trekkers, or couples who are looking for a date adventure.
5. Lava Tube
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 7 reviews
Reviewed By TravelingMerm - Monrovia, United States
Definitely one of the weirder adventures I’ve embarked upon - and undoubtedly one of the most fun!! What a trip haha! Finally made it out here - been trying since the #localadventurechallenge put it on my radar last September but it was closed due to Covid I think (or a fire - can’t remember lol). You’ll drive waaaay out into the Mojave Desert, passing tons of gnarly Joshua Trees - and then spend another 40+ minutes driving down an insanely bumpy, rocky, sandy road. Then you’ll finally see the little roundabout parking area with a sign for the tubes - get out and hike a tiny bit - I’d say about 1/2 a mile - unless you’re like us and take the wrong trail lol - hiking past all these rocky lava rock explosions! Black and red and so rough and pointy - it’s mind blowing how anything can grow outta this stuff! And then you’ll finally stumble upon a gaping hole opening up into the desert floor with stairs leading down. At the bottom you’ll think you should go right but you actually want to go left - the opening on the right looks like it caved in as it’s full of rocks and dirt - don’t go that way! When you go left, you’ll have to climb over large lava boulders and it gets super dark so have your cellphone light or a flashlight - you’ll need it for sure! And then BAM!!! It suddenly gets light and opens up into the coolest chamber!! If you time it right, you’ll catch beams of light shining in through lava holes in the roof of the cavern. We were there mid morning and there weren’t any beams until we started to leave - around 1030am ish I think - a tiny beam finally appeared! I definitely want to go back to catch the full light beam effects someday - but phew that ride in sure is tough! That being said, I highly recommend a rental car - and an elevated one - Bc you’re gonna be going over some serious bumps and even some large rocks along the road. It’s only about 5 miles of the Hell Road but it takes a good solid 40 mins or more to drive it Bc of the conditions. And you’ll also see a fork in the road on the way in - stay to the left!! Supposedly if you go to the right, the sand is really deep and you’ll get stuck! To get here I used google maps - and I had downloaded the offline map - DO IT - Bc there’s no signal out here whatsoever. But google maps recognized Mojave Lava Tube and got us here nonetheless. Apple Maps was all kinds of wrong lol. I also recommend hiking boots - you don’t HAVE to have them - but the ground is incredibly rocky and hard to traverse- I had on my vans and it was so tough. Hiking boots would’ve been much more comfortable! Oh and there’s absolutely NO cell signal out there for miles - so just be safe - maybe don’t come alone - let somebody know where you’re going etc.
