Founded in 1940, Two Bunch Palms in Desert Hot Springs ranks among the world’s oldest wellness resorts. If “wellness resort” means a dedicated retreat for healing and restoration, though, Two Bunch Palms is older than that — way older. The local Cahuilla tribe began utilizing the area’s mineral-rich hot spring centuries ago.
“We’re right on the San Andreas fault line,” says Danny Min, the resort’s director of operations. A hot water well north of the property hovers at a natural temperature of more than 100 degrees. A colder well lies to the south. “We’re right at the perfect location to draw our waters from two different sources.”
Renovated in 2019, the holistic hideaway, seen above in 1951, has long been a favorite among travelers. Day passes are available for non-guests.
PHOTO COURTESY PALM SPRINGS LIFE ARCHIVES
Said to soothe aches and improve circulation, the waters have lured famous bathers seeking an escape — perhaps even from the law. “Al Capone is rumored to have frequented the property and possibly even owned it,” Min says.
But not all experts agree. “While rumors about Al Capone hiding out at Two Bunch Palms during Prohibition persist, there is no concrete evidence,” says Geoff Schumacher, vice president of exhibits and programs at The Mob Museum in Las Vegas. “Capone’s one [documented] visit to California during his heyday was extremely brief. Later, of course, he returned to California under very different circumstances — as a prisoner at Alcatraz.”
These days, the resort is as well known for its sustainability initiatives as it is for its mob and Hollywood ties. Two Bunch Palms became the first carbon-neutral resort in America with the 2014 completion of its 3-acre solar farm. “We’re able to generate enough power to support about 100 single-family homes,” Min says. “We want to do our part to ensure this place is left better than how we found it.”
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“I think one of the coolest things around here is Cabot’s Pueblo Museum,” Min says. “It’s less than five minutes away.” Early 20th-century homesteader Cabot Yerxa built the Hopi-style structure to house and display his collection of Native American artifacts and treasures from his many travels.
