Margaritaville Makeover

Typically when I pull into Palm Springs, I enjoy seeing the Riviera Resort and Spa which dates back to 1958. The entrance had a 1960’s Rat Pack vibe that made you feel like you were stepping back in time and experiencing a bygone era of music, style, and attitude. Imagine my shock during my most recent visit when I drove by and saw this sign:



Margaritaville? In Palm Springs? Did I hit the gas pedal too hard and accidentally end up in Key West, circa 1990?!? Sadly, I was still in 2022 and the (now) cheap-looking structure I had driven by that was once the glorious Riviera Hotel had been revamped as the Margaritaville Resort. I parked the car and decided to poke around.



The Lobby area before:



After, a somewhat subtle change:



…other than the parrots. Just in case you forgot you were in Margaritaville.



Before #1, when the place had more of a Vegas/Rat Pack vibe:



Before #2 (a later remodel):



After:



The restaurant has also been re-themed to fit the Jimmy Buffet motif:



Fun little sayings have been sprinkled throughout the hallways:



Changes in more than just latitude:



I would hesitate to call this a resort without adding in the term “family.” The hotel was much more noisy, had more kids screaming, and definitely had more of a budget feel. I guess the positive is that the hotel, which has struggled financially through the years, is still around.

See more Riviera and Margaritaville Resort photos at my main website.

Riviera Hotel: The Palm Springs Version

I was recently in Palm Springs/Indian Wells for work. On the way out of town, I decided to try The Riviera Resort for breakfast before I headed back to San Diego. The look of this hotel has intrigued me; at night, it looks like something right out of Vegas.



The interior of this hotel was just as impressive (if not more) than the outside. Clean, sleek, trendy, vintage, modern...all in one!









Obviously, the intent of this hotel was to evoke the glamour of 1960’s Palm Springs, complete with mod portraits of the city’s Hollywood inhabitants, including Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, and Debbie Reynolds. Seeing the decor and design made me even more anxious to try the restaurant.







It was breakfast, so there wasn’t too much to really tax the chefs on the menu. However, for the prices being charged (which I would expect from this type of resort), for crying out loud, serve fresh-squeeze juice. I couldn’t believe it when my grapefruit juice came out and it tasted fresh...fresh out of the can. Little details like that really mean a lot. Still, looking around at the hipster-wannabes who were crowding around the pool, I had a feeling that the typical patron of this place may not know the difference. Would I want to stay here? Chances are slim. The type of crowd this hotel attracts are not my style; they may have money, but they definitely are short on taste and class. I prefer something a little more on the laid-back end.

See more Palm Springs Riviera Resort photos at my website.