LGBT Resort: Canyon Club

To help you laser in on which of our great gay resorts and guesthouses suits you best, we present this in-depth property profile: The Canyon Club Hotel  The clothing-optional Canyon Club is one of the larger gay men’s resorts in Palm Springs, both in terms of rooms (32) as well as space (53,000 square feet). The two-story hotel building centers on a 52-foot swimming pool and 16-man Jacuzzi, and both a dry sauna and wet steam room keep you warm in wintertime.

Plenty of Elbow Room

Even when it’s at full occupancy, Canyon Club enjoys plenty of elbow room thanks to its nearly one-acre landscaped park complete with hedge maze, koi pond, and chaise lounges for nude sunbathing. Even the lobby is large enough to include a fireplace.

For those in search of “new friends” as part of their Palm Springs vacation, Canyon Club’s video play room hits the spot with private booths and communal beds and slings. The space is nice and dark, making greetings over the complimentary continental breakfast in the bright and sunny lobby the next day a little less awkward. The property remains secure however through its exterior doors which can only be opened by registered guests and staff. Some rooms on property are pet-friendly, so you can feel free to bring Fido (for an extra fee). Parking is plentiful and free.

Canyon Club In Uptown Design District

Just north of downtown, The Canyon Club takes up a whole block from North Palm Canyon Drive to North Indian Canyon Drive. The newly-hip Uptown and its trendy shops are within walking distance to Canyon Club. Canyon Club’s 32 rooms come in 7 different categories, and include 8 with private patios and 8 with full kitchens. (Most of the other guestrooms have at least kitchenettes.) Canyon Club’s rooms are newly renovated and sport a colorfully-painted 1950s retro look, with large glass brick walk-in showers, 36- to 60-inch flat-panel wall-mounted HDTVs, king size beds, all-new furniture, and new linens and towels.

Historical Building

The structure dates back to at least 1957 (and it’s possibly even older) when it operated as the Hotel La Fonda, complete with a huge courtyard fountain festooned with “erupting” volcanoes. In the 1990s, it became the gay resort Canyon Boy’s Club, which felt and acted more as a bare-bones bathhouse than anything else.
Canyon Boys Club closed down in 2003, and the property’s owners had plans to tear down the existing mid-century buildings and combine the adjoining lot to build high-end condominiums. Luckily, in 2005, New York City native John Halderman purchased both the main property and adjoining lot (later the garden park) completely intact. Halderman had owned Laguna Beach’s historic and beloved gay bar Boom Boom Room from 1990 to 2000, so he came in with a good track record. The hotel experienced a complete gut-job, including all the rooms and even the pool, thanks to Chris Guyer, Halderman’s partner and a professional carpenter. By 2007, the property’s main renovations were finished – and 2015 will see new exterior painting and general sprucing up.

Straight from the Owner’s Mouth:

“A lot of people like the fact they can park their car upon check-in and don’t need it again. It’s one of our biggest selling points. When we bought the lot next door, we leveled it and put in the park. We could have added more rooms, but I thought the park would be a great asset and that turned out to be true. People especially like the maze. It was a fun thing to add. It’s unique and it does get used regularly.” – John Halderman

Canyon Club Hotel
960 N. Palm Canyon Drive
(760) 778-8042, (877) 258-2887
Palm Springs, CA 92262