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Hi,
We are planning to drive from Los Angeles to Phoenix as a family with 2 elders and one infant baby. May I know any interesting places or resorts where we can stop by and have fun by taking nice pictures. We would like to have pleasant family fun rather than being adventurous. We are willing to stay overnight if it takes time for sightseeing at that place. We will be taking I-10 for the drive. Any ideas or guidance is greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Hi
Maybe try this for a 2 days drive:
Leave LA early, drive east on I10. Maybe stop at the Outler Center in Cabazon 20 miles before Palm Springs for some fun shopping. Now you can drive to Palm Springs and go by Aireal tram into the mountains. Then drive ca62 to Yucca Valley. There's a turn off to Pioneertown on a short distance from Yucca Valley. You also could visit Joshua Tree NP. Best part is the northern section imo. In Twentynine Palms you'll find a lot of murals worth a visit. Then drive back to I10, or stay for the night in 29Palms. Not a resort area. You'll have to be in Palm Springs or one of the other towns in Coachella Valley for that. The drive along I10 to Phoenix is rather boring and not many attractions here.
To add a couple more interesting places along the way...
There's the Orange Empire Railway Musuem in Perris California (about 10-15 miles south of the 91 route from LA to Riverside). Check out their web page
You can drive up Mt Baldy, and take the chair lift up to near the top. About as high up at the Palm Springs Chair lift but a lot closer to LA -- chair lift up, and a small lodge/ snack bar at the top of the chair lift.
There's also a large aviation musuem at the Chino Airport (Planes of Fame)
There are several desert oasis areas around Palm Springs. The Indian Canyons, or 1000 Palms desert preserve (my favorite). A bit primitive, but a real desert oasis.
The loop through Joshua Tree is very good, but it's going to be 2-3 hours minimum (probably most of a day -- doable in a full day from LA), and the best spots to stay are either in 29 Palms area or in the Indio Area (eastern edge of the Palm Springs area - particularly if you come south out the eastern side of Joshua Tree).
There's a desert musuem in Palm Springs that's pretty good, and a pretty good aviation/ aircraft musuem near the Palm Springs Airport.
The aerial tramway above Palm Springs is spectacular. Not cheap, last time I went, but there's a visitors center at the top. The ride up is in enclosed Gondolas, and the visitors center has a restaurant and snack bar, as well as leads to some local trails.
There's also the George Patton Musuem, at Chiraco Summit, about 30 miles east of Indio (this is where Patton and the US armor forces trained before and during WWII).
There are also a number of date and citrus farms in the area. These allow you buy some of these fruits (dates of multiple varieties and forms, grapefruit, oranges, other citrus, etc), and try different foods made of them.