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Travel guide
Joshua Tree
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: February to April and October to November
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Welcome
Joshua Tree, in a few days
A 3,200 km² national park where two Californian deserts meet, and where thousands of Joshua trees twist their branches among jumbles of golden granite, piled up as if by a giant. You scramble over boulders at sunrise, hike to palm oases and sleep in retro motels or wooden houses, under one of the darkest skies in Southern California.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Hidden Valley · about 1 hA hollow entirely enclosed by granite walls, where cattle rustlers supposedly hid stolen livestock, circled by a 1.6 km loop among boulders and Joshua trees, with climbers on the surrounding cliffs.
- Afternoon · Barker Dam · about 1 hA small ranchers' dam from around 1900 that holds a reflecting lake after wet winters, where bighorn sheep come to drink, on a 1.8 km loop that also passes a petroglyph panel.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Pioneertown Motel ↗ · All places to stay by budget →€220 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Ryan Mountain · 2 to 3 hThe park's most popular summit, at 1,664 metres, reached by a 4.8 km round trip with stone steps, for a 360-degree view over the high valleys and the Wonderland of Rocks.
- Afternoon · Skull Rock · about 1 hA house-sized granite boulder hollowed by erosion into the shape of a skull, beside the main road near Jumbo Rocks, with a 2.7 km loop through some of the park's most photogenic boulders.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Pioneertown Motel ↗€220 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Arch Rock · about 1 hA rare white granite arch hidden behind the White Tank campground, reached by a 2.1 km loop past Heart Rock, and a favourite of night photographers under the Milky Way.
- Afternoon · Cholla Cactus Garden · about 30 minA field of several thousand teddy-bear chollas whose silvery spines glow against the light, where the Mojave gives way to the Colorado Desert, crossed by a 400-metre loop trail.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Pioneertown Motel ↗€220 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Keys View · about 30 minThe highest viewpoint reachable by car, at 1,581 metres, looking out over the Coachella Valley, the Salton Sea, the San Andreas Fault and the peaks of San Jacinto and San Gorgonio.
- Afternoon · Pioneertown free · 2 to 3 hA western street built in 1946 by Hollywood actors and producers, including Roy Rogers, still lined with wooden façades, and home to Pappy & Harriet's, a renowned barbecue spot and concert venue.
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
Some links are partner links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Burgers and barbecue: brisket and ribs cooked low and slow, done differently in every state.
- Clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl: the classic lunch on the San Francisco waterfront.
- Mexican food: tacos from a truck in Los Angeles, a Mission burrito in San Francisco.
- Pancakes and weekend brunch: a national habit, generous to the point of excess.
- Craft beer, and California wine from Napa and Sonoma.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Tipping is not optional: add 15 to 20% in restaurants and bars.
- Prices on menus and in shops exclude sales tax, which is added at the till.
- Do not plan more than four or five hours of driving a day: the distances are larger than they look on the map.
- Never travel without health insurance. A night in hospital can cost thousands of dollars.
- In summer, do not hike down into the Grand Canyon in the heat of the day: the climb back out is where people get into trouble.
Getting by
Words that help
🗣️ English is the main language here, so there is nothing to learn by heart.
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyUS dollar (USD, $)
BudgetAbout €150 a day, mid-range
Best seasonFebruary to April and October to November
PlugA/B · 120V
Tap waterSafe to drink
Tipping15 to 20%, expected
Emergency911
EntryUK, Australian and most EU passports need an ESTA, applied for online before departure, for stays of up to 90 days; a few EU countries sit outside the Visa Waiver Program and need a full visa. Canadians need neither, only a passport. Anyone who has been to Cuba since January 2021 cannot use an ESTA and must apply for a visa.
HealthNo vaccination required. Keep tetanus, diphtheria and polio up to date; hepatitis A is worth considering if you eat well off the tourist trail. In the desert parks, the heat is the real risk.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/joshua-tree
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.