Gay-owned, Seattle-founded, rocknrolla hipster hotel chain Ace Hotels knows how to throw a party. Just check out the teeming fashiony hoards any weekend night at its Portland or New York City locations. D.I.Y., art-filled funkified style certainly draws a crowd. And this coming weekend, it's bringing some cachet to the cliche of Palm Spring Pride (PSPride.org), November 4-7, the last big one of 2010.
Deemed the West Coast Love Train – a hotel-based hootenanny for “hot misfits, radical faeries, starving indie artists with a price, leather, squirrels, queers, furries and fuzzies, poly-tastic warm leatherettes, drag kings and queens, changlings, disco dollies” and way gay kitchen sinks – events are free for hotel guests and $10 a day for the public. A weekend Pride Package helps you get your freaky deeky on with 20% off double-occupancy rooms (from $229/night). They'll also throw in a $25 treat resort credit for those all-important first cocktails. Call 760-325-9990 with code “Love Train” to book; two-night min.
Or better yet, head online, sans package, and take advantage of either 15 percent or 20 percent discounts each night for a 2- or 3-night stay, respectively. With discount applied, the cheapest rate for a standard king starts at an astounding $136/night for a standard room.
The official Palm Springs Pride parade kicks off at 10am on Sunday the 7th, bookended by the two-day Pride Festival (10am-8pm both Saturday and Sunday) at the Palm Springs Baseball Stadium. The Ace's own rough roster of events is below. Think sun-basking with fruity drinks and a shot girl on rollerskates:
Thursday
• 10pm–1:30am: Kick-Off Dance Party featuring Vintage Youth live (free) + LA Kendall and DJ Nark
Friday
• Noon–4pm: Pool Party hosted by Jer Ber Jones
• 8pm–2am: Trannyshack Dance Party & Performance with host Heklina
Saturday
• Noon–4pm: Pool Party with performances including Barbie Q, Lady Bear, Phyllis Navidad, and Tammie Brown
• 6–8pm: Queer Film Showcase hosted poolside by Honeysuckle Hype (free)
• 9pm–2am: Dance Party with DJs Juanita More, Chris Bowen, and Victor Rodriguez
Sunday
• Noon–4pm: Post-parade Children of the Sun Special Pride Edition pool party mashup
For general trip-planning info, check out our Palm Springs Travel Guide. Use our Travel Search price comparison tool for great deals on airfare, as well as other vacation packages, hotels, and more.
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