The Perfect Joshua Tree Day Trip: A One Day Itinerary

Joshua Tree National Park in California is similar to Death Valley National Park – you can visit in one day and see most of the main attractions. We visited Joshua Tree in March on our California road trip before moving on to spend a day in Death Valley (about 4 hours away).

Joshua Tree makes for a perfect day trip or stop on a road trip, and one day in Joshua Tree gives you plenty of time to explore the main areas. We really only spent half a day in the park itself, making it a possibility to drive in from a nearby city, see the park, and drive back all in one day.

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Planning a Day Trip to Joshua Tree

Located in Southern California, Joshua Tree is accessible for a day trip from several major cities. From Los Angeles, it takes a little over 2 hours to drive the 150 miles (depending on traffic, of course). San Diego is only slightly further away, but it will take closer to 3 hours to get there.

Las Vegas is a little further away, with the 200-mile drive taking a little over 3 hours. Phoenix takes about the same amount of time but is 225 miles away. You can choose to visit it individually or as part of a road trip.

The closest stop is Palm Springs, located about 40 miles away. Palm Springs is a popular base for your visit to Joshua Tree, as you can enjoy both together. There are plenty of things to do in Palm Springs if you want to extend your trip.

Another popular stop in the area is Salvation Mountain, located about 60 miles from Joshua Tree or 80 miles from Palm Springs.

Depending on how far you drive to get there, you may want to plan to spend the night nearby. You can use Palm Springs as a base for exploring the area or stay a little closer to the park.

My hotel of choice when I’m in the area is the Grand Hyatt Indian Wells. I also love the Thompson Palm Springs. If you have kids, the Grand Hyatt is the better option. If you only have adults in your party, either one is a great choice.

If you want to be closer to the park, I’ve also stayed at Best Western Joshua Tree Hotel and Suites. Located in nearby Yucca Valley, it gave us the perfect start to our day in Joshua Tree. Yucca Valley is a small town located just 20 minutes from the entrance, with several restaurant and hotel options.

From Joshua Tree, we headed to Death Valley National Park, where we also spent just one day. The two parks are only four hours away from each other, so you can see Death Valley and then make it to the Joshua Tree area to spend the night. You could also do this route in reverse, seeing Joshua Tree and then spending the night near or in Death Valley.

Best Things to Do in Joshua Tree in One Day

If you have more than a day in Joshua Tree, you can enjoy more of the hikes the park has to offer. I have always done a day trip to Joshua Tree while staying somewhere nearby or on a road trip. I’ve still been able to hit most of the spots I want to see.

SUNRISE & THE CHOLLA CACTUS GARDEN

The best place to watch the sunrise in Joshua Tree National Park is the Cholla Cactus Garden, in my opinion. I love how the sun lights up the Cholla when it is low in the sky. The best time to visit for this is near sunrise and sunset. Honestly though, it is beautiful at any time of the day, especially on a sunny day.

If you are coming from Palm Springs, you can either start or end a loop through the park at the Cholla Cactus Garden. You can choose to do this itinerary in this order or in reverse depending on your route.

There is a small parking lot next to the walkway through the garden. The walkway leads into the garden and loops back around to the parking lot. The pathway is short and an easy walk. It is only 1/4 mile (or 400 meters), but take your time and enjoy the sights and sounds of nature.

If you walk the edges of the path and aren’t wearing closed shoes or are wearing thin shoes, keep an eye out. Sometimes pieces of the cactus or the barbs from the cactus are on the ground.

ARCH ROCK & HEART ROCK

There are some neat rock formations across the street from the White Tank Campground. You used to be able to park here to start the hike to Arch Rock, but there is a trailhead parking lot that you should use if you are not camping at White Tank.

The hike to Arch Rock is another quick and short hike, but you can choose to explore the area more if you have time. The hike is a 1.4 mile (2.2K) walk round trip to Arch Rock from the trailhead. The ground is hard packed and easy to walk on.

When we first visited Arch Rock, the trail was not well marked. Now the trail is easy to follow and well-marked.

One of my favorite spots in Joshua Tree National Park is right next to Arch Rock. The rocks along this trail are fun to explore, and you can easily spend hours out there!

Once you see Arch Rock, it is worth it to go the little bit extra to see Heart Rock if you have time. If you add on Heart Rock, the whole trail is about 1.7. miles (2.7K).

SKULL ROCK & QUEEN VALLEY ROAD AREA

If you are looking to get off the beaten path, check out the dirt roads including Queen Valley Road. Not many cars explore this area, but we had a Jeep and wanted to take it off-road. You could get away with 2-wheel drive if it is dry, but it will be a bumpy ride!

I liked this area of the park. There are Joshua Trees as far as the eye can see. There are also fewer people in this area. You can bike along these roads too, or you can take a hike from these roads as well.

Before heading onto Queen Valley Road, we did stop to admire the Jumbo Rocks area. Many people were hiking and climbing the rocks here, but we kept moving.

This is where the trail to Skull Rock starts. It is a popular photo spot in Joshua Tree, so you can make a quick stop here or just drive by and see it from the road.

BARKER DAM

This 1.1 mile (1.8 km) loop hike is another popular hike in Joshua Tree. We ended up skipping this one because of the crowds one visit and because of time or weather on other visits.

The hike takes you back to a reservoir and an old dam built by ranchers in the area. The water sometimes dries up in the summer months, so visit during the spring or winter for the best chance of seeing it full. Make sure you get an early start to find nearby parking. It may also clear out in the late afternoon, but we did not stick around to see.

KEYS VIEW

Keys View is another popular stop, but we did not stop here due to time. You can find lots of pictures of the view online to see if it is worth the extra 20 minute drive each way. On clear days, you can supposedly see all the way to Mexico.

Even if you don’t stop here, one of my favorite spots to see a high concentration of Joshua Trees is at the turnoff for Keys View from Park Boulevard. There is space to pull off and jump out to take some pictures. There are also some trails to get up close to the trees.

PARK BOULEVARD TO THE WEST ENTRANCE STATION

If you enter from the North Entrance Station first, you may feel disappointed by the lack of Joshua Trees. You’ll see a lot more of them along Park Boulevard to the West Entrance Station.

There are lots of places to pull off and see the trees along Park Boulevard. As mentioned above, one of my favorite spots to stop is at Keys View Road.

The park is the meeting point of the Mojave and Colorado deserts. Joshua Trees only grow in the Mojave Desert, so the closer you get to the Colorado Desert, the fewer trees you will see. The Cholla Cactus Garden is in the Colorado Desert, so you won’t see Joshua Trees near it.

Along the road between the West Entrance and the turnoff for Barker Dam, there are more spots to stop and see the Joshua Trees or hike out among them. There are also rocks that are popular for rock climbing, an activity I enjoy watching.

Joshua Tree is an extremely popular place for rock climbing. If you are interested, there are many companies offering lessons or guides to accompany you.

Best Time to Take a Day Trip to Joshua Tree

Joshua Tree, like many National Parks, is more crowded near holidays. I’ve visited in every season except fall so far, and spring is by far my favorite time to go.

The summer brings warmer weather with temperatures hovering in the upper 90s (32C+) for much of June – September. When I visited in August, it hit 115F that day. However, in the mornings and evenings, it should still be cool enough to hike during the summer months.

The rest of the year, temperatures stay between 60 and 80 (15C – 27C). At night, temperatures drop much lower. In fact, in the winter, they average near freezing. The year I visited in January, it rained the entire time I was in the park, causing some of the roads to flood.

When visiting Joshua Tree, you may want to wear layers. For our visit in March, we started in jackets and pants and then shifted to shorts and T-shirts later in the day.

*****

Joshua Tree makes for a great stop on any California road trip or even a day trip adventure from nearby cities. You don’t need long to explore the park, but you can choose to stay nearby and explore more of the area.

For more of our California road trip series, check out our one day itinerary for Death Valley National Park. For more destinations besides California to add to your bucket list, check out our top bucket list destinations you don’t want to miss!

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