Palm Springs: Self-Driving Windmill Tour & Audio Guide

Drive Through California's First Wind Farm at Your Own Pace

You drive yourself through Palm Springs' historic wind farm using a downloaded app and audio guide, stopping at a display yard, an operating turbine, and a retired power plant. The route takes about an hour at your own pace and includes two adults per booking. Bring your car and follow the marked stops. The app and audio handle the rest.

Step-by-step itinerary

Self-driving windmill tour in Palm Springs

• Drive your own car on tour
• Listen to audio program guidance
• Visit display yard of turbines
• Stop at real generating turbine
• Take pictures near turbine
• End tour at Indigo Power Plant
• Exit via 19th Avenue to Indian Canyon Road

The experience

The blades turn slow and steady across the desert floor. You hear them before you see them clearly, a low mechanical rhythm that fills the space between the mountains. That sound is what pulls your attention to the Palm Springs windmill tour, a self-driving route through the first commercial wind farm in Southern California where you move at your own pace with an audio guide and marked stops along the way. You bring your own car, download the app once you book, and follow the curated path that Tom Spiglanin, the tour manager, has laid out through the working farm.

The route starts at a display yard where you can walk around non-operating turbines (some that worked, some that didn't), and see the engineering up close without the noise. Then you drive to a real generating turbine where you can pull over, get out, and take pictures while the blades move overhead. It's the kind of moment where the scale of the thing hits you different when you're standing beneath it than when you're reading about it. The audio program plays as you move between stops, so you're not just looking at machinery. You're learning why these machines matter and how they fit into the energy picture of the region. The whole thing takes roughly an hour depending on how long you linger at each spot.

The tour wraps at the Indigo Power Plant and the retired wind farm section, where you can exit onto 19th Avenue and head toward Indian Canyon Road with a clearer sense of how renewable energy actually works in a place like this. One booking covers two adults, and the app keeps you oriented so you don't have to navigate separately or wonder if you've missed a stop. You move through the farm on your own schedule (no group waiting, no guide keeping pace), which means you can spend five minutes or twenty at any marked destination, and the only rule is to let other cars finish before you pull in.

What’s included

• Your booking includes the Palm Springs Windmill Tour App, an audio program that guides you through each stop, and access to all marked destinations throughout the first commercial wind farm in Southern California.
• The tour covers two adults per booking and takes approximately one hour at your own pace.
• You drive your own car between stops at the display yard of non-operating turbines, a real generating turbine where you can photograph up close, and the Indigo Power Plant and retired wind farm section.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day10 departure times: the first at 09:30, the last at 14:00

Book up toStart time

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish

Audio guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Prices and times updated yesterday

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleStroller friendlyPets welcome

Operated by Palm Springs Windmill Tours

Is this one for you?This works well if you have a car, want to learn about renewable energy without a group, and prefer to explore at your own speed: the app and audio handle the navigation and context, so you just drive and stop when something catches your eye.

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Top questions

What happens if it rains?

It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.

Do I need a guide or driver for this tour?

No. You drive your own car and follow the marked route using the app and audio program sent after booking.

How long does the Palm Springs windmill tour take?

Approximately one hour, depending on how long you spend at each stop.

What's included in the booking?

The app, audio program, and access to all marked stops. One booking covers two adults.

Can I take photos at the turbines?

Yes. You can get close and photograph the operating turbine and the display yard.

Is this tour wheelchair accessible?

Yes. All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible, and service animals are allowed.

Can children go on this tour?

Yes. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller.

What if I don't have a car?

You need your own vehicle to participate. The tour is self-driving only.

Do I need to download anything before I arrive?

After booking, you'll receive an email with instructions and a link to download the app before your tour date.