My Thompson Palm Springs Review: Is This Hotel Worth It?

Thinking about booking the Thompson Palm Springs and wondering if it’s worth it? We stayed here for a Spring Break vacation in Palm Springs and honestly we loved it!

From the rooftop pool to the modern luxury vibes to the downtown location, there was a lot we absolutely loved about this hotel. But there are also a few things you’ll want to know about before you book.

So here’s my honest review of the Thompson Palm Springs, from the room to the pool to the dining and more!

My Overall Thompson Palm Springs Review

A basket lined with black and white checkered paper holds four crispy fried chicken tenders and a generous serving of seasoned French fries with a side of ketchup for dipping. The golden brown meal is served in a casual dining setting and fills the basket from edge to edge.

A wide concrete walkway bordered by agave plants, cacti, and white modern buildings leads toward a vibrant geometric mural in warm sunset colors, with rugged desert mountains rising in the background. The clean lines, minimalist landscaping, and mountain backdrop highlight the contemporary design and desert setting of the hotel.

Thompson is one of my favorite hotel brands from Hyatt, so I was super excited to stay here during our Spring Break trip to Palm Springs!

In general, I loved our stay. This downtown hotel nails modern luxury, and feels like it takes the desert modernism that Palm Springs is known for and takes it up a notch.

The pool was perfection, the service was top-notch, and the food was impressive.

The only drawback? We booked a double-queen bed room on points, and I was a little disappointed to realize that our room had literally no view. Should I have realized this when I was booking it? Probably. But you should know that the “courtyard” rooms just have an enclosed balcony with no view.

Thompson Palm Springs Location

View from an elevated terrace overlooking downtown Palm Springs with tall palm trees lining the street and the San Jacinto Mountains rising in the background. Outdoor seating and a railing frame the foreground while shops, restaurants, and pedestrians create a lively desert city scene below. — Downtown Palm Springs views from the rooftop pool.

Pink and lavender sunset clouds stretch above the San Jacinto Mountains as palm trees and low-rise buildings create a classic Palm Springs skyline. Viewed from an elevated terrace behind a metal railing, the scene captures the peaceful desert atmosphere at dusk. — We had the prettiest sunsets from the rooftop pool!

Digging into the details, let’s talk about the location first. Because the location of this hotel is really hard to beat!

The Thompson Palm Springs is right on Palm Canyon Drive, the main road that goes through downtown Palm Springs. This means so many shops and restaurants are easily walkable from the hotel!

It’s not *right* in the center like the Hyatt Palm Springs is, but this is also a nicer hotel than that one so I think the tradeoff is worth it.

Lobby & Check-In

Contemporary lobby at Thompson Palm Springs featuring two sculptural lounge chairs placed in front of a large colorful mosaic wall installation. Floor to ceiling windows, potted plants, and warm wood ceiling panels create a bright and modern welcome space.

A tan upholstered bench sits beneath a large circular wall sculpture made from tightly arranged recycled bottle caps in white, blue, black, and red tones against a warm wood slat wall. The modern art installation creates a striking focal point in the hotel lobby with clean lines and minimalist seating below it.

There is just something about walking into a Thompson lobby! I love the scents of their lobbies, so walking into the Thompson Palm Springs I instantly felt relaxed.

The lobby isn’t super large, and it does feel like it could use a few more seating areas. But it’s beautifully decorated and every time I walked in I felt myself instantly let out a relaxed exhale.

I’ll be honest: Our check-in process was a little rocky. The staff was super helpful and friendly. But for some reason our room was not ready on time. So it was a little frustrating to sit in the lobby and watch multiple other people check in and get their rooms.

Thankfully, the front desk staff really looked out for us and kept checking on the room status. And when our room finally was ready, they offered me a few thousand extra points refunded to my account for the inconvenience. So I really can’t complain about that!

Thompson Palm Springs Rooms

A spacious hotel room features two neatly made queen beds with upholstered headboards, a shared nightstand with brass lighting, and a soft neutral color palette. A curved lounge chair, matching bench, abstract artwork, and striped area rug create a modern, upscale atmosphere with plenty of open space for relaxing. — Our courtyard 2-queen room at the Thompson Palm Springs

I’ll be honest: When we first walked into our room, I was a little disappointed.

We stayed in a 2 Queen Bed Courtyard room, and it immediately felt a little like a cave. The only window was the sliding glass door out to our patio, and the patio was enclosed in a tall fence which felt like it didn’t let as much light in.

Should I have realized this when I was booking the room? Yes. Would I book the same room again? Also yes, because that’s what was available to us on points.

There are however other rooms that have balconies looking out over the pool, mountains, and surrounding Palm Springs area.

But honestly once I got used to it and adjusted my expectations, I loved our room! And it turns out, not having as much light come into our room kept things cool, especially during the freak 100 degree heat wave we were there for!

Two cushioned lounge chairs and a round side table create a private outdoor patio seating area enclosed by modern wood slat privacy screens. Decorative globe string lights hang overhead against a bright blue sky, giving the contemporary space a quiet and inviting feel. — The patio is definitely private, but it also means there is no view.

A modern hotel room features two beds with crisp white linens, a curved lounge chair, wall mounted television, and a compact minibar with bottles and coffee supplies. Sheer curtains filter natural light from the patio door, creating a calm and contemporary space designed for relaxation. — The sliding glass door to the patio is the only window and lets in limited light, but this was good during the heat!

Pretty much everything inside the room was fantastic. The beds were comfortable (as expected at a Thompson!), the decor was perfectly upscale, the bathroom was huge, and the shower was heaven.

Really I just had two complaints about the interior of the room. One, for the love of god hotels, please put nightstands (along with chargers!) on both sides of every bed. Poor Gerrit got stuck with no nighttime table to put things on.

And second of all, if you’re going to put signs in your bathroom to encourage guests to conserve water by reusing their towels, then make sure there are enough towel racks in the bathroom to hang said towels on!

Those are two pretty nit-picky things though, and overall our room was a comfortable retreat for our stay during a super hot week in Palm Springs!

A bright contemporary hotel room includes two queen beds with white linens, a cozy seating area with a round table and upholstered chair, and a wall mounted television beside a stocked minibar. An open bathroom with a glass shower, large sliding mirror, and patio door adds to the spacious, modern design.

Dining at the Thompson Palm Springs

One thing that really stood out to me at the Thompson Palm Springs was how good the food was! Our very first experience at the hotel was grabbing lunch at the restaurant before check-in and I blown away by some of the dishes!

Lola Rose

Breakfast plate with two sunny side eggs, crispy bacon, roasted potatoes, and slices of seeded toast arranged on a dark dish. Small bowls of ketchup, butter, and creamy sauce sit alongside the meal with drinks and fruit bowls in the background. — Breakfast from Lola Rose at the Thompson Palm Springs

Lola Rose is the main restaurant upstairs by the pool at the hotel. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner here every day. And since I have Hyatt Globalist status that gives me free breakfast, we dined here pretty much every morning.

Everything I had here was fantastic, from the steak to the eggs to the honeycomb that came with my toast. Oh, and the kids ricotta pancakes were so dreamily fluffy! But my favorite thing were the perfectly crispy za’atar potatoes. I made sure I got these at every meal and I was so obsessed with them!

There’s also the Lola Rose Lounge in this area here where you can grab a drink at the bar and hang out in the seating area, with fun music on the weekends.

The Perch

The Perch is the restaurant and bar next to the pool. We grabbed a few drinks here and service was excellent!

We also got dinner here one night…just chicken tenders and fries because we weren’t that hungry. They were good, but nothing special.

Overall though, this is a great spot to grab something by the pool.

Bar Issi

Bar Issi is a stylish, upscale restaurant downstairs at the hotel. It’s part of the “Shops at Thompson” that line the lower level of the street, so you might not even realize it’s really part of the hotel at first.

We didn’t get a chance to eat here, but honestly it looks amazing and I would definitely make it a priority next time!

HALL Napa Valley Tasting Room & Wine Lounge

This wine tasting room is located right off the lobby and offers well…wine tastings.

We’re not really big into wine so we didn’t visit here, plus it was closed a lot of the time we were there. But if your a wine fan, you might want to add this to your list.

Room Service

The hotel of course also offers room service. We didn’t take advantage of it, but the menu is mostly the same as what you will find at Lola Rose.

Hotel Pool

Outdoor pool at sunset with turquoise water reflecting warm orange and pink skies behind a line of palm trees and mountains. Black and white striped umbrellas and lounge chairs surround the pool, creating a relaxed desert resort atmosphere. — We loved spending time at the pool at the Thompson Palm Springs!

One of the highlights of the Thompson Palm Springs is the amazing rooftop pool! We spent several evenings here and they were some of my favorite memories of the trip!

The rooftop pool has plenty of comfortable seating and umbrellas. But the best part of the pool might be the views! You get to look straight out onto the beautiful mountains and the sunsets are absolutely magical.

There’s also a hot tub at the pool which we definitely enjoyed too, along with a seating area to the side of the pool where you can hang out without worrying about getting wet.

More Hotel Amenities

A modern hotel fitness center with rows of treadmills, strength training machines, and cardio equipment arranged in front of mirrored walls under black track lighting. The spacious gym offers a clean, well-equipped workout space with multiple exercise stations and large reflective surfaces that make the room feel even larger. — The gym at the Thompson Palm Springs.

There are also some other amenities the Thompson Palm Springs offers:

Fitness Center — There is a fitness center downstairs with cardio equipment, free weights, and weight machines.
Bike Rentals — There are complimentary bike rentals you can use to get around Palm Springs.
Upper Stories Experience — While most of the hotel is family-friendly, guests 21+ can book into this extra luxurious area of the hotel with extra amenities including its own pool area.
Event and Conference Spaces — This hotel has lots of conference rooms as well as lots of outdoor spaces you can rent for events.

What To Know Before Booking

I really loved this hotel and our stay here, but there are a few things you should know before booking.

Resort Fees & Parking — The Thompson Palm Springs does charge a Resort Fee (unless you book on points) and a nightly rate for valet parking.
Best Time to Visit — Palm Springs can be HOT in the summer, so the best time to visit is Fall, Winter, and Spring.
Room Types — Be aware of your room type when booking (like I wasn’t). Not all rooms have balconies with views.

A stylish hotel lounge with curved blue banquette seating, patterned chairs, tropical botanical wallpaper, and a woven pendant light creates a cozy gathering space beside floor-to-ceiling windows. Natural light fills the room while views of the courtyard and modern architecture outside complement the contemporary desert-inspired design. — Seating in the Lola Rose Lounge area

Thompson Palm Springs FAQs

Is the Thompson Palm Springs adults-only?

No, kids can stay at the Thompson Palm Springs, although it does have a more grown-up, luxury vibe.

If you want an adults-only experience, you can book a room in the Upper Stories Experience area of the hotel, which is only for guests 21 and older.

Does the Thompson Palm Springs have free parking?

No. Unless you have a Hyatt Globalist status where parking is included, you will be charged a daily fee for valet parking (plus don’t forget to tip!).

Is the pool open to non-guests?

Yes, you can book cabanas or day beds at the pool for day use from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm even if you aren’t staying at the hotel.

How far is the Thompson Palm Springs from the airport?

The Thompson Palm Springs is less than 3 miles from the Palm Springs airport, or a 5-10 minute drive.

Is the Thompson Palm Springs good for couples?

The Thompson Palm Springs is an excellent place to stay for couples! It has a modern luxury vibe that is perfect for a couples getaway!

Can you walk everywhere from the hotel?

You can walk to many great Palm Springs attractions including shops and restaurants downtown, the Palm Springs Art Museum, and the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum. However, many of the best attractions in Palm Springs, like the hiking, touring the architecture, golfing, and more will require a car.