Mt. San Jacinto via Aerial Tramway
Palm Springs (San Jacinto State Wilderness) · near Palm Springs · California Desert
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- strenuous
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 11 miles
- Elevation gain
- 2,600 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- May–October from tram top · Tramway operates year-round
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- Yes
- How the permit works
- Wilderness permit required for all hiking above Long Valley — FREE at the ranger station kiosk inside the tram station (pick up at top of the tram). Tram ticket required: ~$35–$40 round trip adults / ~$25 children. Tram reservation recommended. Day hiking only above — no overnight permits needed for the summit day hike.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Tram rises 5,873 ft in 10 minutes — fastest elevation change accessible by vehicle in California · Summit at 10,834 ft with 360° views — Salton Sea to Pacific on clear days · Temperature drops 40°F between valley floor and summit · Sub-alpine forest with ponderosa pine immediately above desert floor
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Palm Springs below is one of California's most architecturally interesting mid-century modern cities — the downtown design district, the Sonny Bono Memorial Park, and the Palm Springs Art Museum are all walkable from downtown. The contrast between the desert resort city below and the alpine wilderness above is California's most concentrated vertical landscape change.
The guide
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is the fastest way to change your environment in California: 10 minutes in a rotating gondola r…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Mt. San Jacinto via Aerial Tramway — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 33.8196, -116.6737