Hollywood’s “Two-Hour Rule” made Palm Springs a playground for Golden Age stars tethered to last-minute filming. Decades after the Rat Pack, this lush desert oasis on the western edge of the Coachella Valley is hipper than ever. Today, a cortege of Desert Modern hotels and municipal buildings turn heads, reflective of an offshoot of the Mid-century Modern aesthetic born here in the 1930s. City streets are lined with nattily trimmed palm trees. The sky is a startling blue 350-plus days a year. Away from the pools and fairways, the landscape has a stark majesty. All in all, a great place to chill. When summer temperatures soar, so can you - straight to a cool pine forest on top of Mount San Jacinto via aerial tram.