A Former Hideaway for the Famous and Elite Gets an Atypical Facelift

Designer Steve Hermann, known for his work with top-tier celebrity homes, brought a once star-studded Palm Springs outpost back onto the A-List when he opened L’Horizon last spring. The hotel site in the bones of a 1952 William F. Cody property, spanning four-acres, and is a former hideaway for the Hollywood and Washington elite (Marilyn Monroe and the Reagans stayed there). Inside the original shell of seven midcentury bungalows, the 25 rooms were given a $5 million dollar facelift after falling into neglect. Hermann broke the typical mold of uniformly dressed hotel rooms and decorated each as an independent space. Though the suites retain their own distinct flair—a slump-stone wall here, Percival Lafer chair there—a cohesive thread runs throughout each one with elements like geometrically-patterned curtains, vintage furniture, and crisp Frette bed linens. Each low-lying structure showcases views of the San Jacinto Mountains and floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors that open to private patios equipped with Planika fire pits, manicured cacti gardens, and marble vanities in the bathrooms (complimentary foot and back massages are a call away).

Other touches, like original artwork, copper-crowned fireplaces, and an infinity-edge pool accentuate the rustic setting in the California desert. The newest addition: The Sopa restaurant by chef Giacomo Pettinari, who cut his teeth at Spain’s world famous El Bulli, opened in September with a live-edge walnut commensal table and Lindsey Adelman-designed chandeliers. lhorizonpalmsprings.com