Agua Caliente Cultural Plaza

The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians have lived in what is now Palm Springs for time immemorial. Now a cultural campus in downtown Palm Springs celebrates their history and culture. The Cultural Plaza is a unique blend of a tribal museum, a luxurious spa, and a natural oasis in the midst of the city.

Half of the Agua Caliente Cultural Plaza is anchored by the Spa at Séc-he. This spa harnesses the natural spring water that gives the tribe and the town their names. (Séc-he means the “sound of boiling water” in the Cahuilla language) The water of the Agua Caliente mineral hot spring comes from a reservoir located more than a mile underground. Its unique mineral makeup and its temperature (105 degrees Fahrenheit when it reaches the surface) are thought to promote healing, and the Agua Caliente Tribe has a long history of sharing that healing water with visitors. The Spa at Séc-he features private baths and offers massages, body scrubs, floating pools, steam rooms, and even cryotherapy.

Across from the spa is the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum, built to celebrate the history of the Cahuilla people and their contributions to the past, present, and future of Palm Springs. The museum begins with an animated telling of the tribe’s creation and migration stories. Other galleries  in the museum teach about the surrounding canyon’s plants and animals and the tribe’s artistic legacy of basketmaking and ceramics using state-of-the-art technologies and audio/visual storytelling by tribal elders and members. Archeological finds such as metates and projectile points (some found during the construction, carbon dated 8,000 years) can be seen throughout the space. 

Other spaces in the Smithsonian-affiliated museum include an educational garden and a rotating gallery currently displaying historic Native American photographs. A gift shop sells art, jewelry, and clothing that are all Native-made or Native-sourced.

Winding around the 5.8-acre plaza is the Oasis Trail, meant to mimic the landscape of the Indian Canyons surrounding Palm Springs and inspired by trails the Agua Caliente people maintained in the desert. The walk is lined with Washingtonia filifera palm trees, the only palm native to the California desert. A Gathering Plaza serves as a place to celebrate and host events