Yes! There is an oasis in Death Valley, and as we left Joshua Tree National Park, I couldn’t wait to explore.
We traveled north along the east side of Death Valley. It was a long and desolate drive but built our anticipation of what lay ahead. And nature always has its own beauty if you just see it.
Once we entered the park, it wasn’t too long before we arrived at The Inn at Death Valley, located in The Oasis at Death Valley. Water is supplied by a natural spring, and indeed the surroundings are magnificent! There are two hotels in the oasis, The Inn and The Ranch. The Oasis is located in Furnace Creek, California.
The photo below shows where we stayed, at The Inn at Death Valley. Just down the road and to the left of the photo below, there is The Ranch which also includes shopping and a few restaurants.
There are so many stories and so much history in this park. Right now, I’d have to say that Death Valley is the most fascinating park I have ever visited. I purchased the book “Death Valley Hottest Place on Earth” while we were there. It is filled with amazing facts and history, written in a way that keeps your attention from start to finish.
Death Valley is said to have gotten it’s name from a group of pioneers, The 49ers, heading for the gold fields in 1848-1849. They ran low on supplies, having to eat their oxen, and sent part of their crew ahead to return with more supplies. The crew returned, after walking nearly 270 miles, to the waiting families. As they crossed over Panamint Mountains, leaving the valley, they are said to have looked back and said “Goodbye, Death Valley!”
To hear the horror stories and to see the desolate land, how amazing it is to experience the green and lush Oasis!
The Inn is on a hill and we enter through this tunnel that takes us to the elevator:
The entire inn was rebuilt to replicate the original inn build in 1927 and it was restored to historical accuracy. It felt like we were staying in an old beautiful mansion.
Our room is on the top right, looking down at the gardens:
The pool is fed by the natural springs with no chemicals. It would have been warm enough to swim had we had time to enjoy it.
Looking down from the grounds of our hotel out towards the salt flats:
Looking towards the ranch area with additional lodging, shopping and eating:
One stop we made before checking in was Zabriskie Point. Said to have amazing sunrise and sunset views, the mudstone ridges gather beautiful shadows as the sun make its way across the sky. We did not experience either, but even our afternoon sun made for an amazing landscape.
Looking back down from the lookout point to the parking lot. It was a short easy walk up the hill.
We noticed as we explored the park, that drastic changes in temperature.
We ended the day with a fantastic and delicious dinner at The Last Kind Words Saloon. Although service was a bit slow, the staff were friendly, and the food was wonderful. Word of warning though, we found overall the food to be extremely pricey. I’m not sure if it is the cost to bring it in, that’s what we assume. We were prepared because I checked out the restaurants online before we left home. Something to keep in mind when visiting.
That being said, it was a lovely ending to our day.
peace of life today 
What an amazing place to explore Lisa, so wonderful that you are able to stay there at the oasis. It is a remarkable place and experience 😊
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Thank you, yes, it is so amazing! I actually want to go back and see what we missed! Don’t know if we will, but I want to!
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Looks really exotic, thank you for sharing your experience
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Thank you, Milena! This area is, for sure!
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Fantastic !!! All around! Photos documentation, info. It’s hard to believe the oasis is that beautiful in Death Valley. We had a reservation here, back in September. That’s when the floods arrived. Your photos are a sure sign, we need to go back. Thank you, Lisa. Beautiful.
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Thank you, Donna! How I wish we’d stayed one more day. The road up north was still closed due to the flooding. Guess what! It opened the day we left! I don’t think Scotty’s Castle was open though… But you need to go, and take your 4-wheel drive, and take pictures of the places we couldn’t go so I can see 😁
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Yes, maybe a visit next year. We have a friend who used to have business there and knows the ropes. Fingers crossed we can get him to come with us. We know we’d love it. I am sure the landscape is fascinating.
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Oh, it is!!
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I recognize that landscape from our trip. We didn’t visit the oasis though – very interesting.
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Isn’t that fascinating? I had the idea of driving through on the way to the coast. Once I discovered the oasis, I got excited to visit! I really found this park amazing.
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I just remember thinking: please don’t let us breakdown here, lol
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😂🤣Oh heavens yes! When I read about the park before we left, it said make sure your car is good, and said some rentals don’t have spare tires! Well, I made my husband check when we picked up our rental!
…and I like how it says, call 911 if you need help, but hey, your phone probably won’t work! 😱
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Right! Egads.
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Enjoyed your post and the book with deaths valley facts and history sounds so good!
Also- the closing photo with the drink/ well the two pepper grinders looked like stir sticks at first – and then the window Fran and colors snare it a fun closing photo
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Oh, thank you! And I did not notice the grinders in that last photo, now they kind of bug me! But oh well, I liked the bit of a view of outside. And there is so much history to be shared, so I decided to just break it down by day 😁
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sounds good to me!
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Wow, what an amazing place to stay! I love desert landscapes, but to see a green oasis like that is awesome 😮 Best of all though, to me, are the views from Zabriskie Point – absolutely stunning!
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Oh, there are so many more amazing views! And the oasis what just unbelievable!
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Wow!! So much to discover and so much to experience, it’s a gift! Looks absolutely wonderful!!!
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Thank you, Anita! It was wonderful!
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I enjoyed seeing this place up close. It’s different than I imagined.
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Thank you! Yes, it’s different than I imagined as well!
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Cool tunnel! Loved your photos of the bare, twisting mountains, Lisa.
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Thank you so much! Yeah, that tunnel made it pretty easy to get in and out of the building!
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