Fall Into Modernism

For many, Modernism Week means February. 11 days of sold-out home tours, packed schedules and hundreds of events spread across the Coachella Valley.

But Palm Springs doesn’t stop celebrating modernism when February ends. October offers something different. Smaller in scale and easier to navigate, it feels a little more relaxed while still delivering many of the things that make Modernism Week so special.

Returning this fall, Modernism Week – October will feature more than 50 events over four days (October 15-18, 2026), from architectural tours and home visits to design talks, vintage treasures and some intriguing new after-dark experiences.

The Lautner Compound, designed in the 1940s by architect John Lautner

Architecture remains at the heart of it all. The festival’s popular double decker bus tours once again offer an open-air introduction to Palm Springs’ most celebrated neighborhoods, while smaller guided tours provide a closer look at homes, architects and stories that helped define the desert’s modernist legacy. Walking tours return as well, proving that sometimes the best way to appreciate Palm Springs is simply to slow down and look around.

On tour for the first time, Blue Skies Village, founded in the 1950s by Bing Crosby

Home tours are always among the festival’s highlights, and this year’s lineup includes several worth circling on the calendar. The Featured Home Tour showcases The Marquee at Twin Palms, a meticulously restored 1957 residence that embraces the clean lines and effortless indoor-outdoor living that made Palm Springs modernism famous. Blue Skies Village opens its gates for the first time during Modernism Week – October, offering guests the opportunity to tour this storied Rancho Mirage community and its William Cody-designed clubhouse.

CoCo Cabana, one of the few intact Garden Apartment properties in Palm Springs, built 1955

CoCo Cabana offers a glimpse at quintessential Palm Springs leisure living. Built in 1955 and designed by Coachella Valley architect Charles W. Doty, this beautifully preserved garden apartment community in Araby Cove invites guests to tour seven distinct mid-century residences. A rare opportunity to experience architecture, landscape and community thoughtfully designed as one. Plus, proceeds will go to CoCo Cabana’s Historic Designation initiative.

Artist rendering of the Aerial Tramway’s Mountain Station, which first opened in 1963

One of the festival’s most intriguing new additions takes visitors above Palm Springs itself. A guided excursion aboard the Aerial Tramway will explore the architectural significance of both the Valley and Mountain stations – designed mostly by Albert Frey and E. Stewart Williams — before ascending into the spectacular San Jacinto Mountains aboard the world’s largest rotating tram car.

The Palm Springs Modern Show celebrates mid-century and 20th-century modern design

For those who enjoy the thrill of discovering something special, the Palm Springs Modernism Fall Show returns with dealers from across the country offering vintage and contemporary furnishings, artwork, and decorative objects. The always popular Preview Party remains one of the festival’s signature events, offering early access before the doors officially open.

Bar Issi, one of the select restaurants showcased during the new Fall Dining Series.

Modernism Week – October is also expanding its after hours offerings this year. New additions include the Modernism Week Fall Dining Series, featuring curated dinners at some of the city’s favorite restaurants, alongside Modernism Week After Dark, a collection of late night social events designed to keep the celebration going. Sunset cocktails at the Lautner Compound, a progressive dinner at Disney’s Cotino, wine tasting at Hall Winery and retro-inspired performances from PS Underground make a compelling case for staying out a little later.

And then there’s Charles Phoenix. The mid-century pop culture historian returns with an all-new retro slide show, LOS ANGELESLAND, his affectionate and wonderfully eccentric celebration of Southern California’s past. If you’ve seen him before, you know that no one delivers nostalgia as enthusiastically as Charles Phoenix. If you haven’t, this is a very good place to start.

Other talks include Mod With a Twist at Ocotillo Lodge, featuring five humorous 10-minute presentations on the mid-century era, and Palm Springs, Tuned In, a historic retrospective on music in the Coachella Valley.

Part of the appeal of Modernism Week – October has always been its scale. It’s easier to leave room for the unexpected like a spontaneous stop for a date shake, an extra hour browsing for treasures at the Fall Show or lingering over cocktails after a sunset tour. Palm Springs has always been more than its architecture, and the October festival leaves enough space to enjoy both the events and the city itself.

Whether it’s your first Modernism Week or your tenth, October may be the perfect time to experience it. The crowds are smaller, the pace is slower and the desert still has plenty of stories left to tell. To view the complete Modernism Week – October schedule, taking place October 15-18, 2026, and to purchase tickets, visit ModernismWeek.com.

Written by Ken MacIntyre © Modtraveler.net