Palm Springs Airport Transportation & Car Service
Palm Springs car service across the Coachella Valley — private, and at a fixed price per vehicle.
What’s included
- At PSP, met at baggage claim or the curb
- First hour after landing waits free
- Flights tracked into PSP, LAX or San Diego
- One fixed fare for the whole car
- No charge to cancel more than a day out
- Festival and event hire by the hour
The valley
Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley
The valley is a line of cities along Highway 111 and Interstate 10, and a resort address in any of them is a different drive. Palm Springs sits at the western end; Indio, where the festival grounds are, is at the eastern end.
That spread is the thing to get right when booking. "Palm Springs" on a hotel booking sometimes means Palm Springs and sometimes means the valley generally.
| City | What is there |
|---|---|
| Palm Springs | The original resort town and the airport. Mid-century hotels, downtown restaurants, the aerial tramway. |
| Cathedral City and Rancho Mirage | Between the two ends. Residential, golf, the smaller resorts. |
| Palm Desert | El Paseo shopping, larger resorts, the valley's commercial middle. |
| Indian Wells | Tennis. The garden resorts around the tournament grounds. |
| La Quinta | Golf resorts and the PGA courses, at the southern edge of the valley floor. |
| Indio | The festival grounds at the Empire Polo Club, and the closest beds to them. |
Airports
Three airports serve the desert and the difference between them is hours, not minutes.
Palm Springs International is on the edge of town, a few minutes from downtown. Los Angeles is 126.1 miles away and San Diego 139.9 miles, both around two and a half hours without traffic.
The traffic caveat is not decoration. The run in from Los Angeles on a Friday afternoon is routinely an hour longer than the free-flow figure, and festival weekends are worse. If the fare into LAX is cheaper, price the transfer before booking it.
Driving distance to Palm Springs
- PSP
- On the edge of town, a few minutes from downtown.
- LAX
- 126.1 miles, about 2 hr 30 without traffic.
- San Diego
- 139.9 miles, about 2 hr 50 without traffic.
Prices
What Palm Springs airport transportation costs
Transfers are priced on distance and vehicle, for the whole vehicle rather than per seat. Event work — a festival weekend, a wedding, a night out — is priced by the hour instead, with a four-hour minimum.
Send the trip details and we reply with a fixed price.
| Route | Miles | Premium SUV | Executive SUV | Sprinter Executive | Motor Coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palm Springs airport to Indio | 22.3 | $225 | $265 | $525 | $1,095 |
| San Diego to Palm Springs | 139.9 | $685 | $780 | $1,055 | $1,860 |
| LAX to Palm Springs | 126.1 | $630 | $720 | $995 | $1,770 |
Events
April is the valley's busiest month, with Coachella over two weekends and Stagecoach following it. Those weekends have their own rules about where a vehicle is allowed to drop off, and they are strict enough to plan around. Coachella and Stagecoach transportation covers them.
Outside April the group work is weddings, golf trips and bachelorette weekends. Party bus rental in Palm Springs covers the vehicles and how hourly booking works.
Event work is hourly
- Four-hour minimum, per vehicle.
- The vehicle waits between stops rather than re-booking.
- April books out months ahead — the larger vehicles go first.
Routes
Popular Palm Springs routes
The three we run most often, each a different length of drive.
Booking
The flight number, the airport, the full address and the number of bags. In this valley the city name on its own is not enough, because the cities run into one another along the same highway.
A Palm Springs fare already includes any toll into the valley. Tipping is your call, a child seat is free when requested, and there is no charge to cancel more than 24 hours ahead.
California car service covers the state, and United States the country.
Landing at PSP, staying in La Quinta
A short transfer down the valley. The airport is at the western end and La Quinta at the southern edge, so give the resort name — the golf developments are gated and found by name.
Cheaper fare into LAX
126.1 miles and about 2 hr 30 without traffic, materially more on a Friday. Worth pricing the transfer against the fare difference before booking the ticket.
Festival weekend, group of twelve
Hourly rather than point to point, with a four-hour minimum, and the drop-off rules at the festival grounds decide where the vehicle can actually stop. Read the Coachella guide first.
Bachelorette weekend across the valley
Palm Springs for dinner, Palm Desert for El Paseo, back the same night. Held by the hour so the vehicle waits rather than being re-booked for each leg.
Frequently Asked Questions
A few minutes. PSP sits on the edge of the city, which is why it is the easy arrival when the fares work.
126.1 miles, about 2 hr 30 without traffic. Friday afternoons are routinely an hour longer, and festival weekends worse.
139.9 miles, about 2 hr 50 without traffic.
Yes — Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta and Indio. Give the full address, because the cities run together along one highway.
Per vehicle. The total covers the group, as long as everyone and the luggage fit the vehicle booked.
Yes. Event and group work is booked by the hour with a four-hour minimum, rather than as a point-to-point transfer.
Yes: the stretch limousine seats 14 and is held by the hour with a 4-hour minimum. [Party bus rental in Palm Springs](/locations/palm-springs/party-bus/) has the rate.
It is priced on the distance, for the whole vehicle, and fixed when you book; the return, a Palm Springs to LAX car service, is priced the same way. [LAX to Palm Springs](/locations/palm-springs/routes/lax-to-palm-springs/) has the table by vehicle.
Yes: the Business Sedan for two or an SUV for five, private and priced on distance for the whole car.
Yes, and the festival grounds have specific rules about where a hired vehicle may drop off. The [Coachella and Stagecoach guide](/locations/palm-springs/coachella-stagecoach/) covers them.
At least 24 hours to book online, and call for shorter notice. For the April festival weekends, as far ahead as you can — that is the busiest fortnight of the year here.