We decided to visit Coachella Valley Museum yesterday after hoping to go for a while now. The grounds and exhibits are so great, only surpassed by the warm welcome by the docent volunteers. My husband, a stroke survivor walking with a wheeled walker, had no problem getting through to the entryway on the long paved path from the external gate on Miles Street. Inside, the exhibits are so interesting and the facility is bright and clean. We love Indio, so seeing the history of the city's populace enriched our understanding about life in early days. They have a beautiful shop which is now added to my list if cool places to obtain unique gift items. Parking is right across Miles on the corner, directly facing the big museum gate. A ramp connects the parking lot to the roadway. While the property is not a massive one, Coachella Valley Museum is a rich cultural walk through the olden days and you are still close to the downtown area and hidden foodie hangouts like Gabino's Creperie and the Friday Night Food Trucks or the sweet Farmers' Market. read more

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This place is a total gem!! Highly recommend for Coachella history, Indian History, Education History, Date Study (the fruit), and so much more!!! read more

Good small yet informational museum Parking across the street. You can choose assisted touring or solo read more

I took my daughter to the museum today, and it was so cool. She is 9 months, so for her it was a lot of cool things to look at and for me so much to learn! We had Sal as our tour guide and he did a great job, it was a great experience and I'd recommend this to others to check out for sure! read more

It was a nice experience and the guide explained things well. The day was fresh when we went and there's definitely something to learn here. read more

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Excellent historical museum of the history of human occupation of the CV. Our docent Josie, throughout the tour was knowledgeable, enthusiastic and entertaining. The grounds were beautiful. They offer children's art classes and other activities. Well worth a visit to this little gem. read more

A delightful museum that is full of informative and well designed exhibits. Native American history, geology, farming, the cotton and date industries, black smithing, fabric spinning and weaving, an early school room, the water aqueduct, and more. It is not a big place, but it is chock full! We had a very friendly and knowledgable Docent who guided us through the museum and grounds. This is a must see place when visiting the Palm Springs and Coachella Valley area. I highly recommend it. read more

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Coachella Valley History Museum is in the home of the Smileys, one of the first doctors to live in Indio which was founded as a convenient half way point between Los Angeles & Yuma, Arizona. It pays homage to the original Native American inhabitants displaying woven baskets. grinding stones, other artifacts. Our short coiffed, expert lady docent was well versed in relating to Cahuilla & old Indio prehistory. King Trapper John? was a Desert Cahuilla (kah wee yah) Native American who sports a top hat & US military jacket in a framed photograph. She explained that since President Lincoln wore a stove pipe hat, the King decided to distinguish himself as a cultured man of his tribe, and he wore an US officer's military jacket that was presented to him from the very person saved by the King. Colorful person that the King was, he liked to live alone & often went into the mountains coming back w/ gold to spend although he wisely never told anyone of the whereabouts of the precious metal. In the same room as the Cahuilla, the geography of the Coachella Valley back a few million years shows it once was under the sea as an extension of the Golfo de Cortes/Gulf of California. Perhaps as the San Andreas fault slowly slides open, the Coachella Valley may once again see some beach front property in a million years or so. For the rest of the tour, Ms. Koehler, from one of the early families in Indio, took it upon herself to highlight the rest of the museum. She took great pride in her family running a very successful feed & seed store, showing us a series of the photos depicting the store through the many decades. Also there are photos showing how the hot climate of the area was conducive to all kinds of produce since the rich soil was deposited by the meandering Colorado River. The 1965 exhibit of what was seen, heard, experienced in Indio is particularly of interest for Baby Boomers since it is the last year of that generation before Generation X came into play. Better hurry since it is scheduled to close by the end of May 2017. Ms. Koehler also took us to the Date Museum which is a rather elaborate history & glorification of that sweet, dulcet fruit from the arid yet aquifer rich areas of Northern Africa & the Middle East. Also there is a large two room school house w/ classic blackboard, chair-desks on wooden runners, school bell pull rope. She was so kind as to see us out at the front entrance. Great local museum w/ nostalgic idiosyncracies & interesting characters as well as depicting local color. But more importantly, the two lady docents made the CVHM come to life with stories to tell of this venerable city of Indio. I'm a fan, and will be back when the new exhibit replaces "Indio1965" 4 Yelp stars. AdChoices © 2017 AOL Inc. All Rights Reserved read more

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This is a wonderful small local museum worth a visit. There are inside and outdoor exhibits. Date palm trees outside are labeled and varieties explained. One entire building is devoted to dates! Small admission charge. Bathrooms are open. Friendly staff and tours are available. read more

Coachella Valley History Museum - Date palm tree. - Museums Near Me - Indio, California

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This is an amazing little museum full of history and many items from the past owners of this house and compound. Everything is labeled so well, even all the blacksmith tools in the back. I used to live in the desert and I learned some new, interesting stories. Also see the Date Museum that is included on the property. I had no idea how dates got to the American Desert. Very special. Don't forget to visit the school room with each desk ready with chalk and a black slate tablet. Charming from beginning to end. Worth it! read more

I came here to see the desert submarine, a small metal shack with two beds. Used by railroad and construction crews before the age of air-conditioning, cooling of the interior was achieved by the constant evaporation of water-soaked burlap that covered the galvanized metal exterior. Supposedly, this cool concept lowered the temperature in the shack between 20-30 degrees. There's more to see at the Coachella Valley Museum and the volunteer guides provide a thorough overview as they take you from room to room of a former physician's home and through the exhibits outside. A renovated early schoolhouse (that also serves as a place for meetings) is part of the complex and a date museum will be a new addition in October. The kid in me hopes they think about constructing a working model of the desert submarine. read more

Coachella Valley History Museum - Entrance - Museums Near Me - Indio, California

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The Coachella Valley History Museum is a delightful off the path treasure to discover in Indio. Plan to spend a couple of hours. Tours are given by knowledgeable docents. They have well preserved historic icons of the early history of the Coachella Valley. There is a historic date grove, and interesting artifacts from the Native American population, and the fascinating history of how the Salton Sea came to be. It's worth your while to stop by if you love learning about history. read more

Coachella Valley History Museum - The Coachella Valley History Museum - Museums Near Me - Indio, California

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We were looking for something to do on a cool winter day in the Coachella Valley and had a great 2 hours! Call ahead and make sure you take a very knowledgeable tour with there host. The key things we took away from the visit was a greater understanding of the Salt and Sea and why we find seashells in the desert. You will find many items and interesting reading as you proceed through the old schoolhouse, the blacksmith house, the kitchen from the early 1900s. Thanks for a great time. It is not a glitzy modern place but has much character and ambiance of the time the museum represents. read more

Coachella Valley History Museum - A real Cork Tree - Museums Near Me - Indio, California

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Soooooo beautiful and amazing. My daughter and her great grandmother and I were very fortunate to have had a tour by Carole who was the sweetest person we have met thus far in our trip to Indio read more

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Came in Novemembef 2021 it was an hour before closing and we wanted to check out the offrendas before the exibit closed. We inadvertently ended up on a squeezed in 2nd last guided tour of the day. It was nice because it was just my husband and I and another couple. The guides are volunteers, they are local and very knowledgeable in the history of our valley. Its an interactive tour with lots of history and details. Unfortunately some of the exibits had already been closed down by thr previous group (who was supposed to be the last). :\ Anyhow, There was a wedding going on so towards the end of our tour, things got jumbled with wedding guests and last minute museum visitors milling about. We ended up merged with the group ahead of us for the dates and salton sea exhibit. The lady that was at the register in the beginning of our visit was gracious enough to keep the gift shop open as the tour ran a little past closing. I picked up a Dia De los muertos art and History if Indio books. Ill defintely be back to take a proper tour. We visited on a whim right before closing and they were so accomadating and made us feel as if the day was just starting. read more

We totally enjoyed this little museum. The staff here are super knowledgeable and friendly. We arrived late, half an hour before closing on Sunday afternoon as we received incorrect business hours information. We learned that they won't open until Friday next if we missed Sunday tour, and they learned that we will leave town on Thursday, all three staff decided to stay late and open for us and toured us around the museum. It was a great experience that our kids enjoyed learning the history of Coachella valley. The lady at the store (forgot her name) even drew a map for directions to a local garden since I asked about where to get date. read more

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Serendipity! We were looking for things to do in the Palm Springs area & read about a traveling Smithsonian exhibition about the Bracero Program. It is housed at the CVHM which is an unexpected treasure housing 3 sites. The Date Museum shares info about the date industry in Indio, the U.S. date capitol. There is also a great 1909 school house. The History Museum is a fantastic house that tells about the Cahuillas, etc. Docents,Bill & Kathy are fountains of knowledge Admission $10, senior $8 Facilities available for reunions, weddings, school trips read more

Coachella Valley History Museum - Smithsonian Traveling Exhibit - the Bracero Program - Museums Near Me - Indio, California

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This museum is a perfect slice of Coachella Valley life in the early to mid-twentieth century. It's housed in adobe cottages, and the docents have done a nice job of documenting what life was like. There were wonderful examples of Native American baskets and mortars, a submarine shelter (ingenious idea!), and an excellent exhibit of influential and pioneering women who lived here. Grounds are peaceful and shady, and out back is some neat old stuff from around the area. Don't skip the Indio schoolhouse, it'll take you back! The Date Museum was okay. read more

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Wonderful tour here. Saw lots if gadgets that my grandparent had in their home. Learned about the history of the area. Walked around the outside and across the street to the date museum and the old schoolhouse. All were very cool. No one else there so we enjoyed everything in peace and quiet read more

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We really enjoyed our visit to this museum. It is full of interesting exhibits, and our guide, Gretchen,was very informative. The grounds are meticulously well maintained. Highly recommend a visit. read more

There's only a couple of stories in Indio: Farming, Dates, and the Salton Sea. Unless you stop at this museum you will have a hard time understanding any of these. Their hours are Sat and Sun 10-3, but we called 760-342-6651 and Ernell met our tourist schedule and was a great guide on the local topics. read more

I Run a Dj Business and it was my first time here Djn at this venue. The staff was so nice and professional but the venue is outdated on the electrical. I had the electricity breaker turn off twice on me while trying to do a Quinceañera presentation. I had to shut off half of my Dj equipment in order to work with out popping breakers. Equipment that I provided was 2 15 inch speakers . One 18 inch subwoofer, 2 Led Scanners, 6 Led Par lights, One Laptop, One Controller, External small Mixer, One Wireless Microphone. Doors need to open at least 2 hours before vendors setting up. We ended up starting later because of it. I wouldn't recommend this place for special events that would need big Dj systems or Live Bands unless they only take really minimal equipment for example just 2 small speakers and 2 Dj lights.Other than that the place is really beautiful and full of nice History. read more

Every city seems to have a local history museum. Most of the time, it's in an old building that was saved from demolition and has been filled with a smattering of antiques. This museum was no different. Not strong enough to be a tourist attraction, it's the kind of place that recalls childhood memories of going on an elementary school field trip to some boring dull destination that typically smelled odd. The site has three buildings, the History Museum in an old house, the Date Museum (as in date palm, not relationship date), and a two-room school house. It took a short 20 minutes to visit all three buildings for the unusually high $10 entrance fee. read more

A beautiful collection to share the history of the Amazing Coachella Valley! The school house is really cool! A highly recommended place to visit if you are starting your desert obsession. read more

Coachella Valley History Museum - Inside the school house was pretty cool to see! - Museums Near Me - Indio, California

Oh my, we passed by the museum and discussing about visiting or not outside of the museum door, a lady got out of the museum, chasing us, saying that she can charge us if we take pictures of the water tower, seriously? Never had an unfriendly experience like this. read more

We loved it! Our guide Gretchen was so knowledgeable. She was able to answer all our questions on the area and gave us a good insight into the development of the valley. Thoroughly enjoyed our visit! read more

Such a cute little place. I've lived in the valley for years and never visited. It's small and not a lot of things to see to some folks, but we found it very interesting. We spent about over 30 minutes in the school house since we thought that was really cool. I'm not sure if kids would be able to appreciate it, but most adults would I think. We did the tour on our own, but would probably benefit from getting a tour guide but they weren't available when we went. The volunteers there are very nice. I've spoken to the event coordinator Liz there for a potential venue site and she was such a sweet and nice person. Looking forward to attending the Day of Dead Festival later this year. read more

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Small museum but quite the find! Brings back some things from the gold ol olden days.

A gem of a place with excellent information, photos, and objects from the Valley's history. The current exhibit on women was illuminating and the materials on the history of the Salton Sea are especially interesting. The one room school house really sets the stage for imagining what things were like in the past. Very nice and helpful ladies on site. Cool things in gift shop. read more