If you're staying in the Palm Springs area, it's possible to visit the national park as a day trip. But if you'd like to stay close by or spend more time here, consider Twentynine Palms, just outside the north boundary of the national park on Highway 62, which offers budget-to-moderate lodging. There are also accommodations in Blackrock and Joshua Tree (West Entrance). For a complete listing of Twentynine Palms lodging, contact the 29 Palms Chamber of Commerce, 73660 Civic Center Drive, Twentynine Palms, CA 92277 (tel. 760/367-3445; www.29chamber.com). Blackrock information is available through the Yucca Valley Chamber of Commerce, 56711 Twentynine Palms Hwy., Yucca Valley, CA 92284 (tel. 760/365-6323; www.yuccavalley.org). For Joshua Tree (West Entrance), contact the Joshua Tree Chamber of Commerce, 61325 Twentynine Palms Hwy. #F, Joshua Tree, CA 92252 (tel. 760/366-3723; www.joshuatreechamber.org).
Near the visitor center in the Oasis of Mara is the rustic 29 Palms Inn (tel. 760/367-3505; www.29palmsinn.com), a cluster of adobe cottages and old cabins from the 1920s; its garden-fresh restaurant is the best in town. The 100-room Best Western Garden Inn (tel. 760/367-9141; www.bestwestern.com), is also a comfortable base from which to maximize your outdoor time. Also recommended in Twentynine Palms is the 53-room Holiday Inn Express Hotel and Suites, 71809 Twentynine Palms Hwy. (tel. 760/361-4009).
Nine campgrounds scattered throughout the park offer pleasant though often spartan accommodations, with just picnic tables and pit toilets for the most part. Only two -- Black Rock Canyon and Cottonwood Springs -- have potable water and flush toilets, for a $15 overnight fee. Indian Cove and West Entrance have water at the ranger station, less than 2 miles from their closest campgrounds. You can make reservations online at http://reservations.nps.gov or by calling tel. 800/365-2267. Hot showers are available at Coyote Corner, 6535 Park Blvd. in Joshua Tree (tel. 760/366-9683); they also rent climbing and camping gear.
