A quiet enclave situated between Palm Desert and Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage is a longtime favorite with presidents and business moguls. The former estate of Gerald and Betty Ford is located on the exclusive Thunderbird Golf Course, while Barack Obama has paid multiple visits to Rancho Mirage both during and after his presidency, golfing at Porcupine Creek, the private course of Oracle founder Larry Ellison. “Rancho” is also home to one of the country’s most distinctive Mid Century Modern estates: Sunnylands, a 200-acre property designed by A. Quincy Jones that served as the winter residence of philanthropists Walter and Leonore Annenberg. Today, Sunnylands is open to the public for tours and also serves as a retreat venue for global leaders, hosting everyone from presidents to CEOs to Supreme Court Justices. As for housing, Thunderbird Heights boasts many standout midcentury properties as well as fine properties from other eras, while the Tamarisk Country Club is lined with wondrous, one-of-a-kind homes designed by prominent architects of the ‘50s and ‘60s.
