Let's take a closer look at some of your options for wedding bliss in paradise:

Get a room

There actually are nine cities in the greater Palm Springs area, and together they offer more than 230 hotels, ranging from privately owned inns to self-contained destination resorts to world-class spa resorts. The full-service resorts provide a veritable one-stop shop for virtually all your wedding needs. Here you can hold pre-wedding events such as the rehearsal dinner and bridal luncheon in a private function room or one of the property's restaurants, have your ceremony indoors or out, host your reception in the hotel's ballroom, and spend your wedding night (or entire honeymoon, for that matter) at the resort and indulge in its amenities - all without leaving the grounds.

Some of Palm Springs larger hotels include the Palm Springs Riviera Resort, Wynham Palm Springs, Parker Palm Springs, Palm Mountain Resort, the Hyatt Regency Palm Springs and the Spa Resort Casino and Spa.

If a more intimate setting is more to your liking, the Palm Springs area is renowned for its array of small, privately owned inns. Villa Royale has seen many couples - celebrity and otherwise - tie the knot; it exudes "old Hollywood" style and romance. Viceroy Palm Springs, a boutique resort and spa hidden away in Palm Springs, features private villas, artistically manicured grounds, and three refreshing pools - perfect for an intimate wedding celebration. The historical Willows Inn - with eight lovely rooms, veranda, gardens, and pool area - can be rented in its entirety for a small wedding (this Mediterranean villa has hosted the likes of Clark Gable, Albert Einstein, and Marion Davies, William Randolph Hearst's paramour). The nearby O'Donnell House, nestled against the mountains behind the Palm Springs Desert Museum and managed by The Willows, "is a beautiful place with gorgeous views," says Richard Cadieux of Joyful Weddings & Marriages, one of the area's leading wedding and event planners. Or you can escape to the enchantment of the 20-room Korakia Pensione, a Moroccan villa that evokes "1,001 Arabian Nights."

Marriage al fresco

With 350 days of glorious sunshine a year, the Palm Springs area is a natural for outdoor weddings. The valley's golf and country clubs offer exquisitely manicured grounds and sweeping vistas of the surrounding mountains. The Moorten Botanical Garden in Palm Springs offers a popular and tranquil ceremony site, complete with waterfall and lush plantings.

To the manor born

If a private mansion isn't among your current real estate holdings here in the desert, you can opt for the next best thing and rent one for your wedding celebration. The 2.5-acre Cree Estate in Cathedral City, built by Palm Springs developer Raymond Cree in 1933, is an ideal spot for a destination wedding with its sleeping accommodations for up to 16. Many couples rent the home for their entire wedding weekend, using it for the rehearsal dinner, wedding, reception (it can accommodate up to 200 guests), and honeymoon.

You can also rent the former homes of stars such as Marilyn Monroe, Liberace, Elizabeth Taylor, and Frank Sinatra - each with a personality as distinctive as its erstwhile owner. Or choose Elvis and Priscilla's "honeymoon hideaway."

Several of the desert's cultural institutions offer their facilities for private events such as weddings. These include Palm Springs Desert Museum, Palm Springs Air Museum, and McCallum Theatre (if you've ever wanted to be on stage, here's your chance!).

Speaking of themes, many couples like to build their rehearsal dinners around a particular theme or cuisine - a Mexican fiesta, for example, or Hawaiian luau. The Palm Springs area boasts an appetizing array of wedding-friendly restaurants - many with private function rooms - that are happy to host your event. From American to Thai, steakhouse to vegetarian, casual to formal, there's a restaurant here sure to please your palate.

If the joy of getting married doesn't already have you floating on air, why not exchange vows in a hot-air balloon? Several local companies offer sunrise and sunset flights, complete with champagne.

And for a natural high, take Palm Springs Aerial Tramway up Mount San Jacinto and pledge your troth at 8,600 feet. The Tramway's banquet facilities can accommodate up to 136, and the restaurant seats 275. The views will take your breath away
By Roxanne Jones