Typically for retirees and sunny getaways, Palm Springs area attracts Jewish High Holy Days worshipers

Long an escape for retirees looking for warmer climes and celebrities seeking a sunny weekend getaway, the Coachella Valley also attracts a more religious crowd as the seasons change: Those looking for a place to celebrate the Jewish High Holy Days.

Catering to those planning to spend the 10 day period from Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, in the desert, some local synagogues have set up reciprocal agreements with counterparts around the country or designated local hotels at which observant worshipers can stay.

Chabad of Rancho Mirage offers information on its website about services during the High Holy Days and lets people know about a block of rooms set aside at the Renaissance Indian Wells Resort at a group rate. Chabad of Palm Springs' website links to vacation rental listings which are within walking distance for those who do not drive on holy days or the Sabbath.

Rabbi Shimon Posner of Chabad of Rancho Mirage said those who prefer to walk often take advantage of vacation rental sites like AirBnB, while others will stay in hotels and resorts in the area. Chabad of Rancho Mirage also offers kosher group dinners for the Holy Days. Unlike other local congregations, they also do not require tickets to services.

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Posner said people have long flocked to the desert, not just for the High Holy Days but for Passover, Hanukkah and Shavuot.

“The Jewish community in the desert has a slower pace and a charm to it that people from the larger cities like,” Posner said.

The rabbi said many come from the Los Angeles area–home to America's second largest Jewish community–but that people also come from Canada, Chicago and the East Coast to celebrate the religious holidays in the Coachella Valley.

“A lot of times you have to leave your own home, leave your frame of reference, in order to get that inspiration that the holiday innately offers,” he said.

Posner said people will come one year, love it and come back the next year with friends and family. His daughter even got engaged to someone whose family has routinely come to the valley for the Jewish holidays.

Rabbi Andrew Bentley of Temple Sinai in Palm Desert said the temple has an agreement with other temples around the country that if people do come to the desert for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur they are welcome at Temple Sinai. He said people have long been coming to the area, but the trend seems to have increased in the past five years.

Travel around the High Holy Days is not atypical, he added.

“This is a time of family. Part of it is people coming for season, but part of it is people visiting family,” Bentley said.

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Temples are always fuller during this time, Bentley said. He likened Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur to the Christian holidays of Christmas and Easter as times when those who don’t attend synagogue regularly come to services.

Bentley said it’s a time to reflect on the creation of humanity and how you have been living for the past year, but also a time for people to come together and celebrate.

Posner echoed him:

“The world depends on us, the entire world was created for us,” Posner said. “Which means not only that we’re stewards, but we have enormous responsibility.”

Corinne Kennedy covers the west valley for The Desert Sun. She can be reached at Corinne.Kennedy@DesertSun.com or on Twitter @CorinneSKennedy.

Rosh Hashanah services in the Coachella Valley: