The Palm Springs International Film Festival: A Cinematic Experience

Awful; disappointing on every level except the films which were wonderful!

We really enjoyed this Road Scholar program. Palm Springs is a very pleasant, walkable town, and we felt safe exploring both day and night. The weather in early January was excellent and made the experience even better. The daily itinerary followed a comfortable and predictable rhythm: a hotel buffet breakfast, a Q&A session with the previous day’s lecturer, a bus ride or walk to the theater for two films with a box lunch in between, then a return to the hotel for an afternoon lecture, followed by dinner either with the group or on our own. The films were consistently good and better than we expected. It was a real treat to have them privately screened just for Road Scholars. The lectures were mostly interesting and provided some insight into the film industry. We also greatly enjoyed the social side of the program, especially the group dinners and the reception, which gave us a chance to get to know many of the other Road Scholars. There were a few minor downsides. The breakfast buffet was fine overall, though the eggs and potatoes were often lukewarm or cold, and while the room was adequate, the mattress was noticeably sagging. Overall, this was a pleasant and well-run program in an appealing location, with good films and enjoyable company. We liked it enough that we’ll likely be back next year, either on our own or with Road Scholar again.

This is the third consecutive Palm Springs film festival that I've attended and this one was by far the best. First of all, the selection of Road Scholar films was far better than last year which focused on many down and depressing films. This year, it was a nice mix of uplifting films, thoughtful films, and of course some depressing films (which is fine as long as they don't dominate the selections). The Renaissance Hotel was far superior to the hotels of the past two years. The packed lunches were far superior to the lunches of the past two years. The past two years featured two critics who were wonderful, but it was definitely time for a change. Having a good speaker each day was a nice touch. Monday's speaker was simply awful, but the other three were stellar. Overall, a wonderful experience for myself and the group I was traveling with. We will be back!

Great get away. Well selected films, interesting speakers . Well organized program.

What a wonderful experience! Road Scholar exceeded our expectations in every way. We'll definitely be going on more Road Scholar adventures.

The PSIFF wa a good experience. The films were each good, some excellent. The venue was very good. The hotel was adequate, but the mattresses need to be “refreshed”. Mine had a big sag in the middle. I liked that we could walk to the center of town. The breakfast buffet was almost edible. The box lunches were adequate. But we had the same cookie, and apple EACH time. The bread wa not fresh. The learning sessions were inadequte. The person who gave the talk about producing a film only spoke about the qualities of a good producer ( really a good manager). I’m still waiting to hear why there are so many producers and executive producers. How they are chosen and what each does. The man who spoke the last day really only talked about the celebrities he knows and it was like a gossip session. He did provide his insights about some of the characteristics that make a good “Hollywood” person. I much more would have enjoyed an analysis and discussion about the films we saw.

The films - pretty much well chosen. Exception: 2 films were from the USA. Films from Asia and Africa were not included. Environment poor for actual adult learning -all large group lectures rather than small discussion groups which are much more conducive to learning This program is really great for people who do not care about discussions. Not at all great for people who obtain great benefit hearing, sharing and exchanging opinions with others.

Disappointing. The films selected varied in quality, which is OK because that is what I expect at a film festival. The biggest disappointment was the Road Scholar "lectures". The "lectures" consisted of a moderator speaking for a few minutes, then taking questions. Almost all of the questions were not questions at all, they were the attendee's opinion of the film. About 10% of them were in any way helpful. It is hard for me to see what value Road Scholar added to my experience. The architectural tour was a nice add to the trip, although I would rather have heard more about the architecture and less about which film star used to live in the house. The large group logistics were annoying. There were always a few who wandered off/ didn't listen/came late. That took up time for the rest of us and meant that we were sometimes treated like children. The hotel was adequate for this large group, and very well located in Palm Springs. The breakfast buffet was really good. The lunches, however, were pretty bad. For the two dinners out, Lulu was really good; Grand Central was OK.

This was a great trip and I enjoyed it immensely. My group leader Karen was fantastic! There were minor glitches with the hotel meals, but the two outside restaurants were very good. A few of the films we saw were outstanding.

I have attended this program about 10 times

My experience with road scholar has always been positive. I am especially grateful to be able to attend your programs as a single female as my husband is not often to be able to be present.

I've done more than 44 Road Scholar programs and this was a very good one.

I fulfilled an ambition to attend the Palm Springs International Film Festival. Traveling with Road Scholar made it almost effortless, educational and a pure delight.

The Palm Springs International Film Fest provides an opportunity to see a wide variety of films in a beautiful sunny location. My husband and I enjoyed our fist Road Scholar trip and our first film fest very much.

I thoroughly enjoyed my week in Palm Springs for the International Film Festival! Mary Jackson was a great leader, keeping track of us and getting us where we needed to be. The city tour was a plus and the Hyatt Palm Springs was in a great location that allowed for walking to shops, art museum, and restaurants. I highly recommend Road Scholar for educational and informative tours.

Road Scholar does such a good job for a very reasonable cost. The Palm Springs film festival was a wonderful event and I am seriously considering registering for next year's event.

I attended the Palm Springs film festival in January of 2024. This was my first time attending this event. I enjoyed some of the movies, but not all. The food was great and the restaurants were good. The complaint I have is too many people attending the restaurants together. I would have preferred one color group goes to a restaurant instead of three groups going together. Also the hotel was ok but to get help from the front desk was not so great at times. The Rooms were very spacious. I will attend this festival again only if they improve the dining experience at the restaurants, too many people.

This me gave an interesting introduction to new films, filmmaking, and how others view films. We saw 8 films, and there were opportunities to view others while we were there.

The Movies, with one exception, were excellent. The diversity of the content made the experience very meaningful.

WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE/EDUCATIONALLY AND SOCIALLY.

Very informative regarding other cultures.

If you enjoy films and are interested in learning more about the industry, this is a good choice for you. You will definitely expand your world.

Honestly, I was disappointed. The lodging (Hyatt, Palm Springs) was substandard, especially since I paid more than $250 for the extra night I needed. The food at the hotel buffets was usually not hot and they were not able to pull off seated service for the group in a timely manner (after 2 hours, they had not even served the desserts). One morning the eggs overcooked (brown is not a good color for scrambled eggs); they only replaced them after no one would eat them. The tap water in the hotel was bad enough that they provided bottled water, my coffee maker didn't work, no microwave in the room, and uneven housekeeping (when I checked in, the ice bucket in the room and water and dead leaves in it). The RS organization and communication was not managed well. Specifically, when the "detailed itinerary" that was published listed the FILMS we would be seeing, but not the TIME for lunches, so I ended up not being able to see a film that I selected due to the RS schedule. The printed itinerary wasted space for "fun facts" that were pointless. I ended up calling RS multiple times before the trip just to get information I needed. RS did try to ameliorate the anonymity of an unwieldy group by creating smaller groups, but the only thing the groups did together was orientation and one lunch, meaning that you were nearly always one person in a group of over 170. But basically, I'd prefer to do a film fest on my own and choose what I want to see. I didn't get to see some of the things I wanted to (notably "Parasite") due to the morning being blocked for the group screenings, and the "overhead" of getting back to the hotel for meals. Not my favorite trip!

Love this program. Glad it's back. Wish it was 8days instead of 5. Used to be 8 days. Five days goes too fast.

What a wonderful experience, Road Scholar is great because your people are great. My 91 yr. mother Dorothy and myself Mary Kay had a blast. Thank God, your staff made up for the Hyatts issues. Pls pass on to Linda that she is one of the best Road Scholar rep. that my mother has had in her last 47 trips with Road Scholar. Also, major thanks to Monica and Tiara...the trip was wonderful thanks to these individuals. Planning our next trip!!!

What a wonderful experience! The Hyatt, while old, had the best location; within walking distance of the main movie theater , shops, and restaurants. The breakfasts and other meals were quite good, and the lunch at Lulu's was very good also. The movies and discussion groups were great. Kelly Lampron and the other Road Scholar staff were so friendly, helpful and professional; plus they were always available. Kelly got a free voucher for my friend and I for a discussion group with 7 directors which was so interesting! I'll look forward to repeating the experience next year!

Good job. Looking forward to the PSIFF next year. A special experience we have with our sister-in-law Lola Byron.

This is a fantastic program for any film buff. If you are not already a film buff you will become one after attending this program. Road Scholar takes immaculate care of all the details - the program is very much all-inclusive meaning you don't have to worry about accommodations, food, or transportation on site. I highly recommend it.