Agua Caliente Cultural Plaza, Museum Opens on Nov. 3

The culture, history, and ancestral land of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians will be on full display when the long-awaited Agua Caliente Cultural Plaza opens this fall. The community grand opening is set for Friday, Nov. 3, and everyone is invited.

“When we share our culture, it helps preserve our culture,” Tribal Chairman Reid D. Milanovich says, noting that the plaza is a dream that has been 30 years in the making.

The 5.8-acre complex in downtown Palm Springs sits atop the Agua Caliente Hot Mineral Spring, also known as Séc-he, the Cahuilla term for “the sound of boiling water.” The last time the ancient waters saw the earth’s surface was more than 12,000 years ago. The waters bubble up from a depth of about a mile and half below the earth’s surface. A traditional gathering spot and source of sustenance for the tribe, the site is now home to the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum, an education garden, and a state-of-the-art spa. The museum is at one end of the sacred grounds, while The Spa at Séc-he, opened in April, is at the other; an inviting Gathering Plaza and Oasis Trail connect the two.

With exhibits and programs encompassing Cahuilla history and culture, contemporary land stewardship, and stories and representations of the Tribe’s past, present, and future, the 48,000-square-foot Agua Caliente Cultural Museum also includes almost 10,000 square feet of permanent exhibition space dedicated to the tribe’s collection of artifacts, some recovered in 2018 from the plaza site itself and dated to more than 8,000 years old. The museum experience begins with a 12-minute film in the museum’s 360-degree animation theater that tells the creation and migration stories of the Agua Caliente people.