Santa Fe, NM Road Trips

Santa Fe was once the capital of Spain's, and then Mexico's, territories north of the Rio Grande, but its visible history extends far beyond the arrival of the Spanish; it is thought to have been the site of Puebloan villages that had already been long abandoned by the time the Spanish arrived in 1607. It became the state capital when the territory of New Mexico achieved statehood in 1912. In the early 20th century, the area attracted a number of artists, such as Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz. The region remains important on America's art scene. The arrival of Igor Stravinsky and the founding of the Santa Fe Opera, one of the world's leading opera companies, had a similarly invigorating and enduring influence on the musical community. Many people go to Santa Fe for spiritual gatherings and to practice meditative arts at the many spas and resorts that are in and around Santa Fe. Santa Fe is rooted in paradoxes. On the one hand, it is one of the United States' oldest cities (by some reckonings the oldest), and many residents can trace their roots and property holdings in town back to the 17th century. On the other hand, it has also been the target of a teeming influx of wealthy immigrants since the mid-1970s that has spurred a great deal of new construction and created inflated prices for real estate—and drastically elevated taxes on old family properties, many of which are owned by families that can't afford the taxes. The tension between new and old, rich and poor, etc., is a persistent undercurrent in the community.

Like many towns founded by the Spanish, Santa Fe has a central square, the 1 Plaza, that is a gathering place for all types. For hours of entertainment, pull up a bench and people watch; you'll rapidly gain an appreciation for how the "City Different" nickname applies. Especially nice in the summer evenings as the temperatures drop (although rain may drop as well) and the people come out. Santa Fe has a variety of interesting museums, most in the downtown area and easily reached on foot. Four of the biggest in Santa Fe (the Palace of the Governors, the New Mexico Museum of Art, the Museum of International Folk Art, and the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture) are sub-units of the Museum of New Mexico, for which you can buy a shared pass for $20 that allows access to all four museums and the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art within a four-day period. If you only have time for one, individual passes are available. The following is a list of museums in the downtown area: 2 Palace of the Governors / New Mexico History Museum, 105 E Palace Ave (North face of Santa Fe Plaza), ☏ +1 505 476-5200. Daily 10AM-5PM, closed M Nov-Apr (open Fridays 5-7PM May-Oct and first Friday of each month Nov-Apr), Memorial Day-Labor Day. The oldest public building in the United States, the Palace of the Governors is a 17th-century building that once served as the main capitol building and now houses an excellent historical museum and shop, with exhibits on the history of the building and a functioning antique print press.

Santa Fe hosts a seemingly unending series of community fairs, festivals and celebrations, of which the most characteristic is the Fiesta de Santa Fe. This grand city-wide festival is held over the weekend after Labor Day in mid-September, after most of the summer tourists have left (and has been described as Santa Fe throwing a party for itself to celebrate the tourists leaving!). The celebration commemorates the reconquest of Santa Fe in 1692 by the Spanish after the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. Fiesta opens with a procession bearing a statue of the Blessed Virgin known as La Conquistadora to the Cathedral of St. Francis. Revelry starts with the Thursday night burning of Zozobra, also known as "Old Man Gloom," a huge, animated figure whose demise at the hands of a torch-bearing dancer symbolizes the banishing of cares for the year. Prepare for BIG crowds - this event is not for the faint of heart and can be downright scary for small children! The crowning of a queen (La Reina) of the Fiesta and her consort, representing the Spanish nobleman, Don Diego de Vargas, who played a key role in the founding of the city, is a matter of great local import. Revelry continues through the weekend and features such events as the hilarious children's Pet Parade on Saturday morning and the Hysterical/Historical Parade on Sunday afternoon. A Fiesta Melodrama at the Community Playhouse effectively and pointedly pokes fun at city figures and events of the year past. The Fiesta closes with a solemn, candle-lit walk to the Cross of the Martyrs.

Santa Fe, and the rest of New Mexico, is known for its huge and spicy plates full of Southwestern food. Restaurants in Santa Fe run from expensive haute Southwestern to down-home fast-food style plates, where you will be asked "red or green" (chile). You can try a mix of both red and green chile peppers by asking for your dish "Christmas". However, Santa Fe also has a number of excellent restaurants offering other cuisines—possibly too many of them, in fact, as the highly competitive marketplace forces even some very good ones out of business before their time. It is almost impossible to overstate the dining possibilities here; they far outstrip those in most American cities ten times Santa Fe's size. As with several other New Mexico towns, restaurants in this description are broken into the sub-categories "New Mexican" (which is not the same as "Mexican" by any means) and "Other." Meals (exclusive of drinks and tips) will usually cost $10/person or less at the "Budget" places, $10 to $25 at the "Mid-range" ones, and more—sometimes much more—at the "Splurges." Many Santa Fe restaurants are somewhat casual as regards business hours; if a place doesn't have hours listed below, inquire locally as to when it's open, as the hours may change erratically. 1 Santa Fe Farmers Market, 1607 Paseo de Peralta (Paseo de Peralta at Guadalupe), ☏ +1 505 983-4098. The Santa Fe Farmers Market represents over 100 active vendors and features hundreds of different agricultural products.

Two of the ubiquitous alcoholic beverages in Santa Fe are the familiar margarita and the possibly-less-familiar sangria, a wine-based concoction incorporating fruit, more commonly associated with Spain and Central America. Most of the better New Mexican restaurants in town have their own house sangria; it goes well with New Mexican cuisine, and is claimed by some to be a useful antidote if the spicy food gets the better of you. It's considered much more of a day-to-day beverage here than in many other places. The high altitude may increase sensitivity to alcohol. Much of the beer consumed in the community is imported from Mexico, however, there are numerous excellent local breweries. If you're sticking with non-alcoholic beverages, a tip: Many locals advise against having soft drinks with New Mexican food, instead preferring iced tea. This preference is based on the belief that carbonation in drinks (including beer) tends to accentuate the spiciness of the chile peppers and cause the spicy component to hang around in the throat, while iced tea mutes it. Do the experiment, or at least have your designated driver do it. 1 Secreto Lounge, 210 Don Gaspar Ave (inside the Hotel St Francis), ☏ +1 505 983-5700. One of the best places for people-watching in all of Santa Fe. The crowd tends to be more sedate here than at some other places. Two great guys to look for here, Daniel and Chris, both award winning mixologists. 2 Inn on the Alameda, 303 E Alameda St, ☏ +1 505 984-2121.

Most Santa Fe hotels, motels and B&Bs are in one of two areas: downtown (near the Palace of the Governors and Plaza) or on Cerrillos Road, the commercial main drag. The distance of the Cerrillos Road hotels from the downtown attractions isn't significant from a purely physical point of view; the most distant ones (near Villa Linda Mall) are still within a couple miles of the downtown area, which can be reached quickly by car or shuttle bus. However, the atmospheric distance is enormous. Downtown has the fabled Santa Fe ambience of a sleepy old Western village frozen in time and transported to the 21st century (with, of course, a few modern amenities and nuisances added, like cars), while Cerrillos Road has the "ambience" of a shopping district in a suburb of a major city. In compensation, hotels on Cerrillos Road tend to be less expensive on an amenity-for-amenity basis. When deciding where to stay in Santa Fe, give particular thought to the balance of ambience and economy that fits your needs. "Budget" lodging (if any) will start at less than $75 a night, "Mid-range" from $75 to $150, and "Splurge" greater than $150, with some of the luxury suites, etc., ranging far upward. A warning on the "Budget" and "Mid-range" classifications: Santa Fe hotels and motels are prone to very substantial seasonal variations in availability and price.

1 Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF IATA). American Eagle Airlines operates daily service from Dallas/Fort Worth and Phoenix, while United Express has daily service from Denver. If you enter New Mexico via the larger Albuquerque airport, rent a car and drive, as there is no commuter air service connecting the two airports. Alternatively, you can also take the Rail Runner commuter train (see below) or one of the shuttle buses such as Groome Transportation, which will pick you up at the Albuquerque airport and drop you off at one of a handful of locations in Santa Fe. A commuter rail line, the New Mexico Rail Runner Express, connects Santa Fe to Albuquerque and surrounding communities (from Downtown Albuquerque you can catch a shuttle to the airport, ABQ IATA). There are four stations in Santa Fe: the 2 Santa Fe Depot at the Railyards on Guadalupe Street near the Sanbusco Center, the South Capitol station off Cordova Road between Cerrillos Road and St. Francis Drive, the Zia Road station at Zia Road and St. Francis Drive on the south side of town, and the NM 599 station at I-25 and NM 599 southwest of town. The Santa Fe Depot is the most useful for sightseeing, as it puts you in the historic downtown area within relatively easy walking distance of the plaza. The other stations are meant more for commuters and are of little use to sightseers. The Rail Runner runs daily, although service can be limited outside the weekday rush hour periods. Fares are based on how far you ride; a day pass will usually be in the range of $5–10.

Outside of the downtown area (consisting roughly of the blocks surrounding the Plaza and the adjacent Railyards district and Canyon Road), a car is definitely your best bet and will be all but necessary for visiting any of the more far-flung attractions (e.g. the Opera, the mountains, any of the nearby pueblos). However, if you're only staying for a couple of days, you can certainly get by without a car with what the small but vibrant downtown has to offer; it is very pedestrian-friendly and walked, often, by many people late into the evening, particularly in summertime when the tourists flood in. Santa Fe Route M. The free Santa Fe Pickup shuttle has been suspended indefinitely. Route M has been designated as the de facto replacement. It runs between the State Capitol, along East Alameda Street, and Museum Hill approximately every hour 7AM-7PM weekdays and 10AM-5PM weekends. (updated Dec 2022) Santa Fe Trails, ☏ +1 505 955-2001. Limited, but improving, public transportation is available from the city's bus service. Bus fare is $1, a day pass costs $2, and a 31-day pass costs $20; youth under 18 ride free, half-fare for seniors/disabled. Buy fare or passes from the bus driver (cash only, exact change required). The most useful routes for tourists are #2, which runs along Cerrillos Road between downtown and the Santa Fe Place mall, and Route M, which runs between the Santa Fe train depot, downtown and Museum Hill. Parking can be a problem during the summer, but look for parking lots (fee) near St.

Santa Fe is a fairly safe city as regards violent crime, despite the widely publicized occurrence of occasional hate crimes. In reality, the crime rate, with the exception of residential burglary (a definite problem in town but one unlikely to affect the traveler), is not high compared to other American communities of comparable size, and the visitor is very unlikely to have any crime-related problems. Some of the bars can get a little rough, with ethnic tensions frequently a factor despite the city's multicultural nature; simply don't stir up trouble and you should be OK. Otherwise, public areas are generally quite safe, and are well yet unobtrusively patrolled by the city police. Much more of a problem is automobile safety, for several reasons. Many of the roads were built during a slower-paced, less-populous time, and lack the carrying capacity for the current crowds. Northern New Mexico has serious problems with drunk driving, and Santa Fe is not exempt from these, particularly late at night. Another factor is an inexplicably high density of bad drivers and/or decrepit vehicles with poorly secured cargo; natives often speak of having a "New Mexico moment" when something falls off the back of a pickup or trailer and into the roadway in front of an unsuspecting driver. This is a good place to practice your defensive driving, particularly along St. Francis Drive and Cerrillos Road (the intersection of these two has been voted the most dangerous intersection in all of New Mexico).