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NewGuy2005

What to do in Santa Fe?

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If you are going to have a car, take the tram up the Sandia Peak in Albuquerque. There are also many missions in the area with very interesting stories -- the oldest church in the USA, a staircase with a mysterious carpenter, etc... The Rio Grande Gorge (and bridge) in Taos is beautiful. If you are into art, both Santa Fe and Taos have a thriving art community with galleries everywhere.
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Phillbo

***Once you do the obligatory touristy things, absolutely nothing. It's a barren desert with some interesting scenery in the form of a few mountains, canyons, and rocks.



I tend to agree... Boring city.

I tend to disagree... I want to move there. :)
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oldwomanc6

******Once you do the obligatory touristy things, absolutely nothing. It's a barren desert with some interesting scenery in the form of a few mountains, canyons, and rocks.



I tend to agree... Boring city.

I tend to disagree... I want to move there. :)
Quote

What to do in Santa Fe?



Get a vehicle and run - run as fast as you can and get the hell out of there.:|

J/k

Its not too far from Roswell. You can visit area 51.
I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

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NewGuy2005


It a family reunion. There is some flexibility. Santa Fe is someone else's choice. I may try to steer them towards Red River. In the mountains and close to Taos.


Good choice.... Altitude is your friend in NM in the warm months... and its just down right BE U TEA Full up there

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Amazon

***
It a family reunion. There is some flexibility. Santa Fe is someone else's choice. I may try to steer them towards Red River. In the mountains and close to Taos.


Good choice.... Altitude is your friend in NM in the warm months... and its just down right BE U TEA Full up there

+1!

The Hondo River near Taos is great, too! mrowc6 and I had our honeymoon there. :)
lisa
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Eat. Eat green chile. Lots and lots of it. Because once you leave you'll probably never find it again and you'll be...bereft. yeah, that's a good word for it. that empty feeling like something important is missing from your life, a hole in your heart that will never be filled until you return for more New Mexican food.
Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

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turtlespeed

*********Once you do the obligatory touristy things, absolutely nothing. It's a barren desert with some interesting scenery in the form of a few mountains, canyons, and rocks.



I tend to agree... Boring city.

I tend to disagree... I want to move there. :)
Quote

What to do in Santa Fe?



Get a vehicle and run - run as fast as you can and get the hell out of there.:|

J/k

Its not too far from Roswell. You can visit area 51.

Roswell is pit and it's 4 hours away. Area 51 is 12 hours in the other direction, in Nevada.

The actual city of Taos is nothing special but the ski resort is nice. Red River is gorgeous, way more so than Santa Fe. If you feel like taking a hike one day, Tent Rocks south of Santa Fe is very cool. The Sandia Tram in Albuquerque (about 1 hour south) is the touristy thing to do but the restaurant up top (High Finance) is pretty lame.

You can also take a quick trip south to Madrid - an old mining town where they filmed "Wild Hogs". It's mostly a small artist community but they have some good places for lunch.






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BikerBabe

Eat. Eat green chile. Lots and lots of it. Because once you leave you'll probably never find it again and you'll be...bereft. yeah, that's a good word for it. that empty feeling like something important is missing from your life, a hole in your heart that will never be filled until you return for more New Mexican food.



:)
I've been lucky. Every couple of years, I've been able to procure 80#s, and the few times I've run out, mrowc6, being a Lobo, has connections. B|
lisa
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Tomasitas is good, and there are plenty other places to chow down.
Breakfast at the classic Pasqual's.
Dinner at Pink Adobe and El Farol.
Be sure to try both red chile and green chile stews.
And REAL Sopapillas for dessert!

The museums are world class! We like the Folk Art museum best.

Summertime you can park at the ski area and hike up to the top of Sta Fe peak. You can hike up Wheeler Mtn by Taos, the highest peak in NM.

One of the best drives in the USA is the 'back road to Taos' via Chimayo and Truchas. Rancho de Chimayo is another classic restaurant next to the must visit church Santuario de Chimayo.

Be sure to visit a Pueblo during a Feast day and see authentic Rain and Corn dances and eat excellent home cooked foods.

Anyone who bad mouths Northern NM hasn't gotten past the tourist gloss view. It's an area with centuries of culture and stories, and great outdoors.

"The reason angels can fly is that they take themselves so lightly." --GK Chesterton

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Well, it took a couple of years but we finally went last week. We had a great time.

The weather: There were a couple of days in which parts of the day might be described as hot, but coming from the humid south, it was very comfortable. They were having unseasonably cool rainy weather. Everything was green and some days were downright chilly. (pun intended)

Lodging: We stayed at a pretty nice hotel about a ten minute walk from the Plaza. The prices were not bad unless you went full luxury in the heart of town.

The Art - High End: Santa Fe is the third largest art market in the United States. There are a lot of galleries that have some really beautiful work, no matter what your tastes run to. I wish I could have afforded some of it. On Canyon Road, the least expensive painting I saw was $2,500. The most expensive was $189,000, which was a Thomas Moran.

The Art - Not as High End: The good news is that at lower price points there are a lot of really nice and unique things that are reasonably priced. If you like jewelry, check out the Palace of the Governors on the Plaza. Native American artists set up out front and sell some beautiful items that are at decent prices. The town has a very wide variety that will fit your budget.

The People - My wife and I went to the city's big fireworks display on the 4th of July and spent several hours at the park with several thousand other people. Everyone was cool and friendly. That was the case everywhere we went. It's a place I would not mind living.

The History - This is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in America. There are plenty of museums that will teach you about it.

The Food - Again, Santa Fe is one of America's big destinations with it's own unique cuisine. We were not there long enough to get a complete look at what that is, but we did get a good sample of it. The food was my favorite part of the trip. Some restaurants we ate at were: The Shed, Taberna, The Cafe on Museum Hill, Rancho De Chimayo.

The Wine - We went to the Santa Fe Wine Festival where there were 20 different New Mexico wineries providing tasting. The wine was great and we came home with a lot of it.

The Geography - The New Mexico landscape is breathtaking. We took a load trip up to Taos, Angel Fire, and Red River. If you go to Taos, take the "High Road" for the scenery and rural flavor, but make sure you have extra time. The road is narrow, crooked and the speed limits are low. On the plus side, you will go through some very old villages that will make you think you have travelled back in time. The village of Chimayo, which is where the restaurant Rancho De Chimayo is at is on the High Road to Taos.

Thanks to everyone that made recommendations. As always, we've never gone wrong with travel advice I've gotten here.

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