Here’s something I never thought I’d say: New Mexico beat New York 🫣
Let me explain. Luca turns 50 this July, and the big celebration is happening in Italy. Since our sister-in-law Paula won’t be able to join us in Italy, the four of us (Luca and me, his brother Massi, and Paula) originally planned to meet in NYC for a pre-birthday get-together…
Till Paula texted: “I have another proposition. Any chance that you’re interested in seeing Albuquerque? I have a conference there during the week and we could spend the following weekend together. It’s supposed to be beautiful in New Mexico.”
Luca and I (like the rest of the world, I suppose) binge-watched Breaking Bad, so of course we were intrigued the second she mentioned Albuquerque!
We fell into the rabbit hole of Google and social media, spent a couple of hours saving places we’d never heard of – a ’50s diner, the Route 66 neon sign, a tramway climbing into the clouds, sacred Pueblo land, a resort where everyone swears your worries melt the moment you arrive… and booked our tickets!
We then spent another three weeks researching all the best things to do in New Mexico and came up with a month’s worth of itinerary – LOL – though for this first time we only had 5 nights.
So here’s our New Mexico itinerary: five days and two home bases. Albuquerque first, then sacred land at Tamaya, and a day trip to Santa Fe.
We got together to celebrate Luca and left feeling connected to the territory and its culture, with the promise of going back ASAP.
New Mexico Itinerary at a Glance (5 Days)
New Mexico is big, and it’s tempting to try to see all of it at once. We built these five days around two home bases, so we could unpack, settle in, and actually feel each place.
Here’s the route:
| Day | The Plan |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Albuquerque: Sandia Peak Tramway, Frontier Restaurant, Route 66 neon |
| Day 2 | Albuquerque: 66 Diner, Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Old Town & museums, Hotel Chaco rooftop |
| Day 3 | Drive to Tamaya: Coffee in Nob Hill, textile shopping, Petroglyphs, then drive to Tamaya + dinner at Corn Maiden |
| Day 4 | Tent Rocks in the morning → a Santa Fe day trip |
| Day 5 | Tamaya: spa, pool, and a sunset horseback ride on sacred land |
The shape of it: two nights in Albuquerque, three at Hyatt Regency Tamaya on sacred Santa Ana Pueblo land. Santa Fe as a day trip.
You land and you never feel like you’re chasing the next thing… The perfect reset.
📌 Disclosure: Some experiences on this trip were hosted, however all opinions and recommendations are my own, as always. This post may also contain affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you book or buy through them.
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Know Before You Go: New Mexico Basics
A few practical things we wish we’d had in one place before we went.
✈️ Fly into Albuquerque (ABQ). The Albuquerque International Sunport is the state’s main airport and the closest to everything on this itinerary, about 15 from Old Town and 25 minutes from Tamaya. We flew in and out of ABQ and never wished we’d done it differently.
🚗 You’ll need a rental car. There’s no way around it, and honestly you wouldn’t want one. Half the magic here is the drive: the mesas, the big sky, the Rio Grande running beside the road. We picked ours up right at the airport.
🗓️ When to go. Spring (March–June) and fall (September–November) are the sweet spots: warm days, cool nights, that impossibly blue sky. Summer gets hot and dry; winter gets cold. And if you can time it for October, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta fills the morning sky with hundreds of balloons, the largest event of its kind on earth.
📍 The distances are short. This is what makes two home bases work. Nothing on our route was more than an hour apart:
| From → To | Drive time |
|---|---|
| ABQ Airport → Albuquerque Old Town | ~15 min |
| Albuquerque → Hyatt Regency Tamaya | ~25 min |
| Tamaya → Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks | ~1 hour |
| Tent Rocks → Santa Fe | ~45 min |
| Santa Fe → Tamaya | ~50 min |
You land, you settle in, and you never spend your days chasing the next thing. That’s the whole point.
Day 1: Arriving in Albuquerque
As we landed, we headed to the car rental parking by hopping on a shuttle bus painted with hot air balloons… That’s how Albuquerque reminded us that it’s the Hot Air Balloon Capital of the World!
Every October, the International Balloon Fiesta fills the morning sky with hundreds of them, the largest event of its kind anywhere on earth. We might have to come back for it! 😍
We picked up our car, checked into our hotel to drop the bags, and pointed the car toward a very specific car wash… the A1A Car Wash, where it all began. If you’ve seen Breaking Bad, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
Today it’s a “completely ordinary” Mister Car Wash, while hundreds of Breaking Bad tours continue passing by.
Sandia Peak Tramway
Then we went up into the clouds…
The Sandia Peak Tramway is the longest aerial tramway in North America – 2.7 miles, climbing from the edge of the city to the top of the Sandía Mountains at 10,378 feet. The ride takes about 15 minutes while you float over deep canyons and pine forest, the whole city shrinking behind you.
Bring a jacket. I mean it! We went up in summer and the top was cold 🤯 …the temperature drops up to 30 degrees cooler than where you started.
A little magic to know: the mountains are called Sandía (“watermelon” in Spanish) because at sunset they glow pink… every single time!
💡 Pro Tip: Time your ride for late afternoon and expect to remain speechless! We went on a cloudy day and it still delivered all its magic!
💕 PS. Liz from the Tramway offered us tickets and a whole list of insider tips on what to see around the city. The first of many locals who made New Mexico feel like home. (We actually coordinated the visit before getting there.)
2026 marks the tram’s 60th year, by the way. It opened in 1966 and still feels like a marvel.
Good to know:
🕑 Last tram up the mountain: daily, 9am–8pm (weather permitting).
🕑 Last tram down the mountain: 10pm Thursday–Monday, 9pm Tuesday & Wednesday.
🎟️ Round-trip tickets run around $34 for adults (plus a small $3.75 grounds fee per ticket). A packable layer is the one thing I never travel without (it’s also on my travel essentials packing list, along with everything else I fit into a single carry-on)
🔧 The tram closes two weeks each April and November for maintenance. Check the site before you plan around it.
🍽️ TEN 3 Restaurant (dinner with a spectacular view!) is open at the Peak.
• Casual dining Thur–Mon, 10:30am–7:30pm (last seating)
• Fine dining Thur–Mon, 4:30–7:30pm (last seating).
🚫 Closed Tues & Wed.
‼️ If you have fine dining reservations at TEN 3, arrive at the Tram 45 minutes to 1 hour before your dining time.
The New Mexico Ski Hall of Fame & Museum
Right at the base of the tram, we stumbled onto something almost nobody mentions: the New Mexico Ski Hall of Fame & Museum. It’s free, tiny, and such a lovely surprise!
Vintage skis, old photographs, and the whole story of how skiing came to these mountains. Sometimes the best moments are the ones nobody put on the list.
People still ski up there!!!
The Sandia Peak Ski Area sits on the far side of the mountain: 35 trails, 4 lifts, 300 acres of skiable terrain, dropping 1,700 feet from a 10,378-foot summit, with an average of 117 inches of snow a year. You take the same tram to the top, then reach the ski lifts from up there.
Imagine floating over the desert in a tram car… and stepping out into snow. Sooo cool!!!
Frontier Restaurant
While we would have loved dinner at TEN 3, we went on a Wednesday, and, as you now know, it’s closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. So we pivoted to Frontier Restaurant instead, chosen purely for its 4.5 stars and 10,000+ Google reviews… and it turned to be such a great discovery that it earned its own spot in this guide.
Frontier Restaurant has been a Route 66 institution across from the university since 1971, a New Mexican “fast food” spot and a retro icon for over fifty years. Fresh tortillas pressed right there, tacos, guacamole and chips, and the famous sweet rolls.
The decor is wonderfully mix-and-match: vintage finds layered with New Mexican and Western art covering every wall. It shouldn’t all work together, and somehow it completely does!
💡 Pro tip: At dinner, there was no line at all, though we noticed wait-time signs hanging from the ceiling: “Order line, approximate 10-minute wait from this point.” This place gets packed during the day as students pour in from the university right across the street. So come for dinner to skip the daytime chaos, and you’ll have the whole retro experience without the wait.
A Route 66 Neon Glow
We ended the day chasing neons.
Out on the western stretch of Central Avenue, the Route 66 neon signs shine on as the sky goes dark. Motels, diners, arrows… We pulled over near 65th and Central just to stand under that “Route 66” glow for a minute. Felt like in the movies! A nostalgia feeling for a road trip you never took…
The Mother Road, still humming. Still here.
Day one, and New Mexico already filled our hearts.
Day 2: Albuquerque, Slowly
66 Diner, A Route 66 Time Machine
If Day 1 ended with Route 66 neon, Day 2 began inside one of the coolest time machines in New Mexico!!!
You walk into the 66 Diner and it’s like stepping onto the set of a ’50s TV show. Turquoise booths, gleaming chrome, vibrant colors, an old and still-working jukebox, a soda fountain, waitresses dressed straight out of the era. The vintage neon is unreal. It all looks brand new, like the ’50s are happening today.
The diner was built inside a former Phillips 66 service station, with retro car-inspired booths that lean all the way into the theme. You’re sitting inside Route 66 history.
The food matches the vibes: hand-spun shakes, green chile burgers, and the most delicious chocolate pie (I would have ordered another 3… so so so good!!!) 🤤
Then, while we were having brunch, Lara from Visit Albuquerque stopped by to say hello… and just like that, the whole city opened up!
She generously shared so many tips, handed us passes for museums and activities (we couldn’t fit it all in, so we have another reason to be back!) and made us fall in love with ABQ even faster. She also sent us off with a bag full of Albuquerque’s goodies: a lavender lotion from Los Poblanos, a cloth from Kei & Molly Textiles, candles, and a beautiful tote designed by local artists. She clearly made our day!
This is the thing about traveling with your heart open. The places matter, though the people are what you remember, and this trip had been like this since the moment we touched down. So unique!
🍦 P.S. we loved the 66 Diner so much we came back later for a sundae. Definitely worth two visits in one day!!!
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center
Then we discovered the heart of New Mexico 🧡
The Indian Pueblo Cultural Center tells the story of New Mexico’s 19 Pueblos – their history, their art, their living cultures in their own words. It’s owned and operated by the 19 Pueblos themselves, and you feel that everywhere. You feel like a guest in a story far older than the country it sits in. It’s really touching, and I HIGHLY recommend you to visit. If you have to pick ONE museum only, make it this one.
We slowed all the way down, and left quieter than we came.
💡Pro tip: get the apple pie from the café before leaving… it’s truly delicious!
Downtown & Old Town Albuquerque
From there we wandered into Old Town, the original heart of the city, founded in 1706. Adobe walls, a shaded plaza, the San Felipe de Neri Church still standing after three centuries. Little galleries, local shops, the smell of green chile drifting from somewhere nearby.
Unhurried and walkable, exactly the pace we wanted.
The Albuquerque Museum
We spent the afternoon at the Albuquerque Museum, right in Old Town. Art and history side by side, a strong collection of Southwestern work.
If you want to understand this region – where it comes from and how its cultures layer – this is where the dots connect.
Hotel Chaco, A Rooftop Dinner & the Tour
Hotel Chaco was actually the place we’d hoped to stay, though it was already fully booked when we started planning our trip, so we saved it for our next visit and opted for drinks and dinner on its rooftop restaurant, Level 5.
The moment we walked inside, we were welcomed by Joey at the front desk for a property tour. We got to see one of the rooms and learn more about all the amenities and design through Native art and history, piece by piece.
The hotel, was inspired by Chaco Canyon, the thousand-year-old Puebloan site in northwestern New Mexico that’s now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and built to honor the culture and architecture of the ancestral Pueblo peoples.
The heavy, copper-clad entrance doors were created by Tammy Garcia of Santa Clara Pueblo, a modern interpretation of black-on-black pottery, carrying the Avanyu, the Pueblo water serpent. Look up once you’re inside and you’ll find her again: a glass oculus in the ceiling holding three sacred eagles, meant to draw your eyes to the sky. (Try to spot all three, it’s harder than it sounds. Some people see the beaks, some swear they’re the wings.)
The lobby itself is shaped like a kiva: circular, aligned to the cardinal directions, with mud-plastered walls, stacked stone, and built-in banco seating. At its center stands “Oneness,” a towering bronze by Joe Cajero of Jemez Pueblo, honoring the connection between mind, body, spirit, and the four directions. Even the floor is intentional: it’s designed to mimic the wash of the river near Chaco Canyon.
Every piece is by a named Native artist. It’s heritage, placed with intention.
Joey told us that the whole hotel is meant to be a kind of miniature Chaco Canyon, echoing Pueblo Bonito, the “beautiful house,” a five-story great house built there a thousand years ago. That’s why Hotel Chaco is five stories too, and it’s also why the rooftop restaurant is called Level 5. Super fascinating!!!
We got to the rooftop restaurant for golden hour, overlooking the Sandia Mountains, as the sky turned every shade of pink and orange and the mountains glowed in the distance.
We just stood there with a glass of wine, willing time to stop.
The food matched the view. Level 5 serves New Mexican cuisine with a global twist from Executive Chef Goran Basarov, who grew up in a baker’s family in Macedonia and cooked all over the world before landing on this rooftop. Standout dishes, beautiful ingredients.
💡 Pro tip: You don’t have to be a hotel guest to have dinner or drinks at Level 5. Put it on your Albuquerque list, time your reservation for golden hour, and ask for a table facing the Sandías… can’t wait for you to experience the same magic!!!
Day 3: From Albuquerque to Sacred Land
Day 3 was a slow, beautiful, and fully lived travel day
Grandma’s Coffee Garden
But first, coffee! Always 😏
Grandma’s Coffee Garden in Nob Hill stood out on Google Maps, so we chose to check it out and we all loved it!
It’s a beautiful all-outdoor coffee garden where you order coffee from a vintage 1970 camper trailer, with chairs and tables scattered in leafy pockets among flowers and bees. It’s a queer- and woman-owned spot offering affordable coffee, scratch-made (and delicious) pastries, house syrups, and a real sense of community. I got the chocolate croissant and could have easily ordered a second one… such a hidden gem!!!
Looking for the restroom, I was pointed to “the house in the back,” and as I walked in I noticed other customers working from what looked like the living room and dining room next to the kitchen. That’s when I assumed the place belonged to the owner’s grandma… so imagine my laugh when I found out Grandma is the owners’ Dalmatian 🤣 AMAZING!
🗓️ Open Tuesday through Sunday (closed Mondays)
🕑 8am to 4pm
📸 Check their Instagram for seasonal changes
📍 122 Girard Blvd SE, ABQ
Kei & Molly Textiles
Next came a happy little detour.
My sister-in-law Paula loves tablecloths, and she’d wanted to check out Kei & Molly Textiles, a small, woman-owned textile studio printing linens by hand right here in Albuquerque (the same brand as the cloth I found in the “goodie bag” from Lara), so we had to check it out…
There’s a beautiful purpose behind it, too: the studio was founded to create good jobs for immigrants and refugees in the community, and you can feel that heart in the work. Over 90 original folk-inspired designs, all hand-printed.
Somehow we ALL left with a full bag. LOL. Pillowcases, napkins, little gifts to carry home. There’s something about buying directly from the people who make their products with love. 💕
🗓️ Open Tuesday-Friday 10am–4pm, Saturday 10am–2pm (closed Sun & Mon)
📍 4400 Silver Ave SE, Suite A (Nob Hill)
Petroglyph National Monument
One last stop before our destination.
Petroglyph National Monument protects thousands of images carved into black volcanic rock along Albuquerque’s West Mesa. We took the shorter, steeper trail at Boca Negra Canyon, up a hill of basalt boulders, with about a hundred petroglyphs scattered along the way.
The carvings were made by the Ancestral Pueblo people, most of them 400 to 700 years old, some far older, by carefully chipping through the dark “desert varnish” on the basalt to reveal the lighter rock beneath. Many carry deep spiritual meaning, some of it still understood by today’s Pueblo communities, some of it known only to those who made it.
These volcanic mesas are considered a sacred space by many Indigenous peoples, including the Santa Ana Pueblo and more than twenty tribes. Some Puebloan traditions hold that volcanic places sit closer to the spirit world.
💡 Pro tip: Wear proper closed shoes and stay on the marked path, not only out of respect, but because there can be snakes among the rocks. The desert is alive out here.
🗓️ Open daily 8:30am–4:30pm (last entry 4pm sharp; closed New Year’s, Thanksgiving & Christmas)
💵 The monument is free. Boca Negra charges only a small parking fee ($1 weekdays / $2 weekends)
☀️ Go in the morning to beat the heat, and check in at the visitor center first
📍 Boca Negra Canyon, off Unser Blvd
Arriving at Tamaya
Then we arrived at Hyatt Regency Tamaya.
Tamaya means “quiet place.” And the moment we drove onto the property, 550 acres of sacred Santa Ana Pueblo land, the Sandía Mountains rising in the distance, the Rio Grande nearby, we understood the name completely.
Every single staff member we met and started talking to told us how much they love working here. Apparently, all of them feel a sense of groundedness and peace the moment they walk onto the property. Some even told us that all their worries vanish the moment they arrive… and we understood exactly how they feel, because we felt the same way even before check-in!!! It’s really impossible to describe… I wish for you to experience it for yourself!
This was the place we’d chosen to pre-celebrate Luca turning 50, all of us together: Luca, me, his brother Massi, and Paula. And it already felt like the perfect place for it.
An Unforgettable Dinner at Corn Maiden
That night, we celebrated.
Dinner was at Corn Maiden, Tamaya’s signature restaurant, garden-to-table, much of it grown right on the property.
Every single dish was divine. Perfectly matched flavors, beautiful plating, staff who made us feel like family.
And then a moment we’ll never forget. Jacqueline, an adorable woman from Paris who has been working here for over 25 years, sang happy birthday to Luca in French, then translated for all of us: “May the whole year be sweet and light for you, and when the year is over, may we all be reunited!” Such a beautiful moment!!! The first meaningful candle and wishes, just a little before celebrating his real birthday in Italy
Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa – A Full Review
If you take one thing from this whole guide, let it be this: stay at Hyatt Regency Tamaya. It’s the heart of why these five days felt like a TRUE RESET.
Sacred Land, Owned by the Santa Ana Pueblo
What makes Tamaya different from any other resort we’ve stayed at is simple: it’s owned by the Santa Ana Pueblo and managed by Hyatt. You’re a guest on sacred land, 550 acres of it, held by the Tamayame people for over a thousand years, cradled between the Sandía Mountains and the Rio Grande. That ownership is felt in the art, the food, the storytelling, and the deep calm of the place.
The Rooms
All 350 rooms are pueblo-style and southwestern: soft, earthy, calm, and every single one has a private balcony or patio. Opt for a Sandía Mountain view if you can. Waking up to those mountains, coffee in hand on your own patio, is its own kind of luxury.
Where to Eat
Tamaya has several restaurants, and we worked our way happily through them:
- Corn Maiden: the signature, fine-dining, garden-to-table spot (named for the Corn Maiden, a symbol of sustenance and life). This is where we had Luca’s birthday dinner. Every dish was DIVINE.
- Santa Ana Café: our breakfast place, indigenous-influenced casual fare with a covered patio looking out at the mesa.
- Rio Grande Lounge: the outdoor spot we loved so much we came back our last night for drinks, comfort food, and the amazing view of Sandías glowing pink at sunset.
💡 Pro tip: Have dinner outside at the Rio Grande Lounge for sunset and watch the mountains turn watermelon-pink for unforgettable memories!
Tamaya Mist Spa
The award-winning Tamaya Mist Spa uses native ingredients like blue corn and red chile in its treatments. We had our massage on Day 5 and it was perfect!
The Pools
Three outdoor pools, each with its own mood: a family pool with a waterslide (where we actually hang), a splash area for little ones, and an adults-only quiet pool. We enjoyed the pool both the first and the last day.
Cultural Programming
Tamaya also offers so many cultural activities: Native American storytelling, a native bread buffet, pottery making, jewelry making, and a tour of the on-site cultural center led by a member of the Pueblo.
We gathered around a member of the Santa Ana Pueblo as he shared stories passed down through his family, told in his own words, the way the elders told them to him. The one I can’t forget is how the rabbit got its long ears, a story carried through generations, told out loud the way these stories are meant to be carried. So special!
HORSE RIDING And So Much More
Beyond all that, Tamaya is built for moving your body in the most beautiful way. We walked the resort’s nature and fitness trail, a path that winds through the property’s natural desert landscape with exercise stations built right into the route, so you can stroll or jog and stop to stretch and work out along the way. Doing a few reps with the Sandías in front of you and total quiet all around is the kind of “workout” that doesn’t feel like one.
There’s also a complimentary StayFit fitness center (Life Fitness machines and Peloton bikes) if you’d rather be indoors, the Twin Warriors championship golf course, hot air ballooning over the Rio Grande, and tennis.
And then there’s horseback riding on rescued horses across the mesa, which turned out to be the most unforgettable thing we did on the whole trip. (That story is coming on Day 5.)
Hyatt Regency Tamaya
A resort on 550 acres of sacred Santa Ana Pueblo land, owned by the Pueblo and managed by Hyatt, cradled between the Sandía Mountains and the Rio Grande. Southwestern rooms with private balconies, an award-winning spa, three pools, garden-to-table dining, and cultural experiences led by the Pueblo – from storytelling under the stars to sunset rides on rescued horses.
Perfect for: slow resets, special celebrations, and connecting with the land and yourself.
📍Hyatt Regency Tamaya, 1300 Tuyuna Trail, Santa Ana Pueblo, NM
Day 4: Tent Rocks & a Santa Fe Day Trip
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument
We started the morning inside a slot canyon.
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks (the name means “white cliffs”) is about an hour from Tamaya, on sacred Cochiti Pueblo land. And it is unlike anywhere I’ve ever walked. The trail starts narrow, squeezing you between towering walls of pale volcanic rock. You duck under boulders, not knowing what’s around the next bend. And then it opens up… wide sky, cone-shaped rock formations rising up to 90 feet tall, an eagle circling overhead the day we went. We kept climbing to the top, and the view from up there genuinely stopped us in our tracks.
The “tent rocks” themselves are cones carved by volcanic eruptions millions of years ago, soft layers of ash and pumice, slowly shaped by water and wind into something that looks otherworldly. Almost like little tents scattered across the desert.
If you love landscapes that don’t feel quite real, you should also check my Escalante & Bryce Canyon road trip – another mind-blowing experience you should add to your bucket-list.
How to visit Tent Rocks in 2026 (read this before you go):
Tent Rocks reopened with a reservation system, and it’s a little involved but worth it. You need two passes: a BLM ticket reservation ($6/person), and a separate Cochiti Pueblo Tribal Access Pass ($20/person, ages 2–16 $10).
We made a reservation online and then picked our access passes up at the Cochiti Visitor Center the day we went.
Daily entries are capped around 125 people, and they regularly sell out weeks ahead, so buy both online in advance to be safe. There are no guaranteed day-of tickets. Tickets release quarterly, so reserve as soon as your dates open.
🗓️ Open Thursday-Monday, entry 8am–1pm, everyone out by 4pm. Closed mid-December through January.
👟💦 Wear real hiking shoes (the Canyon Trail is a steep 630-ft climb over rock), bring water (there’s none on-site), and leave dogs and drones at home (not permitted on sacred Pueblo land).
📍 Check in at the Cochiti Visitor Center, then wait for and follow a pilot vehicle in. From ABQ, I-25 north to Exit 259 onto NM 22 (don’t rely on GPS through tribal land; use the highway exit).
A Santa Fe Day Trip
From Tent Rocks, we drove north to Santa Fe, one of the oldest, most artistic cities in America, and you could spend a week here.
La Lecheria
First stop, because priorities: ice cream.
La Lecheria makes New Mexico craft ice cream the old-fashioned way: organic, local, and so many interesting flavors!!! It was a Hotel Chaco rec (thank you again, Joey), and it was unforgettable. Joey suggested we try the chile flavors: the green chile and the red Chile piñon, and we loved every single flavor we got!
💡 Pro tip: We got a flight of four mini scoops and try the wild ones. This is one of those moments where you don’t want to be basic – lol!
🗓️ Wed-Thu 1-9pm · Fri 1-10pm · Sat 10am-10pm · Sun 1-9pm. Closed Mon & Tues.
📍 500 Market St, Santa Fe (the Railyard)
Double Take
Then a quick stop for the vintage lovers: Double Take, New Mexico’s largest vintage and consignment store, set inside a former Coca-Cola bottling plant in the Guadalupe Railyard District. Designer and vintage clothing, Western wear, hundreds of cowboy boots, hats, pawn jewelry, Navajo rugs, furniture, oddities. Even if you don’t buy a thing (like us), it’s a wonderful place to wander.
🗓️ Wed-Sat 11am-5pm · Sun 12:30-4:30pm. Closed Mon & Tues.
📍 321 S Guadalupe St, Santa Fe
R.C. Gorman, Navajo Gallery
One stop I’m so glad we made: the R.C. Gorman Navajo Gallery, dedicated to the work of R.C. Gorman, one of the most celebrated Diné (Navajo) artists, known for his fluid, powerful depictions of Native women. Standing in front of his work, in his own gallery, is something else entirely.
🗓️ Open daily, 10am-6pm
📍 204 W San Francisco St, Santa Fe
Santa Fe Plaza & the Art Market
We wandered the historic Santa Fe Plaza, the heart of the city for over 400 years. and a National Historic Landmark.
It was a Saturday, and the Plaza was full of local artists set up with their work: jewelry, pottery, paintings, textiles, all handmade. You’re buying straight from the makers, meeting the hands behind the work.
💡 Pro tip: If you want to go deeper, look for the long shaded portal of the Palace of the Governors on the north side of the Plaza. That’s the Native American Artisans Portal Program, where Native artists from New Mexico’s pueblos and tribes sell their own handmade work daily (8:30am–5pm). A daily lottery rotates who’s there, so it’s different every visit.
📍 Santa Fe Plaza, 100 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe (bounded by Palace Ave, San Francisco St, Washington Ave & Lincoln Ave)
Lucchese
We walked in Lucchese as we heard live country music playing, and we got mesmerized! We accidentally discovered what many describe as the finest cowboy boots in the world. And here’s the Italian twist we loved: the company was founded in 1883 by Salvatore “Sam” Lucchese, a shoemaker born in Palermo, Sicily, who immigrated to Texas with his family and brought generations of Sicilian craft with him. 🇮🇹
📍 57 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe (on the Plaza)
🗓️ Mon-Sat 10am-7pm · Sun 11am-5pm
Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi
We stopped at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, the beautiful Romanesque cathedral anchoring downtown Santa Fe. Another Italian thread: it was built in the 1800s with the help of Italian stonemasons, its golden stone glowing against that impossibly blue New Mexico sky. 🇮🇹
📍 131 Cathedral Place, Santa Fe (just off the Plaza)
🗓️ Open daily, roughly 9:30am-4:30pm – it’s an active church, so hours shift around Mass and celebrations.
IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA)
We ended at MoCNA, and if you only have time for one museum in Santa Fe, this is a strong contender. It’s the only museum in the entire country dedicated solely to contemporary Native art, with a collection of more than 9,500 works, all created from 1962 onward.
And before you even walk in: take in all the beauty of those columns out front. It’s the bright, painted colonnade of the old 1922 Pueblo Revival building, framing a sculpture by Apache artist Bob Haozous. It’s one of the most photogenic spots in all of Santa Fe.
🗓️ Mon & Wed-Sat 10am-5pm · Sun 11am-4pm. Closed Tuesdays
🎟️ $10 adults · free every Friday · free for Native people, veterans & kids 16 and under
📍 108 Cathedral Place, Santa Fe (right across from the Cathedral)
What We’re Saving for Next Time
Here’s the truth: we packed a month’s worth of New Mexico into a handful of days, and we weren’t able to experience everything. A few places stayed on the list, and honestly, that’s the best reason to go back. So I’m leaving these here for you (and for future me):
- San Miguel Chapel – said to be the oldest church in the United States, a 400-year-old adobe structure (built around 1610) just a few blocks off the Plaza.
📍 401 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe
- Loretto Chapel – home of the famous “Miraculous Staircase,” a spiral that rises to the choir loft in two full turns with no center support. Legend says a mysterious carpenter built it and disappeared.
📍 207 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe
- Cross of the Martyrs – a short uphill walk to a hilltop overlook that locals swear has the best sunset view over the whole city.
📍 Paseo de Peralta, near the top of the hill (the “Old Santa Fe Trail” historic marker walkway)
- Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs – one of the oldest natural mineral springs resorts in the country, about an hour north of Santa Fe, with pools fed by four different sulfur-free mineral waters (held sacred by Native peoples here for generations). A soak under the desert sky is first on the list for the return trip.
📍 Ojo Caliente, NM (~1 hour north of Santa Fe via US-285)
Day 5: The Day We Chose to Fully Enjoy the Resort and Slow Down
The way I usually plan my trips is by diving into a place completely, experiencing it the way only locals do, exploring everything locals (or people who went before) suggest me to. I pick a beautiful place that’s connected with the territory (and hopefully also offers any sort of wellness, from yoga to meditation, spa, fitness…), then I spend my days exploring everything around it, the culture, the food, the corners most people miss. The hotel is a home base I love.
This time, we felt like the resort was the destination!
We originally planned 3 nights at Tamaya thinking we’d keep going back out, see more of Santa Fe, fill every day… and then something shifted.
Just like it happened in the Maldives last summer, where the resort was exactly the place to be, it happened here. So for our last full day, we chose to stay in, and we’ll never forget.
Riding the rescued horses of Tamaya
One of the most amazing things we learned about Tamaya was its horse rescue program, and from the moment I heard about it, riding a horse on this sacred land was the thing I was looking forward to most.
Every horse here has a story, and every one of them is a second chance. The Stables at Tamaya is home to the Tamaya Horse Rehabilitation Program, a nonprofit that, they told us, has rescued more than 120 horses since 2012. These are horses that were unwanted, abandoned, and neglected 🥲.
Instead of an uncertain ending, they were brought here, to this land at the foot of the sacred mountains, and given a whole new life!
Around 120 of them live on the property now. About half work as gentle trail horses. The other half simply live. They graze, they run, they rest, and they are cared for, safe, and loved, for the rest of their days. It’s truly MOVING!!!
We booked a trail ride in the evening, and they matched each of us to the right horse based on our experience. And then we rode out: through the cottonwoods that line the Rio Grande, the mountains standing huge and quiet around us, the river moving slow beside the horses… we had the most beautiful landscape in front of us the entire time. PURE MAGIC.
And here’s what makes it even better: every dollar from the ride goes back to the rescue. You’re not just having an experience, you’re funding the next horse’s second chance. 😭💜
📍 The Stables at Tamaya · 1300 Tuyuna Trail, Santa Ana Pueblo
We came to New Mexico for an initial curiosity about Albuquerque because of Breaking Bad, and discovered so much beauty all around it: a fascinating culture, local art, the history, the volcano cones, the green chile… and this quiet day on the sacred land, ending with a sunset ride on a rescued horse, is what we’ll carry.
The most meaningful moments are always the ones where you take the time to stop, breathe, and let a place hold you.
Day 6: Taking It All In, One Last Time
Our last morning, we took it all in one more time. We sipped coffee with the Sandia Mountains in the distance and we took one more breath of that big New Mexico sky.
The Albuquerque airport (ABQ) is only about half an hour away. Just a short, easy drive and the perfect bookend to a trip that was, at its heart, about slowing down.
We left full. Of green chile and golden light, of a sunset ride on a horse who got his second chance. New Mexico surprised us in every possible way, and we already know we’re going back. There’s so much more of Santa Fe waiting for us, and a resort that felt like home calling us back.
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Ciaooo! 🤍
