This a must on our list! Tickets must be purchased in advance, because only a certain amount of people are allowed in the quirky art installation during specific time slots. Allow yourself to have at least a couple hours here to really explore. We can't say much more about this unique place...it's truly a "you just gotta see it for yourself" type of spot.
Coined as "the most eccentric town in New Mexico" it's easy to fall in love with this tiny place. Travel the scenic Turquoise Trail and experience the village of Madrid nestled in a narrow canyon in the Ortiz Mountains. Once a historic coal mining town and ghost town, Madrid is now a creative community with over 40 shops and galleries, several restaurants, a spa and museum. Nearby in Cerrillos is a state park with hiking paths and horseback riding.
The Mine Shaft Tavern is our favorite place to eat when visiting the area for several reasons. It's a rustic roadside saloon established in 1899 offering draft beer, New Mexican fare & live music. We suggest their award-winning hatch green chili burger (plus a spicy margarita...or 2!)
After leaving Santa Fe, New Mexico and driving about an hour, you enter the landscape of vast vistas, table-topped mesas, tall cliffs, the Rio Chama bordered by huge old cottonwood trees, mountains in the distance and more beauty around every bend in the winding road. “It is not a country of light on things,” said Georgia O’Keeffe. “It is a country of things in light.” With a history as colorful as the surrounding red and yellow cliffs of the Piedra Lumbre (shining stone), Ghost Ranch offers a diversity of programs and adventure. Open year-round, the Ranch is committed to spiritual development, peace and justice, honoring the environment and exploring family through the celebration of art, culture and nature.
The National Monument, on the Pajarito Plateau in north-central New Mexico, includes a national recreation trail and ranges from 5,570 feet to 6,760 feet above sea level. It is for foot travel only, and contains two segments that provide opportunities for hiking, birdwatching, geologic observation, and plant identification. The cone-shaped tent rock formations are the products of volcanic eruptions that occurred 6 to 7 million years ago and left pumice, ash, and tuff deposits over 1,000 feet thick. Tremendous explosions from the Jemez volcanic field spewed pyroclasts (rock fragments), while searing hot gases blasted down slopes in an incandescent avalanche called a pyroclastic flow.
We haven't had a chance to visit Bandelier yet, but it's a popular spot amongst locals and visitors alike. Bandelier National Monument protects over 33,000 acres of rugged but beautiful canyon and mesa country as well as evidence of a human presence here going back over 11,000 years. Petroglyphs, dwellings carved into the soft rock cliffs, and standing masonry walls pay tribute to the early days of a culture that still survives in the surrounding communities.
Radiating from the four-centuries-old Palace of the Governors, the most historic area of the city is completely walkable, with quaint winding streets featuring charming boutiques, restaurants, bookstores and art galleries tucked into every block. Aspects of the past remain in the look and feel of the traditional Spanish Plaza, including a certain flavor of the Old West and the time-honored tradition whereby local Native artisans sell their amazing creations beneath the portal of the Palace of the Governors.
Why not start your day with one of the bride's guilty pleasures...a donut! Whoo’s Donuts are made from scratch daily, in Santa Fe New Mexico, using a full list of only “clean” ingredients, they've created a wide variety of donuts, from classic favorites like raised glaze and Boston crème, to modern classics like pistachio cake with white chocolate lemon ganache, or the most popular donut the blue corn blueberry lavender (these will be offered at the reception).
Are you looking for a little pampering during your visit to the Land of Enchantment? Check out this place which came highly recommended from one of our wedding vendors. Among piñons and junipers are beautiful outdoor hot tubs and spa suites, world-class bodywork & skin care, and the amazing izanami restaurant. It is the closest lodging to the Santa Fe Ski area. Ten Thousand Waves is dedicated to providing a Japanese sense of serenity and relaxation. Everything we do--from the gardens to the woodwork, from the therapies to the therapists--has been constantly and thoughtfully refined over the last 38 years.
Taos Pueblo is a living Native American community located at the base of the beautiful Sangre de Cristo Mountain range. Visitors are welcomed to their home. Approximately 150 people live within the Pueblo full time. Other families owning homes in the North or South buildings live in summer homes near their fields, and in more modern homes outside the old walls but still within Pueblo land. There are over 1900 Taos Indians living on Taos Pueblo lands.