what to see and do in santa fe

In improver to its well-known fine art venues and merely-found-here cuisine, Santa Fe has several new attractions that make a visit more compelling than ever.

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Southwardanta Atomic number 26's nickname is "The City Dissimilar," which may seem a little odd or exaggerated—how different tin can a urban center be? Merely in one case you're there, it makes sense immediately. Information technology's then unlike any other metropolis in the U.s., you may frequently have to remind yourself you haven't actually left the country. And we hateful that in the best way possible: Unlike (delicious) cuisine, a variety of languages, and non-Anglo-axial cultures mash together here to create something utterly ane of a kind.

Bated from this, Santa Fe is but a beautiful metropolis. Ancient adobe compages allows the mountain desert backdrop to smooth, while the city'due south impressive art scene adds flourishes in all the right ways.

And recently, the city has seen some exciting openings. From new hotels similar Bishop's Lodge, an Auberge Resort, to a new railroad train experience at the Sky Railway, to a new location of love eating house Opuntia Café, Santa Iron has more to offer visitors than always. Which is why you should program your trip to New Mexico's vibrant capital city at present. Read on for eight of the best things to do in Santa Iron.

1. See amazing art

Santa Atomic number 26'southward various art scene is i of its defining characteristics. You lot might initially think of its turquoise jewelry, western paintings, and bronze sculptures, all of which it still does very well, but it likewise has an impressive contemporary art scene that rivals larger cities like New York and Los Angeles (really).

Don't believe united states? Make a beeline for Meow Wolf's House of Eternal Return, which is inside an former bowling alley. Art product collective Meow Wolf was started in Santa Fe and they tin can easily argue they started the immersive art craze when they opened Firm of Eternal Return in 2016. And with outposts in Denver and Las Vegas, they've certainly made a name for themselves. Intensely interactive, boundary pushing, mind bending, and yes, cute, the massive, ever-changing installation is almost impossible not to print.

For modernistic Native American fine art, a stop at the IAIA Museum of Gimmicky Native Arts—the state's only museum for exhibiting and collecting the progressive piece of work of contemporary Native artists—is a must.

Site Santa Fe, which has no permanent drove just instead only hosts rotating exhibits of modern art, is also worth a visit at its architecturally striking Railyard home.

The small but mighty Georgia O'Keeffe Museum is also a must-see, especially if you tin't make a pilgrimage to her house in Abiquiú, about an 60 minutes'southward drive away.

And finally, the gallery scene in Santa Iron is legendary, with more than than 250 of them around downtown (Shiprock, Keep Contemporary, and Expert Folk are a few favorites) and along the famous Coulee Road, where you lot can easily spend an unabridged afternoon strolling the tree-lined street dotted with classic adobe homes turned galleries.

2. Decide which chile y'all adopt: red, green, or Christmas

New United mexican states is ane of the few states in the U.Due south. to truly have a cuisine worthy of its own nomenclature—when someone says New Mexican nutrient, it actually means something. Usually, information technology has something to do with Mexican influences and New Mexican–grown chiles, namely Hatch chiles, which can exist green or red depending on how ripe they are. These form the base of operations for red or green chile sauce, which yous'll find on dishes all over the city.

Start with the New Mexico invention of a breakfast burrito filled with eggs, beans, and sometimes fried potatoes, and you'll usually be asked if you want them smothered in chile sauce (answer: yes) and which kind (red, light-green, or Christmas, which is half and half). If you ask a group of locals where to get the best 1, you'll get a flurry of competing answers, but y'all can't go incorrect at the iconic Tia Sophia's or the more modern Dolina Bakery & Buffet (which also has a delicious Eastern European menu and stellar baking program).

At lunch or dinner, head over to longtime local downtown favorite the Shed for a slew of traditional New Mexican dishes, from burritos to enchiladas to tamales to posole, all served with fiery ruby-red or light-green chile. Café Pasqual's has been serving Mexican and New Mexican fare since 1979 and Sazon dishes out classic Mexican food with a focus on mole cooked by Mexico City native chef Fernando Olea.

If you need a republic of chile interruption, head to Newspaper Dosa, one of the most authentic Southward Indian restaurants in the country.

3. Indulge in restorative wellness

Santa Atomic number 26 has long attracted people seeking a sanctuary to renew and refresh their mind, body, and spirit, with many believing the city has its own healing powers thanks to the expanse'due south loftier, dry climate, natural hot springs, sun-filled days, and endlessly starry nights.

Ten G Waves Spa is known for its Japanese-style hot bound soaking tubs, but getting a reservation can be tough if you lot don't book far ahead. And while many of the urban center's luxury resorts have equally luxurious spas, in that location are a few new health offerings in item to explore this season.

The long-standing Inn of the Five Graces, an eclectic and luxurious Relais & Châteaux family-owned hotel, recently debuted its kickoff-ever spa. Like the rest of the hotel, its design features textiles and furnishings imported by the owners from places like India, Afghanistan, and Kingdom of morocco, as well equally extremely detailed tile mosaics in the bathroom and treatment rooms. If you can manage to stop gawking at the gorgeous blueprint, you'll detect the capable easily of a masseuse will shortly lull you into an intensely relaxed state. An expansive outdoor area with a pool, hot tub, and outdoor shower is due to launch next spring.

The newly opened Bishop'due south Lodge, an Auberge Resort, will also be launching a new spa in 2022. In the concurrently, it has a temporary spa surface area in i of the residences where guests tin feel locally influenced treatments like an accurate New Mexican audio bathroom past healing sound facilitator Rick ​​Bastine, who uses crystal meditation bowls, Tibetan singing bowls, and instruments like a didgeridoo and ocean harp to create sounds and vibrations that permit for a relaxing and healing surroundings.

4. Ride the track

The last thing Game of Thrones author and Santa Iron resident George R.R. Martin put his proper name (and money) backside was Meow Wolf. Then when he took it upon himself to join with other locals to reimagine the defunct 18-mile track spur between Santa Fe and Lamy, the issue was no ordinary train ride. Called the Heaven Railway, 2 fantastically painted trains make their mode between the 2 cities while riders savour entertainers, music, dinner parties, cocktails, and more than along the ride. Launching this vacation season with at least four different experiences, including Pablo's Magical Holiday, Sunset Serenade, Murder on the Lamy Line, and the Exodus Feel, which features a Santa Fe theatrical feel company, Sky Railway is certain to keep riders entertained across the scenic mountains they'll see.

5. Explore the Railyard and farmers' market

The Heaven Railway's Santa Fe depot is in the Railyard, just a few minutes from downtown. The active train station (it's where the commuter railroad train to/from Albuquerque stops) has become a creative, shopping, and dining hub in contempo years, and it'southward been the home of the Santa Atomic number 26 Farmers' Market since the 1990s. Visit vendors selling locally grown produce (chiles included, in flavour), spices like epazote (Mexican oregano) and ground chiles, prepared foods like raspberry rhubarb pies, chile and cheese flatbread, light-green and cherry-red chile mustard, and brightly colored chile ristras (stale republic of chile strings and wreaths). On Saturdays you can also grab the next Railyard Artisan Market also as the El Museo Mercado vintage and flea market across the tracks.

Newly opened or coming soon to the Railyard are Wayward Sons Distillery, Bosque Brewing Co. from Albuquerque, Built Design home store, Altar Spirits, Nuckolls Brewing Co., and Chomp Food Hall.

And correct in the centre of the pandemic concluding fall, beloved café and found shop Opuntia Café moved to a massive location overlooking the Railyard. The calorie-free-filled spot is owned past Todd Spitzer and Jeanna Gienke—he looks after the eclectic tea and coffee listing, while she'due south the resident establish whisperer. The oasis-like space is filled with gorgeous greenery and natural forest, with plenty of quiet nooks. And while breakfast and lunch bring many patrons eager to dig into dishes like huevos rancheros, a ramen bowl, and cornflake-encrusted French toast, the café recently appear it is launching dinner and cocktails three nights a week.

half-dozen. Sip chocolate elixirs

As temperatures drop, a rich cup of hot chocolate begins to sound very appealing. But at Kakawa Chocolate House—which has two locations in Santa Fe—y'all won't detect overly sweet and milky concoctions. Instead, their drinking chocolates are based on recipes from historic sources using carefully sourced chocolate from Latin America and Africa. And if you lot ask for a tasting, yous'll become a dose of palatable cacao education that delves into drinking chocolate's Mayan and Aztec origins, through its European versions, to a recipe by Thomas Jefferson, and culminating in several of their own recipes. The shop besides makes a variety of truffles and water ice foam.

7. Shop small businesses

Santa Fe is filled with independently endemic boutiques—y'all'll be hard pressed to find the Gap anywhere most downtown. Wander effectually the city's main square, the Plaza, and notice shops selling enough of vintage and new turquoise jewelry, Southwestern textiles and apparel, western cowboy-manner gear, and modern housewares. A few shops worth poking your caput into include Sub Rosa Mercantile, Keshi, Overland Sheepskin Co., Hecho a Mano, Malouf on the Plaza, Nerveless Works Bookstore, Seret and Sons, Santa Fe Dry out Goods, WearAbouts, and Double Take, New United mexican states's largest consignment shop.

viii. Go for a hike or hit the slopes

Santa Fe is surrounded by the Sangre de Cristo mountain range, high desert, and the Santa Fe National Woods, which make for fantabulous hiking and skiing locations. For hiking, try the 3.9-mile-long Picacho Peak Trail, which ascends one of the highest hills that rises to a higher place the city, or the longer Nambe Lake Trail, which is nearly a xxx-infinitesimal drive from downtown. In winter, head to the Ski Santa Fe resort and get gear up for some serious pulverisation.

>> Next: An Off-the-Beaten Path Itinerary for a 3-Day Road Trip in New Mexico

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Source: https://www.afar.com/magazine/best-things-to-do-in-santa-fe-new-mexico

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