Santa Fe Planning & Tips

Getting There and Around
While Santa Fe has a small municipal airport for commuter planes and private aircraft, most visitors fly into the Albuquerque International Sunport, which services the major U.S. commercial airlines. From here, you can take the Sandia Shuttle Express (known among locals as the Santa Fe Shuttle), with several daily scheduled trips to the hotels in Santa Fe.

If you plan on touring the sites around the outskirts of Santa Fe (and there are many family-friendly attractions outside of downtown and the city limits), consider renting a car for convenient access. Note, however, that parking in pedestrian-friendly downtown Santa Fe has historically been very limited. Even the Convention & Visitors Bureau recognizes the area's minimal parking options: "We're an ancient city with parking solutions that match." That said, a brand-new convention center at W. Marcy and Grant avenues brought about 360 underground public-parking spaces to town in September 2008, alleviating some of the parking congestion.

Order or download the official Visitors Guide, which includes a map of all of the public and private parking garages in town. The city-owned lots (blue circles on map) cap the daily price at $9, while private garages (green circles) charge more. Some one-, two- and eight-hour metered parking spots on the streets are available, but you cannot feed the meter after your time is up; you must move your vehicle.

Otherwise, to get around Santa Fe you can take private taxis or ride the Santa Fe Trails bus system with routes throughout the city. Buses run every 15 minutes up and down the major thoroughfare Cerrillos Road to the Santa Fe Plaza; one-way fares are $1 for adults, 50 cents for children ages 5 to 17.

The Art of Smart Timing
Families naturally gravitate to Santa Fe in the summer months, when kids break from school. But that's also the high season for visitors in general, so expect crowds and the highest lodging prices. The third week in August brings the world famous Indian Market, when more than 1,000 Native American artists display their works on Santa Fe Plaza. Hotel rooms book up to a year in advance for this wildly popular event that draws 100,000 visitors from around the globe.

If you can get to Santa Fe in the "off season" spring or in the fall, when the changing leaves bring glorious autumn colors, you'll enjoy fewer crowds and some lodging deals. Every September is the Santa Fe Fiesta, the country's oldest community event, with parades, music, dancing and feasting, plus the burning of a nearly 50-foot-tall giant puppet that symbolizes a new beginning. October is the beloved Albuquerque Balloon Festival, about an hour's drive south of Santa Fe.

The holiday season brings glowing farolitos, brown paper bags filled with sand and lit with votives. They line the sidewalks and the roofs of buildings throughout town for an ultra-festive atmosphere. There's a mellow vibe to the city January through March, with many visitors to northern New Mexico hitting the nearby ski slopes.

Off the Radar
Peek inside the pretty St. Francis Cathedral Basilica (505-982-5619) near Santa Fe Plaza, with its stunning stained-glass; docent tours are offered twice daily. But the bonus here is the outdoor tile labyrinth that young children love walk on and follow.

Visitors can drop in at the Genoveva Chavez Community Center (505-955-4000) to use the indoor leisure pool with waterslide and ice rink.

The owner of Jackalope (505-471-8539) calls his store "Pier One on steroids." This Mercado-style shopping emporium sells everything from lawn and garden items, pottery, folk art, T-shirts, tote bags and plenty more -- not only from New Mexico, but from all over the world. Local craftspeople sell their wares and work on their projects in the flea-market environment. Kids like to watch the on-site glassblowers and check out the animals in the rustic pens on the property.

Visitor Bureau
Santa Fe Visitors Bureau