Weekend Getaway: Santa Fe & Taos, New Mexico

 The old saying "The third times the charm" rang true for my weekend getaway to Santa Fe and Taos, New Mexico. I'd booked reservations for my first visit to this area twice before and had to cancel both times. So I was very excited to finally visit over the Easter holiday weekend this year. I think New Mexico is a hidden gem and I have enjoyed exploring this neighbor state. So it's no surprise that I really enjoyed visiting Santa Fe and Taos on this road trip. Travel along with me on this weekend getaway and see what I got up to!

Santa Fe

Santa Fe is known as the City Different and I think that's a very appropriate nickname. It's the oldest state capital in the US (it was established 13 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth) and has a spectacular setting in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. It's known as a city of culture also and is home to artists, chefs, wellness experts and other creative dreamers. In other words, you don't get a lot of "mainstream" in Santa Fe!

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Built between1869 and 1886, St. Francis Cathedral in Santa Fe is a French Romanesque Revival style church spearheaded by Archbishop Lamy. It's one of Santa Fe's most celebrated landmarks and a must visit, especially if you like architecture. Just look at those doors!

Set apart from the adobe buildings of Santa Fe, yet still fitting in to the city, this cathedral is simply beautiful inside - simple and beautiful. It wasn't overcrowded despite our visit on Good Friday and it was a very cool first stop on our visit.

Santa Fe Plaza

The Santa Fe Plaza is a National Historic Landmark in downtown Santa Fe in the style of traditional Spanish-American colonial cities. There are shops, galleries and restaurants in the square along with merchants selling their wares.

We walked around the plaza looking at the different merchant booths and then had lunch at Plaza Cafe Downtown. The weather was Goldiclocks perfect - not too hot, not too cold - and it was fun to be part of the tourist crowd enjoying the city on a holiday weekend.

I tried to tour the Georgia O Keefe Museum - one of Santa Fe's most famous residents - but they were sold out until Monday afternoon. It's a popular place! That just means that I'll have to go back...

We also wandered through La Fonda on the Plaza, the only hotel on the Plaza, and were able to pop into San Miguel Church before they closed their doors for the day. Built between 1610 and 1626, it is believed to be the oldest church in the United States. 

Breweries

As we like to do on our travels, we stopped in at a couple craft breweries. Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery was open only on the patio but what a cool patio that it was. There was a koi pond and rustic seating for us to enjoy an adult beverage outside. I went with the Paloma - it's also a distillery so you could get cocktails also - and it was very refreshing on a Friday evening.

We headed to Second Street Brewery- Rufina Taproom for our dinner. It was crowded but we got there early enough that we were able to score a table and get some dinner. They have a pub food menu - which was perfect for us - and we enjoyed the food and atmosphere very much. Just know that this is a very popular place so there may be a wait unless you go at less popular times.

Wineries

Taos

Taos Historic Plaza

The Taos Plaza is the historic center of the town of Taos. Once a Spanish fortified walled plaza, and some 400 years old, it's now the home to shops, galleries and restaurants built in the adobe style. One of its most famous residents is Hotel La Fonda Taos - built in 1820 and ran as a mercantile, the hotel is the cornerstone to the Plaza.

We had a late afternoon meal here and walked the shops - the weather was quite perfect - and enjoyed the sun setting over the Plaza. There were very few people, just a handful, wandering around so it made for a very pleasant wander.

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge

The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge is the second highest bridge in the US Highway System. It's a steel deck arch bridge across the Rio Grande Gorge that sits 10 miles northwest of Taos. At 650 feet above the Rio Grande, it's not only one of the US' highest bridges but also one of the most famous. It's received awards - Most Beautiful Steel Bridge - and been in movies including Natural Born Killers, White Sands and Terminator Salvation.

We parked at the parking area on the west side of the bridge - it's actually a rest area - and there are restrooms, picnic tables and food vendors (we didn't see food vendors as it was Easter Sunday) The views from the bridge are fantastic and the height didn't really bother me - even though I'm not a fan.( If you are afraid of heights, you can get views of the bridge without walking it) The landscape is spectacular and I'm glad we were able to stop here on our way home. Bonus - we saw bighorn sheep on the inside of the canyon!

Where We Stayed

We stayed the first night in Santa Fe at the Hampton Inn and our second night in Taos was at Taos Motor Lodge. Both were perfect for one night stays - the Hampton included breakfast and an outdoor fire pit and the Taos Motor Lodge was a retro re-do that had been nicely done.

Our hotel for the night - Taos Motor Lodge

How about you? Have you been to Santa Fe? Or Taos?

Linking up with: My Corner of the World at Photographing New Zealand!