Albuquerque

Getting there & around

Bus & tram

Bus

The Alvarado Transportation Center (1st St & Central Ave) houses ABQ RIDE (505-243-7433; www.cabq.gov/transit; 6am-10pm), the public bus system. It covers most of Albuquerque on weekdays and hits the major tourist spots daily (adult/child $1/35¢). Most lines run until 6pm. ABQ RIDE Route 50 connects the airport with downtown (last bus at 8:30pm; no weekend service).

Greyhound (505-243-4435, 800-231-2222; www.greyhound.com, 320 1st St SW) is next door, and serves destinations throughout New Mexico. Twin Hearts (505-751-1201, 800-654-9456) leaves four times daily for Santa Fe ($25), Taos ($50), Red River ($55) and Angel Fire ($55).

Sandia Shuttle (505-474-5696, 888-775-5696; www.sandiashuttle.com) runs daily shuttles to many Santa Fe hotels between 9am and 11pm ($25).

^ Back to top

Air

Though the Albuquerque International Sunport (505-244-7700; www.cabq.gov/airport; 2200 Sunport Blvd SE) is New Mexico’s biggest airport, it’s still relatively small. Most major US airlines service Albuquerque, though Southwest (800-435-9792) has the largest presence. Cabs to downtown cost about $25.

^ Back to top

Train

The Southwest Chief stops daily at Albuquerque’s Amtrak station (505-842-9650, 800-872-7245; www.amtrak.com; 1st St & Central Ave), heading east to Kansas City, Missouri ($160, 18 hours) and beyond, or west through Flagstaff, Arizona (from $54, five hours), to Los Angeles (from $61, 16½ hours). Service to Santa Fe ($34, 1½ hours) involves transferring to a bus in Lamy, 18 miles south of Santa Fe.

A commuter line, the New Mexico Rail Runner Express (www.nmrailrunner.com), shares the station, with service scheduled to reach Santa Fe in 2008.

^ Back to top