Santa Fe Region
Perched 450ft above the canyon floor, this lofty ceremonial cave is reached by climbing four ladders. At the top you'll find a reconstructed kiva. There's…
Must-see attractions in New Mexico
Taos
In 1924, Mabel Dodge Luhan gave DH Lawrence's wife, Frieda, this 160-acre ranch, now administered by the University of New Mexico, where the Lawrence…
Albuquerque
The lava fields preserved in this large desert park, west of the Rio Grande, are adorned with more than 23,000 ancient petroglyphs (1000 BC–AD 1700)…
Albuquerque
The United States' longest aerial tram climbs 2.7 miles from the desert floor in the northeast corner of the city to the summit of 10,378ft Sandia Crest…
Santa Fe
Santa Fe’s French-born bishop Jean-Baptiste Lamy – hero of Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop – set about building this cathedral in 1869. Its…
Santa Fe
Built as a fortified residence along the Camino Real, the 'Ranch of the Swallows' is nearly as old as Santa Fe itself. Now it’s a 200-acre living museum,…
Santa Fe
Built in 1917 and a prime early example of Santa Fe’s Pueblo Revival architecture, the New Mexico Museum of Art has spent a century collecting and…
Albuquerque
Set on 60 shady acres beside the Rio Grande and home to chimpanzees, giraffes, elephants, crocodiles and more, this zoo puts on a busy schedule of events…
Santa Fe
The oldest shrine in the US to Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patroness of Mexico, this adobe church was constructed between 1776 and 1796, though there have…
Santa Fe
Erected from 1610 onwards, by and for the Tlaxcalan Indians who arrived from Mexico with Santa Fe’s first Spanish colonists, this is considered to be the…
Santa Fe
New Mexico’s State Capitol, informally known as the Roundhouse, was laid out in the shape of the state symbol – also the emblem of Zia Pueblo – in 1966…
Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian
Santa Fe
Mary Cabot established this museum in 1937 to showcase Navajo ceremonial art, and its major strength is Navajo and Zuni jewelry, in particular silverwork…
Santa Fe
Built in 1878 for the Sisters of Loretto, this tiny Gothic chapel is famous as the site of St Joseph's Miraculous Staircase, a spiraling and apparently…
Albuquerque
From the lofty high-wire bike to the mind-boggling Light, Shadow, Color area, this gung-ho museum offers a hands-on exhibit for every type of child (don't…
Southeastern New Mexico
It's hard to believe that in Billy the Kid's era Lincoln was home to a bustling population of nearly 900. Today it is essentially a ghost town, with only…
Albuquerque
The ABQ BioPark Aquarium, a few blocks west of Old Town and the centerpiece of the northern segment of the ABQ BioPark, holds a 285,000-gallon tank where…
Albuquerque
Dating in its present incarnation from 1793, the facade of this adobe church now provides Old Town's most famous photo op. Mass is celebrated Sunday,…
New Mexico
The rugged El Malpais National Monument consists of almost 200 sq miles of isolated volcanic terrain. There are numerous trails here, accessible via Hwy…
Monastery of Christ in the Desert
Santa Fe Region
Day visitors are welcome at this ecosustainable Benedictine monastery, set in a secluded geological wonderland, for a unique spiritual-architectural…
New Mexico
A 214-sq-mile adventure camp for the Boy Scouts of America, the ranch complex is also home to four unique museums. The new National Scouting Museum, which…
Southeastern New Mexico
The remote Three Rivers Petroglyph Site showcases over 21,000 petroglyphs, incised six centuries ago by the Jornada Mogollon people onto the flat surfaces…
Valles Caldera National Preserve
Santa Fe Region
Ever wondered what the crater of a dormant supervolcano looks like 1.25 million years after it first blows? At Valles Caldera, the prehistoric explosion…
Santa Fe Region
On the way to the main canyon you'll pass these little-visited ruins, located near the intersection of Hwy 502 and Hwy 4. If you're out for a full day and…
New Mexico
As far as we know, the dusty southwestern corner of New Mexico isn't haunted by spirits speaking in iambic pentameter, but it is where you'll find…
Santa Fe Region
Eight miles west of Pojoaque along Hwy 502, this ancient pueblo traces its origins back to Bandelier and Mesa Verde. It’s best known now as the birthplace…
Capulin Volcano National Monument
New Mexico
A 60,000-year-old cinder cone, Capulin is the most accessible of numerous extinct volcanoes in the Raton-Clayton Volcanic Field, which covers a whopping…
Pecos National Historical Park
Santa Fe Region
When the Spanish first reached Pecos Pueblo, they found a five-story, 700-room structure that was a major center for trade between the Pueblo peoples and…
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument
Central New Mexico
At this surreal geologic enclave, volcanic ash from the ancient Jemez Mountain volcanoes has eroded into tipi-like formations and slender, steep-sided…
New Mexico
Animal lovers won’t want to miss the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, 20 miles southeast of Ramah off Hwy 53. Home to rescued and captive-born wolves and wolf…
New Mexico
One of the 10 best dive spots in the US is, surprisingly, right here in li'l ol' Santa Rosa. The hourglass-shaped, 70ft-deep Blue Hole is 138ft in…
New Mexico
By far the coolest sight around these parts, Shiprock – Tsé Bit'a’í (Rock with Wings) in Navajo – looms eerily over the landscape 40 miles west of…
Santa Fe Region
Set up by the Pojoaque Pueblo’s former governor, artist George Rivera, this center features simple but powerful displays on the history and culture of the…
Central New Mexico
This site preserves the ruins of Kuaua Pueblo, which was at its most active from the 14th to the 16th centuries. The stars of the show are 14 500-year-old…
New Mexico State University Museums
New Mexico
If you're looking to engage the intellect, the university museums are a fantastic choice. While small, the exhibits are well curated. The Zuhl Museum, in…
New Mexico Museum of Space History
Southeastern New Mexico
Looming over the northeast corner of town and nicknamed 'the golden cube,' this four-story museum is surrounded by historic missiles, and holds excellent…
Manhattan Project National Historical Park
Santa Fe Region
Los Alamos is one of three separate sites within this national historical park, established in 2015. Each site spotlights a different aspect of the…
Santa Fe Region
Several tours explore these ancient ruins, 5 miles west of the Santa Clara Pueblo at the entrance to Santa Clara Canyon. Abandoned around 1500, they’re…
Taos
A short walk east of the Plaza, the little-changed former home of Kit Carson (1809–68) – perhaps the Southwest's most famous mountain man, guide, trapper,…
Valley of Fires Recreation Area
Southeastern New Mexico
At the Valley of Fires Recreation Area, 4 miles west of Carrizozo, you can explore the rocky blackness of a 125-sq-mile lava flow that's 160ft deep in the…
New Mexico
One of New Mexico’s best regional museums, a sprawling, enormous affair that holds a superb display of Mimbres pottery and a great doll collection,…
