New Mexico Travel Guide
Taos Pueblo, New Mexico. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
New Mexico is the oldest European-settled region in the US and the most visually distinct: adobe pueblos, turquoise skies, and desert light that built an art colony in Taos. Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the country (founded 1610) and a UNESCO Creative City.
Taos Pueblo has been continuously inhabited for a thousand years. Carlsbad Caverns' Big Room is one of the world's great caves. White Sands' gypsum dunes glow at sunset. And the green chile question (red or green?) is the state pastime.
Destinations in New Mexico
Taos PuebloThe thousand-year-old adobe community, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
White Sands275 sq miles of white gypsum dunes; the sunset ranger walk.
Carlsbad CavernsThe Big Room and the summer bat flight.
Santa Fe PlazaThe 1610 plaza: the Palace of the Governors, Canyon Road galleries, Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.- BandelierAncestral Puebloan cliff dwellings in Frijoles Canyon.
- Taos Ski ValleyThe steep, serious ski mountain an hour north of Taos.
- AlbuquerqueOld Town, the Sandia tramway and the October Balloon Fiesta.
Hover a state to explore it. Click a city pin to open its guide.
Top Cities & towns in New Mexico
Regional food
- Green chile stew (the state dish; order it 'Christmas' for red and green)
- Posole (the hominy stew)
- Sopapillas (puffed fried bread with honey)
Getting there
Albuquerque (ABQ) is the gateway; Santa Fe (SAF) has limited flights. The Rail Runner links Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Distances are big and the south needs a car.