Santa Fe, New Mexico Attractions Near the Inn and Spa at Loretto
Centrally located and close to the historic Santa Fe Plaza and the city’s famed sights, explore the culture and artistry of this ancient city. There are over 300 galleries nestled among the historic buildings surrounding the Inn and Spa at Loretto. Become immersed in a colorful blend of pastel skies, earth-tone buildings and converging cultures unlike any other place in the world. Be sure to visit our web site page on art galleries in Santa Fe.
The Santa Fe Indian Market
Santa Fe's Indian Market is an internationally famous event, drawing a crowd from all around the globe to the city's historic plaza each August. Each year the Market includes 1,200 artists from about 100 tribes who show their work in over 600 booths. The event attracts an estimated 100,000 visitors. Buyers, collectors and gallery owners come to Indian Market to take advantage of the opportunity to buy directly from the artists. For many visitors, this is a rare opportunity to meet the artists and learn about contemporary Indian arts and cultures.
Southwestern Association for Indian Arts, Inc. (SWAIA)
PO Box 969
Santa Fe, NM 87504-0969
Phone: 505.983.5220
Fax: 505.983.7647
E-mail: info@swaia.org
http://www.swaia.org/market.php
Courtesy of the New Mexico Tourism Department and photography by Mark Nohl.
The Historic Loretto Chapel in Santa Fe
Two mysteries surround the spiral staircase in the Loretto Chapel: the identity of its builder and the physics of its construction. When the Loretto Chapel was completed in 1898, there was no way to access the choir loft twenty-two feet above. Carpenters were called in to address the problem but they all concluded access to the loft would have to be via ladder as a staircase would interfere with the interior space of the small Chapel. Legend says that to find a solution to the seating problem, the Sisters of the Chapel made a novena to St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. On the ninth and final day of prayer, a man appeared at the Chapel with a donkey and a toolbox looking for work. Months later the elegant circular staircase was completed, and the carpenter disappeared without pay or thanks. After searching for the man (an ad even ran in the local newspaper) and finding no trace of him, some concluded that he was St. Joseph himself, who came in answer to the sisters' prayers.
The Loretto Chapel
207 Old Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe, NM 87501
(505) 982-0092
Wedding Information
CALL (505) 982-0092
EMAIL weddings@lorettochapel.com
Learn more on the web site at www.lorettochapel.com
Santa Fe Palace of the Governors
The first structure built in Santa Fe after its founding, the Palace is the oldest public building in continuous use in the United States. It served as the capitol until after the 1860's. Beleaguered Spanish defended themselves in the Palace during a 10-day siege in the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. The first American to see Santa Fe, Zebulon M. Pike, was interrogated as a spy there in 1807. Confederate forces used the Palace as their headquarters for a few weeks in 1862 and Territorial Governor Lew Wallace wrote most of Ben Hur there during his term from 1878 to 1881. The Palace, or El Palacio as it's often called, was transformed into the main structure of the Museum of New Mexico in 1913 and is now a history museum. Like the Santa Fe Plaza, the Palace was made a National Historic Landmark in 1961. The palace portal, or covered porch, serves as a marketplace for Native Americans selling jewelry and crafts to tourist and locals.
Palace of the Governors
105 E Palace Ave, Santa Fe, 87501 - (505) 476-5100
http://www.palaceofthegovernors.org/
Courtesy of the New Mexico Tourism Department
St. Francis Cathedral - Santa Fe, New Mexico
The crowning achievement of Archbishop Lamy's church construction in New Mexico, Saint Francis Cathedral, is just north of La Fonda Hotel. Built in 1869 and designed in the French Romanesque style, the building is alien to the Spanish heritage of Santa Fe but is still one of its greatest landmarks. Constructed on the site of a church that was destroyed in the Pueblo Revolt and replacing a later adobe church called La Parroquia, Saint Francis Cathedral was built of stone from local quarries and from the La Bajada Mesa, west of the city.
Portions of La Parroquia remain in the form of the Chapel of Our lady of the Rosary, which houses a wooden statue of the Virgin known as Our Lady of Peace. The statue was first brought to Santa Fe in 1625 and was returned to the city by the armies of Don Diego de Vargas during the re-conquest of 1692.
St. Francis Cathedral
Address: 231 Cathedral Pl., Santa Fe
Phone: (505) 982-5619
http://www.santafe.com/attractions/st_francis_cathedral.html
Courtesy of the New Mexico Tourism Department
Enjoy The Experience of a Horseride or Mountain Adventure - Santa Fe Mountain Adventures
Santa Fe Mountain Adventures offers exceptional destination management and customized vacation experiences for groups, families and adults. For event and travel planners, our turn-key offerings make it easy for you. We lead journeys unique to northern New Mexico—blissful hiking, challenging geocaching, thrilling whitewater rafting, altitude-assisted golfing, high-country horseback riding, heart-thumping mountain biking, serene fly-fishing, scenic snowshoeing, invigorating cross-country skiing and a variety of other outdoor and fitness opportunities. Visit the web site at www.santafemountainadventures.com or call 800-965-4010.
Courtesy of the New Mexico Tourism Department
The Santa Fe Opera
This unique building in Santa Fe's outskirts houses the Santa Fe Opera. The new open-air 2128-seat theater opened in 1998, but the opera has called this stunning mountain site home for more than four decades. The Santa Fe Opera has earned an international reputation for excellence. The remarkable setting has lured both performers and opera fans from all around the world.
The Santa Fe Opera - Driving Directions - 1. Proceed north on US 84/285 to Exit 168: “Tesuque Village/Opera Drive.”
Note: This is the first exit north of the “599/Santa Fe Relief Route” interchange.
2. At the stop sign at the bottom of the exit ramp turn left and proceed underneath the highway.
3. At the stop sign turn right onto the frontage road ("Opera Drive") and continue on the frontage road to the Opera entrance.
Santa Fe Opera
Subscriptions and single tickets are also available by phone.For information or to place an order, call the Box Office Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm.
Toll Free: 800-280-4654
Local: 505-986-5900
http://www.santafeopera.org/
Courtesy of the New Mexico Tourism Department
Santa Fe Plaza
The heart of Santa Fe is the plaza. The "City Different" has been the capital for the Spanish "Kingdom of New Mexico," the Mexican province of Nuevo Mejico, the American territory of New Mexico (which contained what is today Arizona and New Mexico) and since 1912 the state of New Mexico. Santa Fe, in fact, was the first foreign capital over taken by the United States, when in 1846 General Stephen Watts Kearny captured it during the Mexican-American War.
Courtesy of the New Mexico Tourism Department and photography by Mark Nohl.
The Santa Fe Rodeo
Santa Fe held the first rodeo in America for which there is any record, back in 1847. Now Rodeo de Santa Fe holds a highly-acclaimed event each June.
Santa Fe Rodeo
RODEO! de Santa Fe, Inc.
3237 Rodeo Road (at Richards Ave and at Ave Pueblos)
P.O. Box 5185, Santa Fe, NM 87502-5185
Office: 505-471-4300 Fax: 505-438-0889
http://www.rodeodesantafe.org
Chimayo - Shrine El Santuario de Chimayó
Chimayó, believed to be built on sacred earth with miraculous healing powers, the legendary shrine El Santuario de Chimayó, is probably the most visited church in New Mexico is located 40 miles south of Taos and 24 miles northeast of Santa Fe, about ten miles east of Espanola in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. It is on Hwy 76, often called the "High Road to Taos" –a scenic route through beautiful old Spanish villages and gorgeous Georgia O'Keeffe-esque landscape vistas. To learn more and get directions, visit the web site at http://chimayo.org/index.html.
The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico houses a collection of over 2990 works, 1149 O’Keeffe paintings, drawings, and sculpture. The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum is the largest single repository of O'Keeffe's work in the world. Throughout the year, visitors can see a changing selection of at least 50 of these works. Over 140 artists have been exhibitied at the Museum including Frank Stella, Jackson Pollack, Andy Warhol and Arthur Dove. To learn more, visit the web site at http://www.okeeffemuseum.org/visit/index.html.
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
217 Johnson Street
Santa Fe, NM 87501
505.946.1000
Taos Pueblo Village
Archaeologists say that ancestors of the Taos Indians lived in this valley called Taos Pueblo long before Columbus discovered America and hundreds of years before Europe emerged from the Dark Ages. Visit the ancient ruins in the Taos Valley where people lived nearly 1000 years ago. The Pueblo is generally open to visitors daily from 8 am to 4:30 pm, except when tribal rituals require closing the Pueblo. Late winter to early Spring the Pueblo closes for about ten weeks. For more information visit the web site at http://www.taospueblo.com/about.php.