Fort Union National Monument (Watrous, NM)
Largest 19th century military fort in the region from 1851-1891
What you can see: Adobe remnants (houses, jail cells, storage rooms, etc.), Santa Fe Trail, stage coach paths
Our kids loved seeing and picturing the old buildings and stage coaches.
Pecos National Historic Park (Pecos, NM)
Site of the furthest west Civil War battle, stage coach stop on the Santa Fe Trail, story of the Spanish and Indians
What you can see: remnants of Indian pueblos (Pecos Pueblo), church, go inside reconstructed Kivas.
Naturally, climbing down into a Kiva is a great highlight, and just learning about how the Indians and Spanish interacted here.
What you can see: remnants of Indian pueblos (Pecos Pueblo), church, go inside reconstructed Kivas.
Naturally, climbing down into a Kiva is a great highlight, and just learning about how the Indians and Spanish interacted here.
Valles Caldera National Preserve (Jemez Springs, NM)
13 mile wide circular depression formed 1.25 million years ago when a volcanic eruption occurred.
13 mile wide circular depression formed 1.25 million years ago when a volcanic eruption occurred.
Different times of year will showcase different activities, we were there during Winter, WHICH WAS GORGEOUS, so we went show shoeing. The visitor center DOES provide snow shoe rentals for adults and kids as young as about 3/4...my youngest had the smallest size available. You can also cross country ski here!
Throughout the year there is hiking, bicycling, fishing, horseback riding, guided tours, and much more.
If going during winter months, be sure to check the website before for any alerts or closures. The dirt road to the visitor center is plowed during snowy season, but it actually closed just after we left due to it becoming hard to travel down...it was muddy and slippery while we were there.
Also, a note on getting there from Santa Fe: you pass through Los Alamos National Lab and will be required to stop at a security checkpoint. Simple checkpoint..have you been here? License? On your way.
While in Los Alamos, take a pit stop at Manhattan Project National Historic Park. I think the name is self explanatory for what you'll learn about there. We spent too much time at Valles Caldera (not complaining) and didn't have enough time to stop here so we'll save it for another trip, but it is literally RIGHT THERE.
Bandelier National Monument (Los Alamos, NM)
A site to see where the Ancestral Pueblo people lived and carved their homes into the volcanic tuff.
What you can see: wildlife--we saw a few Abert's Squirrels, remnants of ancient pueblos, kivas, canyons, petroglyphs, etc.
There is no shortage of trail options here that range from short to long. We did the Main Loop Trail which takes you around Long House and you are able to climb up various ladders and go inside cavates...which are human carved alcoves. It's any easy hike, but does involve narrow stone staircases. Halfway through this trail you can either loop back to the visitor center or head to Alcove house, which is where went.
Alcove House is 140 feet above the canyon floor, you reach it by climbing stone stairs and 4 wooden ladders. Here you will see a Kiva and niches of where the homes used to be. The ladders are MUCH MUCH larger than the others on the Main Loop Trail, so I sat this one out with my almost 4 year old. It was the perfect trail for our 6 year old, so I definitely recommend 6+ for the Alcove House area. Some of the ladder wrungs are too spaced out for my littlest one's legs to reach comfortably, which we learned on the smaller Main Loop ladders.
This is another park to check alerts for, only the Main Loop Trail gets cleared of any snow, and Alcove House closes if there is ice.
Meow Wolf - House of Eternal Return (Santa Fe, NM)
Art museum turned hands on, interactive experience.
Art museum turned hands on, interactive experience.
This exhibit can be enjoyed by many ages. Younger children can touch and explore, while older crowds can slow down and follow the story that runs through this place. Bright colors, secret passages, live interactions, etc.
The premise is that a family disappeared while involved in some sort of experiment, and there are clues all around to figure out just what happened. Obviously this is tough to do with kids because there is a lot of reading involved and taking your time, so we opted to just freely explore. It was an OK experience for us and in our opinion, not worth the price. But our kids had fun after they realized it wasn't as scary as they first thought.
You'll want to check days/times, we went on a Saturday afternoon and it was packed. We spent a lot of time worrying about getting separated from our kids because there were just so many people everywhere and our kids were entranced.
(Photos from Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Manhattan Project National Historical Park (Los Alamos, NM)
I mentioned that this was one spot that we ended up skipping due to time restrictions, but it's where the atomic bomb was created so it's probably an interesting stop. You cannot tour the actual facilities, but there is a visitor center where you can learn about the events that happened here.
Where to Eat
When in New Mexico, you must eat the local grub! We ate 2 dinners out in Santa Fe that were fantastic! We tried to eat downtown, but that was a total bust leaving us with a bad taste in our mouths, but a little redemption was found at these 2 yummy restaurants below.
The Pantry
Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner since 1948..you can't go wrong here. They are highly recommended for their breakfast, but we stopped in to have dinner. It was even 100% kid approved, and that is ALWAYS a win!
Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner since 1948..you can't go wrong here. They are highly recommended for their breakfast, but we stopped in to have dinner. It was even 100% kid approved, and that is ALWAYS a win!
La Choza
This was our second dinner and where we learned about Sopapillas. We stopped here one night earlier and the wait to be seated was insane, so we came back at opening the next night. We later learned that it's a favorite spot among locals, so it's probably always that busy. Oh, back to the Sopapillas...they are heaven in your mouth! If you have the chance to eat anywhere in New Mexico, check the menu for these and GET THEM, you won't regret it.
All of us enjoyed our meals and left feeling extremely full, but also happy.
They do close between lunch and dinner times, and I highly suggest getting reservations!
Sky Coffee (located at the Railyard)
Not necessarily a restaurant, but we needed a restroom and this was the only place open so we indulged in a quick coffee and hot chocolate break. The hot chocolate is made with real chocolate and absolutely delicious, the barista even made sure to make them at a temperature that wasn't scolding hot. My husband had a coffee that was great and my latte was perfection. Definitely worth the stop if you're needing a coffee fix and are in the area!
We loved this recent trip to New Mexico and can't wait to return because we have barely scratched the surface.
This was our second dinner and where we learned about Sopapillas. We stopped here one night earlier and the wait to be seated was insane, so we came back at opening the next night. We later learned that it's a favorite spot among locals, so it's probably always that busy. Oh, back to the Sopapillas...they are heaven in your mouth! If you have the chance to eat anywhere in New Mexico, check the menu for these and GET THEM, you won't regret it.
All of us enjoyed our meals and left feeling extremely full, but also happy.
They do close between lunch and dinner times, and I highly suggest getting reservations!
Sky Coffee (located at the Railyard)
Not necessarily a restaurant, but we needed a restroom and this was the only place open so we indulged in a quick coffee and hot chocolate break. The hot chocolate is made with real chocolate and absolutely delicious, the barista even made sure to make them at a temperature that wasn't scolding hot. My husband had a coffee that was great and my latte was perfection. Definitely worth the stop if you're needing a coffee fix and are in the area!
We loved this recent trip to New Mexico and can't wait to return because we have barely scratched the surface.
Looks like such a fun trip! Beautiful photos :)
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