The city is 7,300' above sea level and has a cool, dry desert climate.  Set near the gorgeous foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, some of the nearby mountain peaks are over 12,000 feet and local ski areas often have snow pack in excess of 100 inches. 

We've been vacationing in Santa Fe for years, but had never been there during the winter season.  Our family chose it for our 1998 holiday vacation with hopes that snow might be on the mountains so that we could combine skiing with sightseeing and shopping. 

We were joined by friends which brought our group total to 14 with ages from 24 to 56 coming from all over the country - Vermont, Boston, Durango, and Texas.  Half drove to Santa Fe, the others flew to Albuquerque.  In past years, we've spent our holidays in Lake Tahoe, Jackson Hole, Banff, and Salt Lake City - quite a distance from our home towns, so I had thought that Santa Fe would be easy to reach via airlines and buses - I was quite wrong!  More about that later. 

When planning this trip, I looked for condominiums near the center of town and found only a few which could accommodate large families.  Fort Marcy Condos north of the Plaza was a possibility, but was booked for our time period, however the Eldorado Hotel manages the Zona Rosa Condominiums and had 3 bedroom units available.  Only 4 blocks from the Plaza, they were an excellent choice!  At the last minute, our youngest daughter and her friend decided to join us, so Eldorado reservations booked them a cute room at the Las Palomas Casitas, another property it manages, and just a half block from our condos. For more information, go to my detailed review of these properties by clicking HERE. 

As always, there is plenty to do in Santa Fe - shop, visit all the museums, browse the stores and galleries on Canyon Road, take day trips to the mountains, and eat. 
 

The first night, we had dinner at the Pinon Grill - the favourite entree was "Chimayo Chile Seared Prime Rib" best described as mesquite grilled, blacked beef encrusted with mild New Mexican spices!  Don't miss ordering this flavorful dish.  The next day, we had an early lunch at Pasquelle's which offers some of the best mexican food, sandwiches, and soups in Santa Fe.  The restaurant is tiny and there's always a line, but it's well worth the wait. 

The Shed offered excellent New Mexican cuisine - one family ate lunch there; the other enjoyed dinner.  We also discovered the Plaza Restaurant, a diner really, with great choices of good basic American and Mexican food.  One of our favourite Santa Fe restaurants is Tomasita's - while it advertises North New Mexican food, we think it's very close to Tex-Mex.  Our vegetarian daughter was in heaven since they offer lots of meatless choices. 

We chose the Pink Adobe for our "holiday dinner" - as always the selections were excellent and service perfect.  Half of us ordered Mexican food, the others dined on steaks cooked to perfection and succulent salmon. 

We discovered a new French restaurant on Burro Alley called the Cafe Paris owned by a husband-wife team who prepare fabulous food!  Rahera was born in Tahiti; Paul is from France.  For lunch, we had all kinds of soups, sandwiches, crepes, and omelettes, followed by chocolate truffle desserts.  The dinner menu looked superb and they also serve breakfast. 

We didn't have a chance to dine at El Nido (the nest) or the Steaksmith this time, but both are excellent dinner destinations. 
 

Our 98 pound Akita puppy chewed up my favourite winter boots two weeks before our trip, so I had to wear my 30# snow boots instead. Needless to say, I spent the first day searching for some new boots at every shoe store in town.  Walking On Water (on Water Street) had a nice selection but couldn't fit my size 11 feet.  The Overland Sheepskin Company had some great outdoor boots and Street Feet just next door on Galisteo did too.  Finally, I found the perfect boots at the Yarrow Collection on San Francisco Street - each pair is handcrafted by a Santa Fe artisan in colorful sheepskin and several low and high top designs are available.  The shop also has fanciful sheepskin coats and vests. 
 

Fenn Gallery at 1075 Paseo de Peralta is one of the finest art galleries in the Southwest.  It features 19th and 20th century American paintings and sculpture, works by early Taos and Santa Fe painters, as well as artists of the American West and masters of American Modernism and Impressionism.  Don't miss visiting this gallery to see all it has to offer or view some of the outstanding selections at its website. 

We saved the best for last (to give ourselves plenty of time to browse) at The Hock Shop on Read Street just a block from Tomasita's.  If you like trinkets, collectibles, Native American art and jewelry (the real thing, not the fake expensive, nouveau Indian stuff with Chinese turquoise made in the Far East), then don't miss stopping by Cliff and Debra Wright's store.  We found the Hock Shop over 20 years ago, and there's a story about how we first discovered it. 

My mother was a tiny little thing, only 99 pounds and 5' tall.  She was never wild about Indian jewelry until she and my step daddy lived in Chama for a year back in the early 1970s.  On one of their trips to Santa Fe, she saw a small (just her size) squash blossom necklace in a window and fell in love with it.  It was old Indian pawn in the days when lots of Native Americans really DID pawn some of their prized possessions, but usually paid the loans off and retrieved the goods.   Eventually, however, mom was able to purchase the piece (she was one who never gave up!). 

As you can see, the necklace is quite exquisite and unique in that each "flower" has a row of turquoise surrounding the blossom bottom.  It is a fine example of old Indian pawn that is no longer easy to find. 

When Kenny and I made our first trip to Santa Fe , mom told us that we HAD to find this "pawn shop".  She couldn't remember the name, but vaguely located it on a downtown map.  Kenny and I searched for several hours and gave up.  On one of our treks down the street mom had pointed out, I saw a lovely Indian bracelet in a window.  While I was inside looking at it, I asked the store owner if he might know of the store mother had found.  As it ended up, we were in the right shop, but Cliff's dad had sold mother the necklace. 

We've been going there ever since and are always delighted to see the menagerie of "stuff" that the Hock Shop has available -- collectibles of every sort and kind, very fine old Indian jewelry, Navajo rugs, pottery, and you name it, they'll probably have it (or will find it for you).  Cliff's motto is "No antiques, but some damn fine junk!"  All I have to say is that some of his "junk" is priceless and rare as hell.  Take a look by taking a link to The Hock Shop web page that includes some examples of the authentic Indian pawn he and his wife Debra have had for sale over the years. 
 

A short drive down Old Santa Fe Trails to Camino Lejo takes you to The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, one of our favorites.  The nearby Museum of International Folk Art is also worth a visit. 
 

Other day trips can be taken to visit pueblos, quaint towns such as Chama, and Native Indian historical ruins. 
 

Even though there was no snow in Santa Fe during our Christmas visit, both ski areas had enough for some fairly good skiing. 
 

It is important to have a reservation with Shuttlejack before arrival and if your airline schedule runs late, be sure to call them to reserve a later bus.  Some of our group who had delayed airline schedules forgot to call and were left standing at the curb -- they ended up renting a car to reach Santa Fe.  For information, reservations, and current bus schedules, call (505) 982-4311 in Santa Fe or (505) 243-3244 in Albuquerque. 

If you must fly on American Airlines via the Dallas-Ft. Worth Airport to reach Albuquerque, then take this link to my "Suggestions for making connections through the DFW airport". 
 

 

You can visit Lynn at http://www.scubamom.com/

You can email Lynn McKamey at scubamom@scubamom.com