9 Best Sights in Santa Fe, New Mexico

A 12-acre expanse that helped redefine the neighborhood, Railyard Park is an urban park with orchards, a community garden, a bird and butterfly garden, children’s play areas, picnic areas, and some fantastic public art. In summer, there are free outdoor evening movies. The park runs past SITE Santa Fe to the Railyard Plaza via the walkable and bikeable “Rail Trail.”

Along the south bank of the Santa Fe River, the barrio—its name means "District on the Other Side of the Water"—is one of America's oldest neighborhoods, settled in the early 1600s by the Tlaxcalan Indians (who were forbidden to live with the Spanish near the Plaza) and in the 1690s by soldiers who had helped recapture New Mexico after the Pueblo Revolt. The historic district was named a National Historic Landmark in 1968 and is a great place to experience Santa Fe's unique history of Native American, Spanish, Mexican, and American cultural influence. Plaques on houses on East De Vargas Street will help you locate some of the important structures. Check the performance schedule at the Santa Fe Playhouse on De Vargas Street, founded by writer Mary Austin and other Santa Feans in 1922.

Built in 1940 and designed by legendary Santa Fe architect John Gaw Meem to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Francisco Vásquez de Coronado's exploration of the Southwest, this church is the largest Spanish adobe structure in the United States and is considered by some to be the finest example of Pueblo-style architecture anywhere. The church was constructed in the old-fashioned way by parishioners, who mixed the more than 200,000 mud-and-straw adobe bricks and hauled them into place. The 225-ton white stone reredos (altar screen) is magnificent.

Headquarters of the Historic Santa Fe Foundation (HSFF), this 19th-century Territorial-style house has a small exhibit on Santa Fe architecture and preservation, but the real draw is the small but stunning garden abundant with lavender, roses, and mid-19th-century trees. Relax on a wrought-iron bench and take in the fine views of the hills northeast of town. The HSFF is a wealth of information on Santa Fe's historic properties, offering a great brochure for self-guided walking tours. They also sponsor monthly Salon El Zaguán lectures and rotating exhibits. It is free to visit the garden but guided tours cost extra.

While under construction, this 32,000-square-foot building was dubbed the "ninth northern pueblo," its scale supposedly rivaling that of the eight northern pueblos around Santa Fe. The Pueblo-style gallery is now a showcase for American and European art from the 19th century to the present. The sister contemporary showroom features more avant-garde pieces. The whole space feels like a museum, but all the works are for sale.

Stop inside this late-1890s adobe building to admire a truly diverse collection of paintings, drawings, and sculpture, much of it with a regional and traditional approach, and some of it downright whimsical. The owners also operate the excellent GF Contemporary, across the street, which focuses more on modern and abstract works.

A fonda (inn) has stood on this site southeast of the Plaza for centuries, and architect Isaac Hamilton Rapp built the area landmark that stands there today in 1922. The hotel was sold to the Santa Fe Railway in 1926 and remained a Harvey House hotel until 1968. The property completed its latest major renovation in 2013, its guest rooms receiving a smart but still classic makeover, but the historic public areas retain their original design elements. Because of its proximity to the Plaza and its history as a gathering place for everyone from cowboys to movie stars (Errol Flynn stayed here), it's referred to as "The Inn at the End of the Trail." Free docent tours, which touch on the hotel's rich history and detail key pieces in the astounding public art collection, are offered Wednesday through Saturday morning at 10:30. Step inside to browse the shops on the main floor or to eat at one of the restaurants, including the impressive greenhouse glass-topped La Plazuela. The lobby bar often has live music. In warm months, enjoy a drink at the fifth-floor Bell Tower Bar which offers tremendous sunset views.

The symbol of the Zía Pueblo, which represents the Circle of Life, was the inspiration for the state's capitol building, also known as the Roundhouse. Doorways at opposing sides of the 1966 structure symbolize the four times of day, the four directions, the four stages of life, and the four seasons. Take time to walk through the building to see the outstanding 600-work collection of the Capitol Art Foundation, historical and cultural displays, and handcrafted furniture—it's a superb and somewhat overlooked array of fine art. The Governor's Gallery hosts temporary exhibits. Six acres of imaginatively landscaped gardens shelter outstanding sculptures.

Believed to be the oldest church still in use in the United States, this simple earth-hewn adobe structure was built around 1610 by the Tlaxcalan Indians of Mexico, who came to New Mexico as servants of the Spanish. Badly damaged in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt, the structure was restored and enlarged in 1710. On display in the chapel are priceless statues and paintings and the San José Bell, weighing nearly 800 pounds, which is believed to have been cast in Spain in 1356. In winter the church sometimes closes before its official closing hour. Latin mass is held daily at 2 pm, and new mass is on Sunday at 5 pm.