Albuquerque/Sante Fe or Salt Lake/Moab?
 

We're going to Denver this summer, and wanted to fly into either Salt Lake or Albuquerque, then make our way there over 3 days or so.
We are a family of 4 with kids 10 and 13.
If Utah, we would stop at Arches, and maybe Moab. If New Mex., we would stop in Santa Fe.
Any suggestions on which of the two routings might be better/more fun??

I'd definitely fly into Alb., stop in Santa Fe, on up to Durango, visit Mesa Verde NP, drive via Ourey on into Denver. If you have time, I'd do the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, carved out of the mountains overlooking the Animas River.

I'd do 1 night in Santa Fe, 2 nights in Durango and then on to Denver.

I love all of the above. Salt Lake didn't make a big impression on me.

I'll second starrsville's suggestion.

Lee Ann

The hair on the back of my neck is standing at the idea of opting for dirty Albuquerque over pristine S.L.C.

"Santa Flush" (as someone I know calls it) is actually quite appealing. Cutesy little touristy place and fun to walk around in day or night.

Utah is the "youngest" state in the union and the urban areas around SLC are actually kept up and always pleasant. You have the mountains and the unusual Salt Lake (which could be at any stage of odd-seeming evolution when you approach)

Heck the evening view from the State Capitol building, up on a bluff, with the mountains on one side, and the city lights down below is possibly better than anything you can see in New Mexico.

Utah is so pristine that even missing kids do better there than in other states. See Elizabeth Smart for evidence.

The path from SLC to Denver can include Vail, and perhaps even a detour to Aspen, in the Rockies.

Going north from Albuquerque you can pass through the prison town of Florence, CO, home of Unabomer Ted Kaczynski and Sammy The Bull Gravano. Now that is appealing.

Colorado is known largely for mountains including 16 of the 21 highest peaks in the lower 48. Shouldn't your path take in many of these mountains?

I'm voting for SLC to Denver via the route of your choosing.

If clean--make that sterile--is what turns you on, I suppose SLC might fit the bill. However, Albuquerque is not a dirty town. Particularly since they've totally remade the downtown area with lots of walking areas. Old town is charming and there are great museums. Going north from Alb. to
santa Fe you can bypass the freeway and take the wonderful Turquoise Trail. Going north from Santa Fe you can detour through Los Alamos and several Indian pueblos. And the northern part of New Mexico has glorious mountains. Check out the tourism web sites or guidebooks for the great museums for kids in both Alb. and Santa Fe. Guess what my recommendation is?
Vera

I'd lean towards the SLC to Moab if you had more than three days. You will be spending one full day and another half day of just driving so that doesn't leave enough time to see all there is to see in the Moab area. If you could manage 3 nights in Moab, then I'd say go for it.

starrsville route is very good too, but if you want to see Mesa Verde then you will also need more than just 3 days. To see Mesa Verde you need at least one full day and another half day would be better.

Utahtea

Alb-Santa Fe/Northern NM is the way to go - the people are diverse and (mostly) welcoming, the museums in Alb are great for kids (Natural History, Explora, Atomic) & Alb has a really nice, shady, animal respectful zoo. Santa Fe has a wonderful folk arts museum kids enjoy, plus several great Indian museums. I agree the Turquoise Trail (4 lane) from Alb to Santa Fe is a treat - the old mining town of Madrid has a mine museum, arts & crafts shops & good ice cream. Parts of Utah are gorgeous, but the NM combination of urban, rural, Indian pueblos,sunsets, mountains - is hard to beat. Have fun!

By describing Santa Fe as a "cutesy little touristy place," NorthwestMale loses all credibility with me. Santa Fe has at least six museums, more than 200 art galleries and an opera company. It is the oldest state capitol in the U.S. with some public buildings nearly 400 years old. The nearby Pueblos offer a fascinating view into the many Native American cultures.

And if NorthwestMale thinks the view from the SLC State Capitol building is "possibly better" than anything to be seen in New Mexico, then I suspect he hasn't been to New Mexico.

Hi,

I said that not because I have never been to New Mexico, but because I had to allow for the fact I've not covered every square inch of NM.

How can you argue that Santa Fe isn't totally touristy in the downtown walking area? All kinds of silly shops and stuff designed to draw people off the road who are going from Albuquerque to Denver, etc.

The options for a scenic drive from SLC to Denver far out-number and out-impress those for a drive from Albuquerque to Denver. (I've been on both drives)

Thanks for your vote though.

"How can you argue that Santa Fe isn't totally touristy...?" I won't bother, because apparently you and I have different views and appreciation of history, culture and art.