My dear friend is getting married and I may be standing up for her if her best friend can't get in from CA. I wasn't certain I would be attending this wedding but now it looks like a sure bet. She is getting married at Bishop's Lodge but they are more than full. It's bad enough trying to find flights for under $700 from DC but I know anything about Santa Fe and wonder if any Fodorites would have accomodation suggestions? Thanks so much. Threehearts

La Fonda, La Posada de Santa Fe, Inn of the Anasazi, Inn at Loretto, Hotel St. Francis are some of the more upscale properties in SF.

Is the wedding scheduled over a holiday? I can almost always find fares from DC into Albuquerque for under $350. Have you considered Priceline?

I like St. Francis and all the ones obxgirl recommends (this while Hurricane Frances passes me by). Fly into Albuquerque and rent a car. You'll need one. It's only an hour btwn the two.

Thanks so much for the advice. The wedding is on October 2nd and I will be flying in late in the day on Friday(will miss the rehearsal d/t long flight w/connections) and leaving on Sunday morning. There may be cheaper flights with more than 1 connection but for about 36 hours in Santa Fe, that seems impossible. I will look up those properties and continue to search for flights. I am a big Priceline fan but not knowing flight times and with a sp. needs kid back home, I don't think I can chance it this time. I tried Priceline vacation packages as well as Site 59 but they don't don't seem to offer the Albuquerque/Santa Fe area. Thanks again. Threehearts

Have you tried Southwest Airlines? (www.iflyswa.com) They only book online through their own website. From DC, they will fly out of BWI, and into ABQ.

You can fly non-stop both ways on Southwest for $376. We like La Fonda best, but you might try the Governors Inn for slightly less $$. Early October in SF is beautiful.

I'll look into these options(SWAir etc.) this morning. Thanks so much for all of the help. Is it easy driving from Albuquerque to Santa Fe? I'm not the best navigator in "foreign" territory.

Hi threehearts, I'm finding flights w/one stop on American, America West, Delta and Northwest out of Dulles and Reagan in the $250-$450 r/t range. Are you flying economy?

The drive from Abq to SF couldn't be much easier. It's a straight shot up I-25 North and takes an hour.

If you're looking to economize a bit, SF has all of the chain hotels as well (Radisson, Hilton, Hampton Inn).

Your friend is fortunate to have someone to come in at the last minute for her. Good luck to you!

Hi, threehearts,
If you don't need a car or weren't planning to rent one, you can take a shuttle service from Albequerque Airport directly to your hotel in Santa Fe. There at least 2 companies that will do this with frequent service. They are fairly inexpensive and will also take you back to the airport if needed. Can't remember the names of the companies right now. Will post again when I find them.

Like OBX says, Alb to SF couldn't be easier. But, once you've settled on a hotel, it would probably be a good idea to mapquest it, so you can manuever the streets in SF. Also, from hotel to Bishop's Lodge, which I think is a bit out of town. If you have a chance to grab a meal, you should try El Shed for New Mexican and Geronimo for higher end.

I looked 3 nights ago and must have plugged in a wrong city code if the fares are that good. I used Sidestep. I'll redo it now and thanks. Can anyone tell me which of the recommended hotels is the closest to Bishop's Lodge? Much appreciation. Threehearts

threehearts, Bishops Lodge is slightly north of downtown Santa Fe. Maybe 10-15 minutes from the Plaza (the heart of the downtown area). Most of the nicer places people have mentioned are all located very close to the Plaza. The chain hotels are primarily found on the commercial strip Cerrillos Rd which is just south of Santa Fe. So the BL is kind of the odd one out in terms of location. But SF is a very compact town and it's not really difficult to get around. If you can drive in DC you'll certainly have no problem there.

I'd book the hotel you like and call the BL to get specific directions.

I'm not familiar with sidestep. I use itasoftware.com (it has flight nos) and check it against the airline websites.