Santa Fe for Christmas! Lots of questions...
 

I am beyond excited that we have just booked a trip to Santa Fe for Christmas! This has been at the top of my travel list for the past few years, and I am thrilled that we will have the chance to see what it's like during the holidays.

We have 4 nights and 4 full days there with the 5th and last night in Albuquerque. We got a fantastic rate for Inn at the Governors - looks like a neat place.

On our must do list (outside of exploring Santa Fe) are Bandelier National Monument and Taos. I also read that Tent Rocks is an interesting place. Is snow frequent in December? We would love to do some hiking.

Kodi's trip report on Christmas in Santa Fe was helpful. I am thinking it might be fun to venture out to Taos on Christmas Day as she did. Are there any must do's on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day in the area?

We would like to go to Christmas Eve mass in Santa Fe so any recommendations on a church would be helpful.

And, finally, where is a nice place to have Christmas dinner (I'm assuming things will be open)?

That is a magical time to be in Santa Fe. You should be excited!

* Walking Canyon Road on Christmas Eve. They close the street to pedestrians only, galleries are lit with faralitos, music playing, some serving wine, other hot chocolate, an occasional Christmas carol breaks out. Magical.

* A Classical Christmas Eve at the Lensic Theater at 5pm. Purchase tickets in advance or they'll be sold out:

http://www.nmculturenet.org/calendar...dv_search=true

* At the Native American Pueblos, there are unique festivities planned. There is traditional dancing held over the holidays. Eight Northern Pueblos information, 505-852-4265.

The St. Francis Church was covered with scaffolds and such for a face cleaning a couple of weeks ago. Not sure but I bet they'll be finished by Christmas.

http://www.santafe.parishesonline.co...rg.asp?ID=6737

Also, Loretto Chapel. I don't know if they have services anymore, weddings only maybe, but give them a call. It's a charming, small chapel with the miracle staircase. Must visit it during your trip.

http://www.lorettochapel.com/index.html

Also, Our Lady of Guadalupe.
http://ologsf.50webs.com/

Yes, there is snow in December. However, I will say this year so far they have not received much at all. But snow is very common in December. Bundle up! Not sure what hiking you will be able to do -- I'll leave that up to others to post that. We've hiked in the summer but never winter.

Two years ago we got there before the blizzard. Santa Fe received around 34 inches (+/-) of snow in 72 hours. It was so beautiful if you made it to Santa Fe but those on the way were turned around on I-25 and I-40 as it shut down everything!

Hope that helps a little.
BeachGirl

May I jump into this thread?

We will also spend Christmas Eve in Santa Fe (we have done it before and it was amazing - walking up Canyon Road after dawn had been the most romantic Christmas experience in our lifetime).

We are also wondering about Christmas Eve Mass times. I could not find them on the churches' websites.

On Christmas day, most restaurants are open and offer multicourse Christmas menus. We had Christmas dinner in the Old House, which was good but not outstanding.

Taos pueblo on Christmas day is unique. Practically the whole village gathers in the churchyard for a ceremony which lasts several hours. Expect colorful costumes, Indian dancing (I will not judge it) and monotonous music. Strange mixture of Christian and pagan. You can come and go anytime.

There are many opportunities for hiking. If you want to combine hiking and archeology, go to Tsankawi cliff ruins - well off the beaten path. I also recommend the White Rock Canyon area for spectacular scenery.

Bandelier is a must, of course. Puye cliff ruins are impressive too.

How are the trails if it's snowy?

You are in the desert. Usually it snows heavily for, say, three hours. Then the sun comes out, everything dries up within minutes and the snow does not melt but evaporates.

At that altitude in December, the snow can and does stick around. Be sure to check on trail conditions before you head out to hike.

Lee Ann

Beachgirl, did you ever get to Coyote Cafe? If so, how was it? Thanks!

Anyone who knows the Christmas Eve Mass times?

Thank you so much.

Thanks to all of you for the great info. I guess we will have to play the hiking by ear depending on the weather.

I made a reservation for Santa Cafe for Christmas dinner. I was torn between that and Geronimo, but Geronimo had a prix fixe at $100 per head (w/o drinks) - I'm hoping Santa Cafe won't be that much.

traveller1959 - I couldn't find times for Christmas Eve mass on any of the websites either, but I would think they would be posted soon. I just read that the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi has a beautiful midnight mass on Christmas Eve.

How far are Tsankawi cliff ruins - and White Rock Canyon from Santa Fe?

to White Rock/Tsankawi, you take the 285 north from Santa Fe, then you turn left onto the 502 (direction Los Alamos), you cross the Rio Grande, see the historic bridge and Black Mesa (take pictures!), and after a few miles you turn left on the 4 (there is a sign towards "White Rock Overlook). At the end of the road, there is the canyon overlook, and you will find Tsankawi ruins on the way.

Distance from Santa Fe 35 miles/40 minutes - a very scenic drive. You can combine the drive with a tour of Los Alamos.

Tsankawi ruins are not fully developed. There is a parking lot, a trail and some signs. Just walk. Tsankawi ruins have some very good petroglyphs and some minor cliff dwellings.

It is a nice hike with good vistas.

Sorry, I don't know the times for Christmas Eve Mass. Call the churches or check the Santa Fe New Mexican website.

Lee Ann

When I googled "santa fe christmas eve mass" I found exactly this thread on top of the list. Isn't is funny?

Beyond that, I found that the mass in the cathedral is exactly at midnight. Bells will start ringing at 11:45 p.m.

betsy, Coyote Cafe did not live up to our expectations. I ordered the chef's specialty and it was good but too much sauce poured all over it. And very expensive for 4 oz of meat. The waiter was pissy and actually argued with us. We sat at the chef's counter which was interesting if you like to cook. However, it was very warm since you're in front of the cook tops and ovens. It is very cramped at the counter so you are elbow-to-elbow with the other guests.

I don't think we'll go back. I do like the Cantina but I go there knowing the service is mediocre but the views are excellent.

Beachgirl, that's a downer - I'm sorry that you had such a negative experience at CC. Argumentative waitstaff? That's unacceptable......and I'm one who basically only cares about how good the food is (when judging restaurants). I'll have to keep your experience in mind when deciding on my final restaurant choices.

After more thought, I am not sure if Taos will be feasible on Christmas Day if we want to get back to Santa Fe for a 7pm dinner reservation. It takes about 1 1/2 hours to get there, right? Would we be selling ourselves short if we only spent a few hours there?

Maybe I should look into visiting one of the parks on Christmas if they are open (I know Bandelier isn't).

Appreciate your thoughts - thanks!

Even if you only have a few hours, it would be worth it IMO. And if it's very cold, you may only want to spend a few hours there.

Lee Ann

I just wanted to thank you all again for the great tips. We had a fabulous time in Santa Fe over Christmas. It was COLD and snowy, but we still managed to see and do a lot. Here's a brief trip report:

We drove to Bandelier on Christmas Eve and were able to do a short hike (Longhouse Trail) despite the snow. It was a gorgeous sunny day, and there is always something unique about seeing national parks in the winter. We saw about 7 deer along the trail, too, which was neat.

We returned to Santa Fe and walked around the Plaza for a while and stopped by Loretto Chapel which is so beautiful. That night we walked Canyon Road before dinner at Los Mayas (delicious!) which was really festive (and crowded!). We then somehow managed to stay awake for Mignight Mass at the Cathedral Basilica which was a neat experience.

Christmas Day was overcast so we deferred our trip to Taos and drove outside of Santa Fe to San Ildefonsa Pueblo and then over to the church in Chimayo. We saw a movie on our way back into town since most everything else was closed up for the day. Dinner that night was at Santa Cafe - soooo good!!

The day after Christmas was more bad weather so we walked over to the Railyard District and spent the day walking around and popping in and out of the various shops/galleries. We ate at Thai Palace that night which was another great meal.

The sun was back out for our last day so we headed to Taos to visit the Pueblo, the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge and the Plaza. It was really cold that day (about 15 degrees!), but it was really neat to see the Pueblo in the snow. The people were so nice, and we bought a few souvenirs. We took the High Road on the way back which had some ice/snow on the roads, but it still only took about 2 hours.

We ate at The Shed for our last night and had an after dinner drink in front of the fireplace at La Posada which is a lovely hotel.

Overall, it was a fabulous trip and I would definitely return to the area - maybe next time in warmer weather so that we can do more outdoor activities. We stayed at Inn of the Governors for all 5 nights. The service here was excellent (besides a mix-up in our room rate which was taken care of after several conversations), and breakfast was delicious. We stayed in one of the rooms with a fireplace for only $99 which we thought was an excellent deal. I would highly recommend this place as it was within walking distance to most everything.

Sessa, I'm glad you had such a good time. $99 a night for Inn of the Governors is a great deal!

Lee Ann

Glad you enjoyed your trip!
Yes, it was mighty cold for a few days! We're in Taos and looking forward to visiting the pueblo with all the snow.

Your $99 rate was very good for any time of the year, but incredible at Christmas. Good job!