we are planning three or four days in santa fe in august. We imagine it is hot. what is the weather like? WIll it be unpleasant? ANy recommendations for nice places to stay with pools?

Let me be the first (but not last) to say: It's a dry heat!
It will be hot, but not sticky-humid, which is what I live in. So, to me, it's less oppressive.
But it will be a deceptive heat. You'll sweat without knowing it. Drink PLENTY of water if you're outside a lot.
Nightime will bring cooler weather.
Check out the Bishop's Lodge. It's just outside of Santa Fe. They have a big pool, a good restaurant, hiking trails and horseback riding.
Have fun.

I like the Radison that is on the plaza. It is worth being right there. Cool off at Hagen Daz on the plaza with ice cream. Make a trip to Madrid and Taos. they are both very unique and less than an hour away. If you aren't used to mexican food, ask to sample the red and green chile first to see which you can handle. Us locals ask to see which is better that day, so they won't look at you funny. It will be hot, but Santa Fe is cooler than some spots here in NM.

Because of the altitude, not only will it be cooler than you might imagine in the day, you'll probably want a light sweater for the evenings. I don't go anywhere really hot if I can avoid it, and I'd be fine with going to Santa Fe in August. I'll second the water bottle recommendation, as well as a hat and lots of sunscreen.

Be aware, Indian Market, the biggest event of the year will be the weekend of 17-18th August. There will be 600 booths and approximately 10,000 people expected. After playing on the internet looking for reservations for the night of the 16th, I finally found a place which is not close in, and billed as a Route 66=type hotel! The next day, it disappeared from the net.

Actually, the whole week preceding the Indian Market is booked. Just type Santa Fe into your browser (GOOGLE) and you will find wonderful info and links on everything that you could want.

Good luck and enjoy and watch out for the chili!!

Just returned from Santa Fe in June. It is hot in NM, but Santa Fe is a little cooler due to the elevation. Check out weather.com for up to date weather info. Santafe.org is a great web site that also has other travel info and links. Have fun!

As others have said, it will probably be fairly warm during the day, but not oppressively so. Because of the altitude, Santa Fe is significantly cooler than other places in NM, even nearby Albuquerque.

Of course, I went to Albuquerque in August last year and had a blast. It was hot, so I went hiking and those sorts of outdoor things either early in the morning or in the early evening, and spent the heat of the day at museums or other indoor activities.

A lot of people fly into ABQ and immediately leave for Santa Fe, totally overlooking a lot of the cool things about Albuquerque. I actually like it better than Santa Fe, especially on weekends when downtown Santa Fe is, to me, pretty miserable (traffic, mobs of people, nowhere to park). The botanical gardens in ABQ are terrific and definitely a must-see if you enjoy that sort of thing at all. Besides all the desert foliage you might expect, they have a great Mediterranean-style garden, a butterfly house, and lots of other things, and when I was there the air was full of hummingbirds. The aquarium is right next door, included in the same price, and is relatively small but very well done -- a terrific aquarium considering it's in the desert!

My favorite thing in Santa Fe is, by far, the Museum of International Folk Art, which is the best museum I've ever been to. It's totally delightful and tons of fun seeing all the toys, dolls, small pieces of art, etc, that everyday people from all over the world make with everyday things. Check out www.moifa.org It's the only museum I've ever been to that I thought really lived up to (and surpassed) the hype.

Anyway, enjoy your trip.

I've been to Indian Market several times.

Many people book a year or more in advance so that cancellations are a common occurence.

I you want to go this year, just leave your name on a few hotel's wait list.

That's how we found a place our first time during Indian Market.