Cheryl

Am taking my hubby on a surprise trip to Santa Fe. Want to visit a pueblo - but there are so many and HOW do you make arrangements with their authorities to visit. Am interested in one that was pottery for sale or cliff dwellings. One article I read said to get permission "from the governor"? HELP!! We have just 3 days - what sights/activities dhould we not miss?

judith

i think you mean taos pueblo and church. a nice 1-day trip from santa fe. you can take the high road up and the quicker route back. no permission from anyone is needed. georgia o'keefe painted the church many times. look on the taos and santa fe webs.

Steph

You might like to visit El Sanctuario
de Chimayo, about 24 mi. NE of Santa Fe. It's a pretty church with a very interesting "shrine" in the back - it's hard to explain here (you can get the full story at chimayo.org/history.html.
The Rancho de Chimayo restaurant in the same vicinity is also very good.

Pam

Chronicle Books has A Guide to the Pueblos of the southwest. I think it lists feast days,locations,restrictions etc.

gail

The most well preserved one (we have been told) is the Acoma City in the Sky. It still has a native population present and leads tours to the top of the Mesa. It was $10.00 per person and a $10.00 per camera fee (with restrictions). there are opportunities to but Idian made crafts, pottery as you tour. You can not back track though, so if you like it go for it! The prices were cheaper at the village than in the visitor's center parking lot.

judith

acoma "sky city" pueblo is my favorite pueblo to visit. it is on a high mesa and a bus takes you to the pueblo. i don't know what is open in the winter if that is the time you are going. i would check ahead.

the only thing against visiting acoma is it is a long drive from santa fe. you would be spending many hours in the car.

SA

Although not in Santa Fe I preferred the Taos Pueblo to any of the others I visited. Although there is some touristy stuff if you want to sit down & converse they are more than amicable & friendly.

gail

It is true that at the Acoma City, the inhabitants pretty much stay inside the dwellings when you are touring. It was a festival day when we were there and there were many people who lived on the reservation walking about, they mostly said Hello and were pleasant, but not chatty. I was comfortable with that as our guide actually lived up there and was very freindly and gracious.
There is a special lighting of the luminaria celebration package (Dec 24th) you can participate in through the casino down below. It included dinner and a visit to the pueblo service and festivities. I think it was $79.00 per person.I am not sure, but it may include a room also.There is a website with this info.

E.

We visited Taos Pueblo, and I think you should, too! It was very easy to do, no advance planning necessary, and we lucked into a tour that was departing just as we walked up. The tour was excellent, essential, really, to understanding the place, and if you're a planner you may want to call ahead to find out how often they are done--the tour guides are all natives of the pueblo, they do the tours for tips only, and some days they can be short on guides.
There were many--perhaps a dozen--shops open in the pueblo, most of which sold pottery. Obviously, what's open and what they have on hand will vary. There were also tables and shops selling food, mostly fry bread and cookies, that kind of thing. But I must say that the overall feeling wasn't "touristy"--it's all very low-key and atmospheric, and it's a blast to see vistas and buildings that have appeared over the years in so many photographs and paintings.
As for cave dwellings, Taos Pueblo did not feature any as far as I recall--I would suggest a day trip to Bandelier National Monument, where you can climb up small wood-and-rope allders into cave dwellings and view cliff paintings without any strenuous hiking required.

E.

We visited Taos Pueblo, and I think you should, too! It was very easy to do, no advance planning necessary, and we lucked into a tour that was departing just as we walked up. The tour was excellent, essential, really, to understanding the place, and if you're a planner you may want to call ahead to find out how often they are done--the tour guides are all natives of the pueblo, they do the tours for tips only, and some days they can be short on guides.
There were many--perhaps a dozen--shops open in the pueblo, most of which sold pottery. Obviously, what's open and what they have on hand will vary. There were also tables and shops selling food, mostly fry bread and cookies, that kind of thing. But I must say that the overall feeling wasn't "touristy"--it's all very low-key and atmospheric, and it's a blast to see vistas and buildings that have appeared over the years in so many photographs and paintings.
As for cave dwellings, Taos Pueblo did not feature any as far as I recall--I would suggest a day trip to Bandelier National Monument, where you can climb up small wood-and-rope ladders into cave dwellings and view cliff paintings without any strenuous hiking required.

cp

Since you only have 3 days DEFINITELY go to Taos. NM is huge and driving all over heck and back is beautiful, but not a good use of time.

While in Taos, I also recommend checking out the Nicholas Fechin house. It's a former artist's residence that has been turned into a nifty museum.

I love Bandelier, it's one of my favorite places to visit.

One thing you could do is book your second night in Taos. Get up early that morning, drive to Bandelier, see the cliff dwellings in the morning, have a picnic lunch there, and continue on to Taos. You would have the rest of the afternoon and the next morning for sightseeing before your return to Santa Fe. In addition to the Taos Pueblo, I highly recommend the Nicholas Fechin house. It's a former artist's residence that has been turned into a museum. Taos has almost as many galleries as Santa Fe, so you'll see art there too.