Winter is a good time for a Santa Fe-cation because winter is value season in Santa Fe. All of the city’s historic charm, attractions, and timeless appeal remain, even as lodging is at its lowest cost of the year. Whether skiing in the Southern Rockies just outside of town, exploring the city’s diverse shopping and art districts, or simply taking some time out, Santa Fe’s warm hospitality and bright winter sun are in place to welcome travelers.
The past year in Santa Fe saw a number of highpoints; the New Mexico History Museum opened its doors, the city’s 400th Anniversary began 16 months of commemoration, and American Eagle introduced service to the Santa Fe Municipal Airport with 3 daily flights–2 from Dallas and 1 from Los Angeles. With the onset of winter, the city’s relaxed pace slows even more as we welcome the holidays and move into a new year.
If it’s a couple’s escape you’re thinking about, setting the mood for a romantic get away comes naturally to this old town. The city is filled with pampering accommodations, nurturing spas, and perfect tables for two. Santa Fe’s intimate scale embraces every couple and walking is the best way to get around town or soak up the snow-covered mountain vistas. On a day when storms roll down from the Rockies, it can’t get any better than curling up next to a kiva fireplace.
Find some time for yourself this winter and let Santa Fe help you get in touch with the inner, relaxed, you. Look for lodging specials and everything that’s going on in town at www.santafe.org. View an updated calendar of Santa Fe events or ongoing winter savings and deals check in and stay current at www.santafe.org with ways to save on lodging, ski packages, spa treatments, and more.
2010 Winter Events in Santa Fe
January 1: Pueblo Dances at most of the Pueblos surrounding Santa Fe celebrate community and tradition. www.santafe.org/What_s_Happening/index.html
January 16: Leo Kottke performs at the James A. Little Theater. www.ticketssantafe.com
January 17: Santa Fe Symphony presents “Vienna, With Love” at the Lensic Performing Arts Center. www.santafesymphony.org
January 26: Van Cliburn Piano Competition Medalist, Yeol Eum Son performs solo and with the Albers Trio at the St. Francis Auditorium. www.ticketssantafe.com
January 30: Santa Fe Souper Bowl XVI – a fundraiser for The Food Depot featuring the best soups from the city’s finest restaurants. At the Santa Fe Community Convention Center. www.thefooddepot.org.
February 1: Moscow Festival Ballet: Coppelia. Lensic Performing Arts Center. www.ticketssantafe.com
February 2: Moscow Festival Ballet: Sleeping Beauty. Lensic Performing Arts Center. www.ticketssantafe.com
February 11: The Acoustic Brotherhood featuring Los Lonely Boys. Lensic Performing Arts Center. www.ticketssantafe.com/
February 26-28: The 13th Annual ArtFeast celebrates with world-class chefs and restaurants, an international array of vintners, original designer fashions and unique homes, along with nationally and regionally prominent artists represented by members of the Santa Fe Gallery Association. The Edible Art Tour on Friday evening showcases 30 of the city’s finest Canyon Road and Downtown art galleries paired up with some of Santa Fe’s best chefs who present their art-inspired foods. www.artfeast.com
March 6: A talk by Annie Leibowitz as part of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum’s “Women of Distinction” series. www.okeeffemuseum.org
March 12-13: The Aspen Santa Fe Ballet performs mixed repertory in their signature style including newly commissioned works by Helen Pickett and Nicolo Fonte. www.santafetickets.com
More of What’s Going on in Santa Fe
Ski Santa Fe is open for the season (12/12). With 67 runs and terrain for the first time skier or snowboarder as well as the most seasoned expert, Ski Santa Fe is an ideal winter escape in the Southern Rockies. Located, 16 miles from the heart of the city, and over 3,000 feet higher, the area covers 660 acres. The Chipmunk Corner children’s ski center provides instruction for kids from ages 3 to 11 and daycare for kids from 3 months to 3 years. Check www.skisantafe.com for conditions.
Santa Fe, City of Museums
There is always something of interest to be found at Santa Fe’s museums. Shows this winter include:
Museum of International Folk Art: Material World opens December 20 and presents a stunning look at the museum’s textile collection through 138 rarely seen items from everyday household articles to elaborately detailed ceremonial wear. Multiple Visions: A Common Bond – The museum’s remarkable Girard Foundation Collection includes toys, traditional arts, village scenes, textiles, and popular art pieces from more than 100 countries displayed at eye level for visitors from 2 to 102. It is one of the country’s most fascinating folk art collections. www.internationalfolkart.org/
SITE Santa Fe: Opening February 6, 2010, One on One, a suite of solo shows by Terry Allen, Hasan Elahi, McCallum & Tarry, and Kaari Upson, each examining the life of one person through video, painting, drawing, installation, and computer dialogue. www.sitesantafe.org/
Georgia O’Keeffe Museum: Opening January 22, 2010. Susan Rothenberg: Moving in Place. An exhibition of Rothenberg’s work, who, like Georgia O’Keeffe, left New York at mid-career to make New Mexico her primary residence. www.okeeffemuseum.org/
Museum of Contemporary Native Arts: The only Museum in the United States that is devoted solely to the exhibition of contemporary American Indian art forms. The Museum delivers on-going and changing exhibitions that feature a diverse range of artists from leading figures in contemporary Native art, including periodic exhibitions by IAIA Students, Alumni, and Faculty. The Museum also hosts major traveling exhibitions of Native American art. www.iaia.edu/museum/index.php
New Mexico Museum of Art: Opening January 29, 2010, Museums in the 21st Century: Concepts, Project, Buildings. Exploring current transformations in architecture, as museums redefine their roles as cultural centers that have many functions. Opening February 12, 2010, New Arrivals: Works from the Collection, featuring more than 25 works of art introduced for the first time as additions to the museum’s collection. www.nmartmuseum.org
Museum of Indian Arts & Culture: Through February 10, 2010, Native Couture II: Innovation and Style, discovering the history of Native fashion from hand-made clothing and accessories of the 1880s that influenced the development of Santa Fe Style, to today’s contemporary Native couturiers. Through June 6, 2010, A River Apart. How two major rivers and their tributaries - the Colorado River and the Rio Grande - have shaped both the landscape and the distribution of indigenous villages. www.indianartsandculture.org/
Museum of Spanish Colonial Art: Home to the most comprehensive compilation of Spanish Colonial art of its kind, the museum has 3,000 objects in its collections including work that spans centuries in art, place, and time. Combined, the collections represent the artistic history and ongoing evolution of Hispano culture in New Mexico. www.spanishcolonial.org/
New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors: Santa Fe Found: Fragments of Time: The archaeological and historic roots of American’s oldest capital city: Now celebrating its 400th anniversary, Santa Fe was once an infant city on the remote frontier. This exhibition explores the archaeological evidence and historical documentation of Santa Fe before the Spanish arrived, the first colony in San Gabriel del Yungue, the founding of Santa Fe, and its first 100 years as New Mexico’s first capital. Also, through April 14, 2010, Fashioning New Mexico: What We Wore to Mark Life’s Passages, featuring the clothes we wore over nearly two centuries of life’s milestones – christenings, weddings, military service, opera openings and more. A variety of interactive stations challenge visitors to tie a corset or check out a virtual image of themselves in one of the collection’s outfits. The clothing and accessories have been collected for the last century. This exhibition marks the first time they have been on display. www.nmhistorymuseum.org
Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian: Through Their Eyes: Paintings from the Santa Fe Indian School. Long considered the birthplace of contemporary Native American easel painting, this exhibition focuses on paintings from the Charlotte G. Mittler collection created by students who attended the Santa Fe Indian School between 1918 and 1945. Until April 18, 2010. www.wheelwright.org
For more about Santa Fe during the winter or any season and to receive a free 2010 Santa Fe Visitors Guide contact the Santa Fe Convention and Visitors Bureau; scenter@santafe.org , 800-777-2489.
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Keep in touch with everything going on in Santa Fe at http://www.santafe.org
Source: Ballantines PR
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".