With more than a dozen museums, national parks and monuments, Santa Fe County offers a sprawling expanse devoted to the region’s unique history, arts and culture. Whether you are interested in learning about the ancient Pueblo people, the Spanish Colonial era, the region’s mining history or its Wild West days, you will discover even more than you anticipated in an impressive array of fascinating attractions.
Santa Fe’s Poeh Museum and Cultural Center
Your Santa Fe adventure might begin with a trip to the Poeh Museum and Cultural Center, located conveniently off of U.S. Route 84 and boasting a massive repository of permanent artifacts and programs. The museum is dedicated to the culture and arts of the Puebloan peoples, Native Americans who populated much of the northern part of New Mexico. There are roughly 600 historical artifacts, from paintings, jewelry and pottery to textiles and sculptures. One final impressive fact about the Poeh Museum: in an effort to encourage the development of local talent, it provides free studio space to any Native American artist. With a valiant mission and a bevy of exhibits to choose from, this is the perfect attraction for your trip to Santa Fe.
Pecos National Monument in Santa Fe
Pecos National Historical Park
Pecos National Historical Park is another necessary stop on your adventure through Santa Fe. Operated by the National Park Service, this New Mexico marvel is a cultural crossroads through which hunters, gatherers, traders, missionaries, immigrants, soldiers, ranchers and other travelers passed. When you step on the grounds of Pecos, you are walking amid history, tracing the steps of ancient peoples who lived on the land long, long before modern-day New Mexicans. As you look out on the Sangre de Cristo mountains, you will notice the rush of times past—and feel grateful that your Santa Fe trip brought you to Pecos.
El Rancho de las Golondrinas in Santa Fe
What better way to understand local culture than by trekking around a historic rancho that is now a living history museum called El Rancho de las Golondrinas? Attractions don’t get much more authentic than this. Located on 500 acres in La Ciénega, the farming valley south of Santa Fe, Las Golondrinas shows guests what life was life during the period of Spanish rule over the southwestern portion of North America. Guides dress in period clothing, and you can sit back as they demonstrate weaving, hide tanning, blacksmithing and crop-planting. Be sure to sign up for tickets once this popular attraction re-opens for private tours in April 2024.
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