Heard about Santa Fe’s amazing food culture? Those of us who grew up eating chile can’t wait for autumn when roasting chile scents the breeze. Chile (note spelling) is on menus everywhere, whether Mom-and-Pop joints or James Beard quality restaurants making culinary magic with our favorite ingredient. Santafe.org/ dine is your one-stop for discovery and if you want to add chile to your home cooking –– and you will –– the Santa Fe School of Cooking will teach you how.

Santa Fe is renowned for its museums. The International Museum of Folk Art holds the collection of famed designer Alexander Girard and is located on Museum Hill, with expansive landscape views and 5 other notable institutions: the 1937 Wheelwright Museum, New Mexico’s oldest non-profit, independent museum; the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture and its research arm, the Laboratory of Anthropology (pre-arranged visits please); the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art; and the Santa Fe Botanical Garden, great horticulture for Santa Fe homes. A short distance from Museum Hill is the School for Advanced Research, which hosts an excellent lecture series.

Family activities should include the Folk Art Museum’s toy collection and the Santa Children’s Museum for hands-on play. Meow Wolf’s immersive art experience provides an imaginative all-ages trip through secret passageways and inventive multimedia portals.

Head downtown to the New Mexico Museum of Art, home to the St. Francis Auditorium performance venue and a treasure trove of historic artwork. Across the street are the New Mexico History Museum and the Palace of the Governors, one of the oldest Santa Fe properties and also the oldest continuously operating U.S. government building. Under the portal of the Palace, you’ll see Native American artisans selling their wares. The IAIA (Institute of American Indian Arts) Museum on Cathedral Place is a look at contemporary Native arts by IAIA students, faculty and alumnae.

Performing arts are in Santa Fe’s lifeblood. From Plaza buskers to the famed Santa Fe Opera, there’s something for every musical taste. A former 1931 movie palace is now the Lensic Center for the Performing Arts, a superb venue for jazz, classical and folk musicians, dance troupes, and live streams from the Metropolitan Opera and theatre productions.

If you want to do not watch, bingo! Santa Fe Community College includes continuing education classes, Wise Fool New Mexico teaches circus techniques and NDI (National Dance Institute) New Mexico shares the joys of dance. Class listings on santafe.org include painting, drawing, glass-blowing, jewelry and more. Santa Fe has several yoga studios and many expert teachers. For mellowing out as a family, the new Peace Play for Kids is a community space with yoga, meditation and workshops for kids and parents. 

I’ll end by circling back with more evidence of our City Different status, our festivals! We salute summer with Opening Night at the Santa Fe Opera, ART Santa Fe, Spanish Market, and SWAIA Indian Market. Labor Day Friday marks the Burning of Zozobra, a time to cast off the gloom and anxieties of the past year before the return of Fiesta de Santa Fe and its fun Desfile de Los Niños Pet Parade.

September brings the Santa Fe Wine and Chile Fiesta, the ultimate in Santa Fe luxury living, and in October, the International Balloon Fiesta lifts off in Albuquerque. A new Glow-in-the-Dark Day of the Dead celebration is coming to the Plaza in 2022. Thanksgiving in Santa Fe homes features red chile-glazed turkey and in December, Santa Fe properties shine brightly for the Christmas Eve Farolito Walk. The year ends at New Year’s Eve on the Plaza, as we celebrate with live music and fireworks sparkling in the night sky above the Plaza.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this virtual “cruise” through the City Different and its diverse Santa Fe realty opportunities. Santa Fe’s centuries-old legacy is built by people just like you who put down roots and add their vision and inspiration to the mix –– and now, YOU are welcome!