Official Tourism Sites

• Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau
• www.itsatrip.org
• The basic official intro to the city and surrounding areas, with events listings and hotel-booking services. A good starting point for research.

• New Mexico Board of Tourism
• www.newmexico.org
• The best of the official sites, this one has very thorough maps, suggested itineraries, and background info such as weather. You can even do a live online chat with the New Mexico Visitors Center in Santa Fe.

• Santa Fe Convention and Visitors Bureau
• www.santafe.org
• Near-exhaustive listings of tourist attractions and services on this slickly produced site. Primarily, though, you’ll just want to order the CVB’s visitors guide.

• Taos Chamber of Commerce
• www.taoschamber.com
• Nice background information, a thorough business directory, and events listings, but the chamber’s office, in Taos itself, is handier.

• Visit Los Alamos
• http://visit.losalamos.com
• The online version of the chamber of commerce’s nice handbook, with business listings and an events calendar.

Other Travel Sites

• Digital Abiquiu
• www.digitalabiquiu.com
• A community-maintained website with lots of information about local galleries, as well as good detailed maps and directions around the Chama Valley area.

• Hiking in the Sandia Mountains
• www.sandiahiking.com
• Mike Coltrin hiked every trail in the Sandias during the course of a year, covering about 250 miles. He detailed each hike, complete with GPS references, here.

• Public Lands Information Center
• www.publiclands.org
• Buy USGS, Forest Service, and other topographical maps online from the Bureau of Land Management’s well-organized website. Good stock of nature guides and other travel books too.

• Sangres.com
• www.sangres.com
• Scores of articles and travel details about the mountain communities, culture, and history of northern New Mexico, and of southern Colorado.

News and Culture

• Albuquerque Journal
• www.abqjournal.com
• The state’s largest newspaper is available free online only for the day of publication—reading the archives requires an annual subscription or an ad-supported day pass.

• Alibi
• www.alibi.com
• Albuquerque’s free weekly has been cracking wise since 1992, taking a critical look at politics as well as restaurants. Sometimes the staff are too hung over to list all the movie times, but otherwise they’re right on target. Its annual “Best of Burque” guide is a good listing of local recommendations.

• Duke City Fix
• www.dukecityfix.com
• This Albuquerque-centric blog covers everything from politics to gossip about the restaurant scene.

• Free New Mexican
• www.freenewmexican.com
• The free online version of the requires registration, but its archives contain good restaurant reviews, trail descriptions, and weekend outings, as well as all the news about the city.

• My Strange New Mexico
• www.mystrangenewmexico.com
• Book author and newspaper columnist Mike Smith unearths the state’s weirdest lore, from folk legends to UFO sightings.

• New Mexico Passport
• www.newmexicopassport.com
• Feeling as if you could be a New Mexico native? Apply for your official papers here, to be presented to any baffled American who’s not sure what country you’ve just been to.

• New Mexico Politics with Joe Monahan
• www.joemonahan.com
• Analyst Monohan’s obsessive, snarky blog charts the circus that is state politics, with plenty of examples of why New Mexico still can’t shake its “third-world country” rep.

• Santa Fe Reporter
• www.sfreporter.com
• Santa Fe’s weekly, like Albuquerque’s, is politically sharp and often funny. Get opinionated reviews and news analysis here.

• Stephen T. Terrell’s Web Log
• www.steveterrell.blogspot.com
• A music critic for the Terrell also watches politics like a hawk, so his blog mixes reviews of new albums with reports on Senate intrigue.

• Taos Horse Fly
• www.taosdaily.com
• Rumor mongering, way-left-of-center political commentary, and listings of activist meetings—check the pulse of Taos here.

© Zora O'Neill from Moon Santa Fe, Taos & Albuquerque, 2nd edition