Why New Mexico Should Be Your Next Road Trip

The windswept sand crunched beneath my feet, and I squinted at the intense brightness of White Sands National Park in southern New Mexico. From a distance, the dunes looked smooth, soft and round, but up close, there was an artistry in the landscape that gave it more texture and depth. Wind created miles of parallel lines in the sand that were perfectly imperfect. The juxtaposition of the blinding white sea of sand against the deep cerulean sky made clear why New Mexico is known as the Land of Enchantment.

I navigated the largest gypsum dune field in the world—sprawling 275 square miles—thanks to a series of blue trail markers designating the trackless path. The dunes constantly changed shape with the wind and color with the shifting light, tufts of little bluestem grass protruding through the brilliant sand. Kids laughed and screamed excitedly while sledding down the sand mountains.

This was just one stop on my nine-day October road trip—taken along with good friends—to experience a few of the treasures New Mexico has to offer. My path covered a nearly 800-mile loop featuring natural wonders, Indigenous heritage and cultural landmarks.

Hot-air balloons in Albuquerque

Starting in Albuquerque, I timed my arrival to coincide with the last day of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta—the largest hot-air balloon festival in the world. My friend Shellee and I groggily pulled ourselves out of bed at 4 a.m. to catch the shuttle to the 78-acre launch field. As we meandered through throngs of people, the dark morning sky was intermittently lit by flickering flames inflating hot-air balloons in a rainbow of colors. Eventgoers’ glowing smartphones captured the excitement while kids ran around with souvenir light-up wands. Meanwhile, parents sat in fold-up chairs on the grass, bundled in blankets against the cold morning air, warming their hands and bellies with breakfast burritos.

The anticipation was palpable as the crowd eagerly awaited Mass Ascension, where, typically, some 500 balloons take to the sky in a carefully choreographed masterpiece. Unfortunately, inclement weather prevented the balloons from taking flight the day we were there, but seeing them light the sky, even while tethered to the ground, was still a breathtaking spectacle.

Exquisite art in Santa Fe

Taking New Mexico’s original Route 66, we made the 63-mile drive north from Albuquerque to Santa Fe—the highest (7,000 feet) and oldest (established 1610) state capital. Nicknamed “The City Different,” Santa Fe is a hot spot for world-class art and home to more than 200 galleries, with the highest density situated along walkable Canyon Road, which stretches a half-mile.

First stop: the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum to check out the notable 20th-century artist’s large-scale paintings of the New Mexico landscape. Her soft colors and gentle brush strokes drew me in with a feminine energy that gave life to magnified flowers, brittle animal skulls and rolling hills.

A few blocks away is historic Santa Fe Plaza, established in 1609, where I passed the adobe Palace of the Governors, a prime example of Spanish-Pueblo Revival architecture. Indigenous artisans lined the front walkway selling handmade pottery, textiles and jewelry illustrating their rich culture, including intricate turquoise and silver rings and woven bead earrings.

In contrast, we ended with a visit to Meow Wolf’s House of Eternal Return, a multisensory, immersive contemporary art collaboration with cosmic dreamworlds, bizarre secret passages and unsolved mysteries. Shellee and I discovered hidden rooms by crawling through a fireplace, entering a tunnel behind a refrigerator door and slipping down a slide inside a clothes dryer.

Indigenous heritage in Taos

The next day, Shellee headed home, and I drove solo 76 miles to Taos along the picturesque High Road to Taos Scenic Byway, which popped with fall colors. There, I met up with my friend Jan for a guided tour of Taos Pueblo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The community has been home to Indigenous peoples for more than 1,000 years, with about 150 currently living in the traditional adobe homes. Our guide, Kevin Whitefeather, founder of Whitefeather Native Cultural Tours, chatted with us about the heritage, customs and ancestral land of the Red Willow People from Taos Pueblo. 

“Our people have been in this valley from time immemorial, before recorded history,” said Whitefeather. “Our way of life is rooted in the creator, Mother Earth. Everything wepray to has a symbiotic relationship—water, trees, land, birds—everything has meaning.”

We strolled the unpaved grounds through the 19-acre village, passing earth-colored dwellings with bright-blue doors matching the sky and traditional wooden ladders providing access to the upper units. Outside were hornos, round adobe ovens used for baking bread. This simple way of living appeared unrushed and in-touch with what’s important: community, spirituality, connection and respect.

Alien invasion in Roswell

Jan and I next journeyed 257 miles south to Roswell—the epicenter for kitschy alien Americana, rooted in US history. Roswell gained notoriety in 1947 due to supposed UFO crash sites, which the government concluded were caused by weather balloons, not flying saucers. Everywhere you look, effigies of little green men appear, including the massive black-eyed space-being in front of a Dunkin’, right next to the UFO-shaped McDonald’s.

At the International UFO Museum and Research Center, life-size dioramas of aliens pose in their imagined natural habitats and in precarious situations on Earth. Timelines, videos and photographs examine the why’s and how’s of unexplained UFO phenomena.

Nearby, the Roswell UFO Spacewalk creepily beckons like a haunted house. As we wandered through the black light-lit maze, with eerie music setting the scene, we encountered animated neon extraterrestrials warning humanoids of pending doom. I wasn’t sure whether to scream or giggle.

The final alien exposure was next door at Spaceport Roswell. Virtual reality headsets transported us into an alien-manned spaceship where we “experienced” the 1947 UFO crash in New Mexico.

Hot springs in truth or consequences

Next, we headed 253 miles west to Truth or Consequences (making our stop midway at White Sands National Park). Soaking in a hot springs-fed bath was just what I needed after a long day behind the wheel. The small town was originally—and appropriately—named Hot Springs after the centuries-old, mineral-rich geothermal waters that run beneath. In 1950, the town was renamed as a publicity stunt by the Truth or Consequences radio show. There are several bathhouses, spas and resorts that tap into the healing waters to offer guests a unique wellness experience. Jan and I took a second soak, in a large outdoor bath made of stone, following a restorative yoga class at Mothership Yoga Lounge & Hot Springs.