Air Travel

Most visitors to the area fly into Albuquerque, home of the region's main airport, but Santa Fe also has a charmingly small and handily located airport with daily nonstop service to a few key hubs. From Albuquerque, ground transportation is available to both Santa Fe (65 miles away) and Taos (130 miles), although most visitors rent a car.

Albuquerque's airport is served by all major U.S. airlines and has direct flights from most major West Coast and Midwest cities and a few cities on the East Coast (JFK in New York City on JetBlue, Atlanta on Delta, and Orlando and Baltimore-Washington on Southwest). Santa Fe Municipal Airport has direct flights on American Airlines from Dallas and Phoenix and United Airlines from Denver. Flights into Santa Fe tend to cost a bit more than those to Albuquerque, but the convenience can be well worth the extra expense. If you're venturing north from Santa Fe up to Taos, you might also consider flying into Denver, which is an hour or two farther than Albuquerque (the drive is stunning) but offers a huge selection of direct domestic and international flights.

Flying time between Albuquerque and Dallas is 1 hour and 45 minutes; Los Angeles, 2 hours; Chicago, 2 hours and 45 minutes; New York, 4 to 4½ hours (direct, which is available only on JetBlue; factor in another hour if connecting).

Long layovers don't have to be only about sitting around or shopping. These days they can be about burning off vacation calories. Check out www.airportgyms.com for lists of health clubs that are in or near many U.S. and Canadian airports.

Airport Information

Albuquerque International Sunport. 505/244–7700; www.abqsunport.com.

Denver International Airport. 303/342–2000; www.flydenver.com.

Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF). 505/955–2900; www.santafenm.gov/airport.

Ground Transportation

From the terminal at Albuquerque's airport, Sandia Shuttle provides scheduled van service to hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, and several other locations around Santa Fe; the cost per person is $33 each way. RoadRunneR Shuttle & Charter offers airport shuttle van service as well as private rides from both the Albuquerque and Santa Fe airports to throughout Santa Fe and the surrounding area (including Albuquerque, Los Alamos, and Española)—for a price, you can charter a shuttle to just about any town in the state. From Albuquerque, RoadRunneR charges $33 each way to most Santa Fe hotels and $44 each way to most Santa Fe residences and other businesses. From Santa Fe Airport, the cost is $16 each way to most addresses in town.

Shuttle Contacts

RoadRunneR Shuttle & Charter. 505/424–3367; www.rideroadrunner.com.

Sandia Shuttle Express. 505/474–5696; 888/775–5696; www.sandiashuttle.com.