Southwest Arts in Santa Fe

August 9 – 15, 2005
sponsored by tdf




This 7 day 6 night cultural tour of Santa Fe includes the following: round-trip airfare, 6 nights hotel accommodations at Inn of the Governors in Santa Fe, Continental breakfast daily, three dinners, three performances (Santa Fe Opera lecture and opera, Chamber Music Performance and Maria Benetiz Teatro Flamenco), guided museum tours per itinerary, walking tour of Santa Fe, tour of Lensic Theatre (TBC), airport transfers-Albuquerque/Santa Fe, porterage at airports and hotels  
local service charges and taxes.  
Trip price: $2119 (double occupancy), details below.  



A week in lively Santa Fe, situated atop a 7,000-foot high plateau at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, with its sunny, clear weather, is a refreshing summer sojourn. Our eleventh annual trip to this vibrant town again provides a rich and varied cultural bill of fare centered on the performing arts of this remarkable destination. The Santa Fe Opera performs Rossini ’s, The Barber of Seville, at its beautiful amphitheater where the clear sky performs a starry backdrop. We have tickets to a Beethoven and Brahms concert at the internationally acclaimed Chamber Music Festival. A performance Maria Benitez’ Teatro Flamenco is our third offering. We visit an array of world-class museums exhibiting this fascinating region's three major cultures, Indian, Spanish/Mexican, and Anglo, and we tour the new Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. We offer an optional tour to Taos, and there is free time for individual exploration of the numerous galleries along Canyon Road. Our hotel in the center of town provides the ideal location for enjoying the town's many delights. Once again we have the expert guiding of Kathryn Davis, Santa Fe native and art expert.






1.  Tuesday, August 9     New York/Santa Fe
We depart LaGuardia at 9:35am on Continental Airlines and arrive in Albuquerque at 3:45pm. We meet our local guide and travel via private motor coach to Santa Fe. Our hotel, the centrally-located, first class Inn of the Governors, is situated just 2 blocks from the historic Santa Fe Plaza where Native Americans sell their crafts. It is within walking distance of a wonderful collection of art galleries, boutiques, museums and restaurants. It offers the intimacy of an inn with all the amenities of a deluxe hotel. We relax for the remainder of the afternoon before a casual welcome dinner.  



2.  Wednesday, August 10     Walking Tour/Flamenco Dance
A buffet breakfast is offered every morning at the hotel. Today we are introduced to the distinct heritage of Santa Fe on a guided walking tour through the picturesque, historic downtown area. For more than 380 years this unique community has been a center of culture and government. Before the Puritans landed at Plymouth Rock, Santa Fe was a capital city: first it was the capital of the Spanish Kingdom of New Mexico, then of the Mexican province of Nuevo Mexico, and in 1912 it became the capital of the State of New Mexico. We visit the Palace of the Governors, recognized as the centerpiece of Santa Fe. The Palace chronicles the history of the city, New Mexico, the desert Southwest and the Americas with exhibits that reflect Spanish colonial, Mexican and Territorial period lifestyles. Tonight we have tickets for a performance of the world renowned Maria Benitez Teatro Flamenco. Internationally acclaimed as a performer, choreographer and director, María Benítez is recognized as one of the finest in her field - Spanish dance and all that it embraces.  



3.  Thursday, August 11     Museums/Chamber Music
This morning we travel to Museum Hill for a guided visit to the Museum of International Arts and Culture that presents the diverse stories illuminating the art and history of Native America through two millennia. Then we tour the Museum of International Folk Art, which houses the world's largest collection of traditional folk art from around the world. We have time at leisure this afternoon. This evening we attend a concert at the internationally acclaimed Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival. Works of Beethoven and Brahms are featured.    



4.  Friday, August 12     Taos Option
Today you are free to explore the delights of Santa Fe. Once again we offer our popular full day optional tour to Taos. We visit the multi-storied Taos Pueblo to observe traditions that have endured for over 400 years. The Pueblo, the historic seat of Native American culture and the oldest inhabited community in North America, is an architectural marvel. We visit the Millicent Rogers Museum that houses an extraordinary collection of the distinctive black pottery by Maria and Julian Martinez of San Ildefonso Pueblo. After lunch (included) we have free time in the town of Taos to visit galleries displaying the work of present-day Taos and other Southwestern artists and crafts notables. The streets are lined with small boutiques, cafes and crafts studios. We return to Santa Fe by late afternoon. This optional day tour costs $ 85.00 (based on a minimum of 15 participants.) This evening we are free for personal pursuits.    



5.  Saturday, August 13     Museums/Opera
This morning the focus is on Southwest artists as we visit the Museum of Fine Arts located off the Plaza. The Museum of Fine Arts, a masterpiece of Pueblo Revival architecture, was built in 1917 and is the state's oldest art museum. Home to more than 20,000 works of art with an emphasis on artists working in the southwest, it has a permanent collection of more than 8,000 works, including Georgia O'Keeffe and the Taos Masters. The afternoon is free. This evening we transfer via private motorcoach to the Santa Fe Opera for an early buffet supper, set on the beautiful lower grounds beneath a tent overlooking a swath of lawn, gardens and pool. During dessert, enjoy a few well-chosen words from our guest speaker about the evening's program. The mystique of open-air opera continues where we see Rossini’s The Barber of Seville in the company's outdoor amphitheater, located in the original mountain desert setting just north of the city. With noted conductors and singers coming from the world's great opera companies, musical standards here have always been very high. The Santa Fe Opera features an advanced electronic libretto system. Every seat has a screen displaying the English text of the words being sung on stage. A simple on/off button allows individual control.  



6.  Sunday, August 14     Georgia O'Keeffe
This morning we first tour the Lensic Performing Arts Center and then visit the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. Georgia O'Keeffe is considered one of the preeminent modern artists of the 20th century. Opened in 1997, 80 years after the artist's first visit to the city in 1917, it has already welcomed more than 800,000 visitors. This summer there is a special exhibit featuring the photographs of acclaimed photographer Alfred Stieglitz, husband of Georgia O'Keefe. Tonight we have our farewell dinner at a local restaurant.  
 



7.  Monday, August 15     Depart
After breakfast we transfer via private motor coach to the Albuquerque airport for our Continental Airlines flight departing at 11:40am and arriving at LaGuardia at 8:35pm.





This engaging experience includes:

  • Round-trip air - Continental Airlines LaGuardia/Albuquerque/LaGuardia
  • 6 nights hotel accommodations at Inn of the Governors, Santa Fe
  • Continental breakfast daily
  • 3 dinners
  • Santa Fe Opera lecture and opera
  • Chamber Music Performance
  • Maria Benetiz Teatro Flamenco
  • Palace of the Governors
  • Museum of Indian Arts and Culture
  • Museum of International Folk Art
  • Museum of Fine Arts
  • Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
  • Walking tour of Santa Fe
  • Tour of Lensic Theatre (TBC)
  • Airport transfers-Albuquerque/Santa Fe
  • Porterage at airports and hotels
  • Local service charges and taxes
PROGRAM PRICES  
Per person (double occupancy) from New York:$2119  
Single Supplement:$625  
Air Taxes:$75  
Optional Taos tour(minimum 15 participants)...$85.00