Our trip back to Santa Fe from Vermejo was much simpler than the other drives we’ve taken in New Mexico: 45 minutes out of the Vermejo River Valley, and then 2:15 straight down I-25 to Santa Fe. I-25 runs along the western edge of the Great Plains and is lightly traveled, so I put the Caddy on cruise control at the speed limit (75) and, well, cruised.

Once in Santa Fe we dropped our bags at the the hotel and I went to return the car – we won’t be needing it this weekend in town.

Inn of The Anasazi, May 2019

We’re staying at the Inn of the Anasazi, located right off the central Plaza in Santa Fe. It’s very different than our other accommodations ; actually, all of our hotels have been very different from each other.

Holiday Inn Express (Alamogordo/White Sands) – your basic Holiday Inn; clean, a bit tired, excellent staff. I never actually took a picture there. Not even on my iPhone.

Inn of the Five Graces (Santa Fe) – exotic, colorful furnishings, large suite, attentive staff, but run as a hobby by the owner of a furniture store (1).

Historic Taos Inn – a motel dressed up in adobe and old school wooden furnishings; cramped even though we had a two room suite.

Vermejo Park Ranch – an early 20th century mansion on 600,000 acres with luxury pretensions operated by a bunch of amateurs.

Inn of the Anasazi (Santa Fe) – a Rosewood Hotel, luxurious and well run, but the room is smaller than you might like for the price (picture shows the hotel library).

Overlooking the Plaza, May 2019

Anyway, we’re here for two nights before flying home. We spent the afternoon wondering around a bit, and sat in a 2nd floor patio bar overlooking the main Plaza for some beers. Dinner was at the hotel (courtesy of a credit from our travel agent) and quite nice. There was a cocktail hour for guests before dinner, and we spent time talking with the GM, the Executive Chef, and the Food & Beverage Manager. The wine was nice, and the dinner was tasty.

(1) Sally disagrees with this characterization, and she’s the hotel maven in our team.