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The Land of Enchantment offers a range of attractions for the entire family — from subterranean wonders to forested mountaintops, Native American ruins to contemporary art. Head north of the border and explore what once was New Spain.
(Mileage is approximate distance from El Paso.)
SANTA THERESA (11 miles) —
The War Eagles Air Museum makes this small border town a must stop for history and aviation enthusiasts. Military aircraft from WWII and the Korean Conflict — including a P-51 Mustang — are exhibited here. Several bed-and-breakfast properties in the area offer gorgeous vistas of the Franklin Mountains and the lights of El Paso.
LAS CRUCES (44 miles) and MESILLA (49 miles) —
New Mexico’s second-largest city offers concerts, shopping, and museums, including the Branigan Cultural Center and New Mexico Farm and Ranch Museum. Nearby history-soaked Mesilla and its charming historic plaza have art galleries, cafés, pecan tree-lined back roads, and the ghosts of Billy the Kid, and other famous and infamous characters whose boots once tread here.
ALAMOGORDO (86 miles) and CLOUDCROFT (105 miles) —
Near Alamogordo, White Sands National Monument is a 275-square-mile sand box of stark-white gypsum seen nowhere else in the world. The entire family will enjoy sliding down the dunes on sleds and even flattened cardboard boxes, and hikers enjoy the solitude and life forms that have adapted to life in this area. Photographers revel amid the incredible image opportunities (you have probably seen White Sands in any number of movies and commercials). Don’t miss the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo, and learn about this area’s important historic and continuing contribution to space exploration. Although nearby, Cloudcroft seems a world away at 8,668 feet above sea level and surrounded by thick forest. This quaint town, formerly supported by logging, is now home to many artists and several nearby astronomical facilities attracted by the high altitude and clear skies, including the National Solar Observatory.
TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES (118 miles) —
Although it sounds like an Old West gunslinger challenge, Truth or Consequences was actually named for the 1950s TV game show that offered publicity to any community that named itself after it. At any rate, Geronimo and his Apache warriors soaked in the healing hot springs here (Hot Springs was the town’s original name). Today, people from all over the world rejuvenate in the soothing springs and enjoy all manner of water play, fishing, and boating at nearby Elephant Butte State Park, so named because the reservoir’s center island is said to resemble an elephant.
